South Indian Sambar

Sambar is a South Indian stew made with lentils and vegetables. It is comforting, super flavourful and a staple in many home across India. It is best when paired with dosas, idlis, appams or tice, which are all the perfect vehicle to mop up this amazing stew.

The most common lentils used to make a sambar are split yellow peas (toor dal) and red lentils, but sometimes chana dal (chickpea) are also used.

Use any vegetables of your choice or what you have in your fridge but some traditional additions are, eggplants, carrots, beans, tomato, raddish, potatoes or even okra (lady fingers).

Ingredients:

• ½ cup toor dal (yellow split peas)
• 1 tbsp oil
• 1 tsp coriander
• ½ tsp cumin seeds
• ½ tsp asafoetida
• ½ tsp turmeric
• ¼ tsp red chili powder or paprika
• ¼ tsp black pepper
• ¼ tsp ground fenugreek
• 1 cup chopped carrot
• 1 cup chopped potatoes
• 1 cup green beans
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 cup chopped zucchini (or squash or pumpkin)
• ½ cup chopped tomato
• 3 cups water
• ¾ tsp salt, or to taste
• 1 tbsp tamarind paste, soaked in 1 cup warm water

For tempering:

• 1 tbsp oil
• ½ tsp mustard
• 10-15 curry leaves

Method:

Rinse toor dal well, then soak in warm water for 10 minutes. Drain then boil them in 2 cups water over medium heat for 30 minutes or until they are fully cooked. Use a spoon or spatula to mash the cooked peas and set aside.

In a large pot over medium-high heat, add the oil, then fry the coriander, cumin seeds, asafoetida, turmeric, chili powder, black pepper and fenugreek for 5-10 seconds before adding all of the chopped vegetables and 3 cups of water. Add the salt. Bring it to a boil, cover, and reduce heat to medium. Cook for 10 minutes.

In the meanwhile, soak the tamarind in 1 cup of warm water. After 5 minutes mash the tamarind water with a spoon or your fingers. Strain the tamarind juice into the pot slowly. Add the cooked, mashed toor dal to the vegetables and cook for another 5 minutes.

Make the "tempering" by heating the oil in a small saucepan then adding the mustard seeds. They will sizzle and may pop, so keep a lid handy. After a few seconds add the curry leaves. Immediately remove from heat and dump this seasoned oil, seeds and curry leaves into the sambar. Stir them in and taste the dish for seasoning, adjust and serve with rice.