Fans of South Indian food are aware that dinner would be lacking without sambar. The versatile southern Indian side dish goes well with any meal, from breakfast to dinner. This tasty gravy meal has a lot of vegetables and is mostly made of toor dal. Sambar is typically thought to be difficult to prepare because of its large number of components, but it is actually quite an easy dish to prepare. The lentils, oil, spices, sambar masala, tamarind, and mixed veggies make up the majority of the sambar ingredients. Sambar is a vegetable stew made with lentils, pigeon peas, and tamarind broth. South Indian, Sri Lankan, and Maldives cuisines all use it frequently. Being a common side dish for Burmese curries, the stew has been adopted into Burmese cooking. According to the legend surrounding the creation of sambar, Sambhaji, son of Maratha ruler Chhatrapati Shivaji, is the genuine source of the dish's original recipe. According to legend, when his chief chef was gone, Shivaji's son Chhatrapati Sambhaji Raje Bhonsale, one of the Maratha kings, attempted to cook dal for himself. He cherished his own creation, known as "Sambar," and he loved it. Sambar is incomplete without sambar masala. Although there are different brands of sambar masalas available in the market, nothing beats a homemade authentic sambar masala. It is full of spices and free of adulteration.
sambar/ pinterest.com
Ingredients
- 2 Cups Whole red pepper
- 1 1/2 cups coriander seeds (dhania)
- 2 tbsp mustard seeds (sarson)
- 3 tbsp cumin seeds (jeera)
- 4 tsp peppercorns (sabut kali mirch)
- 2 tbsp fenugreek seeds (methi dana)
- 2 tbsp black gram (dhuli urad dal)(husked and split)
- 2 tbsp Bengal gram (channa dal)
- 2 tbsp yellow lentils (arhar dal)
- 2 tbsp rice
- 2 tbsp asafoetida (heeng)
- 2 tbsp turmeric powder (haldi)
- 1/4 cup dried curry leaves (kadi patta)
Method
- All ingredients, excluding the turmeric powder, should be roasted until just barely coloured.
- Cool after removing from the heat. Add the turmeric powder after grinding to a powder.
- Keep this spice in an airtight container.
