South Indian lentil stew with vegetables, tamarind, sambar spice, and a mustard-seed curry-leaf tempering.
Sambar
South Indian lentil stew with vegetables, tamarind, sambar spice, and a mustard-seed curry-leaf tempering.
Ingredients
Dal
- 1 cup toor dal pigeon pea lentils
- 1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 3 cups water
Tamarind Juice
- 1 tablespoon tamarind
- 1/3 cup hot water
Vegetables and Stew
- 2 teaspoons oil
- 1/2 cup eggplant chopped
- 2 carrots medium; diced
- 7–8 drumsticks moringa pods; frozen is fine
- 1/2 teaspoon salt adjust to taste
- 1 tomato medium; chopped
- 3 cups water
- 2 tablespoons sambar powder adjust to taste
- 2–3 teaspoons jaggery powdered
- 1/2 teaspoon Kashmiri red chile powder optional
Tempering
- 1 tablespoon ghee or oil
- 3/4 teaspoon black mustard seeds
- 1/4 teaspoon hing asafoetida
- 10–15 curry leaves
- cilantro chopped, for garnish
Instructions
- Pressure-cook the rinsed dal with turmeric, salt, and 3 cups water until soft; mash lightly. In an Instant Pot, cook 9 minutes at high pressure with natural release.
- Soak tamarind in 1/3 cup hot water for 15–20 minutes, then strain and reserve the tamarind water.
- Heat 2 teaspoons oil over medium heat. Cook eggplant about 2 minutes, then add carrots, drumsticks, and salt and cook 2 minutes more. Add tomato and cook 1 minute.
- Add 3 cups water, sambar powder, jaggery, and about 4 tablespoons tamarind water. Stir in the cooked dal and optional Kashmiri chile powder. Simmer 5–6 minutes.
- For the tempering, heat ghee or oil. Add mustard seeds and let them pop, then add hing and curry leaves briefly until crisp.
- Pour the tempering over the simmering sambar. Garnish with cilantro and serve hot with idli, dosa, or rice.
Notes
Use oil instead of ghee for a vegan version. A mixture of toor and moong dal can also be used.
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Source: Cook with Manali
Category: Uncategorized