Sambhar - Lentil Vegetable Stew

 

 

Sambhar - Gosh I can't even begin to describe how popular and a must have this dish is to every South Indian. It goes perfectly well with rice, Idli (steamed rice cake) and Dosa (a type of pancake). And you can expect Sambhar to be made in every Malayalee household and eaten almost everyday with every meal. It's also a default dish included in the menu for every good occasion and celebration whether at a wedding reception or for Vishu or Onam. The belly just doesn't get satisfied without the Sambhar. 



Sambhar


And the best thing about this dish is you get to add your choice of Veggies. You can add carrots, potatoes, shallots, cooking banana, okra, string beans, yam, eggplant, drumstick, tomatoes etc :-) - a little of any or all. It's just amazing when you think of all the nutrients you get from just this one dish.  
 
So What Do We Need?

• 1 cup of Toovar Dal / Arhar Dal / Sambhar Dal / Pigeon Pea

Wash and rinse out the dal about 2 to 3 times and Soak the dal in water for 20 to 30 minutes. After just drain the water out when you are ready to cook it.

• 1/2  a Carrot -  Cleaned, peeled and sliced.
• 1 big Potato or 3 small potatoes -  Cleaned, peeled and cut into cubes.
• 1 Tomato - Chopped.
• 1 Drumstick - Roughly peeled and cut into segments.
• 2 small Brinjals - Take the ends off and cut into cubes. Keep it immersed in water till you are ready to cook it.
• 5 Okra / Ladies finger - Take the ends off and cut into halves.
• 1/2 a cooking Banana - Take the ends off. Leave the skin on and cut it into cubes. Keep this immersed in water till you are ready to cook it. This is to avoid it from turning brown.

FYI - The cooking banana is unripe, firm and the skin will be green.  Its used for cooking in stews and stir fries. And we leave the skin on when we use it for cooking dishes. You can find it in the vegetable section in Asian / Indian stores.
 
You can reduce or add more vegetables depending on how you usually like having your Sambhar. Generally, more the quantity of the vegetables then the gravy will turn out to be more thick.

• 1/2 teaspoon Turmeric powder
• 1/4 teaspoon Cumin powder
• 1/2 teaspoon Coriander powder
• 1 teaspoon Chilli powder
• 1 heaped tablespoon Sambhar powder
• About 1/2 tablespoon Tamarind Paste
• A pinch of Sugar
• Salt as required
• 1 teaspoon Mustard seeds
• 2 pinches of Asafoetida / Hing / Kaayam
• 2  Dried Red chillies
• 2 sprigs of Curry leaves
• 2 - 3 Garlic cloves
• 1 pinch of Fenugreek seeds
• 1 tablespoon Vegetable oil
• Water

Let's Do This

1. In a pot or large sauce pan, take the already soaked sambhar dal and add about 4 cups of clean water. Add in the turmeric powder, a pinch of asafetida and enough salt to season the dal. Bring it to a boil over high flame. Once it begins to boil, close the pot with a lid and switch to a low to medium flame and cook the dal. Do check and stir from time to time.
2. When the dal is about half way done - I add in those vegetables that take longer to cook - like potatoes and carrots. Add more water if required to let the vegetables sit immersed. Cover the pot and continue cooking till the dal is completely cooked.
3. Once the dal is cooked, add in the remaining vegetables - drum stick, brinjal, cooking banana, okra and tomato. Add more water if required so that all the vegetables are immersed. Let this boil. Let all the added vegetables cook till done.
4. Once done, add the sambhar powder, cumin powder, coriander powder, chilli powder, a sprig of curry leaves and sugar. Mix well and let it boil for 2 minutes.
5. Then add the  tamarind paste and let it boil for a minute more.
6. Check the salt and add as required. Give it a mix and then turn off the flame.
7. Now let's prepare the tadka - in a small pan, heat some oil over low flame and once hot, add in the mustard seeds.
8. Once the mustard seeds begin to splutter, add thinly sliced garlic cloves, dried red chillies, asafoetida, pinch of turmeric powder, fenugreek seeds and sprig of curry leaves. Let this fry stirring continuously till garlic is lightly browned. Do not let it burn.
9. Then pour the tadka over the cooked sambhar.
10. Keep the sambhar covered with a lid for about 5 minutes so as to infuse all the flavors.
11. Later before serving gently give it all a mix.  And your done. :)

Note

The sambhar gravy will thicken as it cools down and so bear that in mind when you adjust the quantity of water after adding all the vegetables when you are preparing sambhar. There is no need to worry if the sambhar is a bit runny once you are done cooking it. As it cools, it will soak up some of the liquid and thicken.

Some Food Pics

 

FYI - Cooking Banana

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sambhar

 

 

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