- Hridya Warrier
Sambhar
It is a versatile curry that we can have as a soup, to go with rice, or Rotis. The best part is we can have it anytime of the day, at breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Everyone has a unique style to make Sambhar. This recipe is my version that I learned from mom!
Ingredients:
Tur Dal (Pigeon Peas) - 1 and 1/2 cups
Mixed Vegetables cut in cubes (Yellow Pumpkin, Potato - 1, Onion - 1/2 or 1 small, Carrots - 2, Green Bell Pepper - 1) - 1 big bowl
Tomatoes - 1
Okra - 6
Tamarind Paste - 3/4 tsp
Turmeric - 1 tsp
Salt to taste
Water - about 2-3 cups
Sambhar Masala Paste:
Coriander Seeds - 3 tbsp
Dry Red Chilli - 1
Dry Kashmiri Red Chilli - 2-3
Curry Leaves - 3
Methi Seeds (Fenugreek Seeds) - 1/2 tsp
Hing (Asafoetida) - 1/4 - 1/2 tsp
Fresh Grated Coconut - 1/2 cup
Tadka:
Olive Oil - 1 tsp
Mustard Seeds - 1 and 1/2 tsp
Curry Leaves - 4-5
Method:
Wash the Tur Dal. Pressure cook the Dal with 1 cup water, 1/2 tsp turmeric and salt.
Add the mixed veggies to a bowl and cook them separately with 1/4 cup water, and turmeric till they are soft but not mushy. I microwaved them for 3 minutes. These go in the Dal almost at the end of the recipe.
Sambhar Paste:
Heat a pan in low to medium flame. Add the coriander seeds, Red Chillies, and Curry leaves.
Roast these for couple of minutes. Then add the Methi seeds, coconut and hing.
Roast them all for about 5-10 minutes till the coconut mix turns golden brown. Cool this mix.
In a blender add this mix and blend for a minute without water. It should be a coarse powder.
Now add water 1/4 cup at a time. The paste should be smooth but not too watery. It would need about 3/4 cup of water in total.
Sambhar Gravy:
Mash the Dal. Add the Tamarind Paste, 1/2 cup water, and cut tomatoes to this and cook for a minute.
Add the mixed veggies and the Sambhar Paste to this. Add salt, 1/2 to 1 cup water, 1/4 tsp hing, stir, and leave it boil on medium flame.
Saute the cut okra in another pan on low flame. It will remove the stickiness and become crisp.
Add this in the end to the Sambhar.
The last step is to add the tadka. Heat a small pan. Add some olive oil. Add the mustard seeds and cover it. Wait for it to splutter. Add the curry leaves. Saute and add this to the Sambhar.
