Sambhar is one of the most preferred side dishes across India. Be it with rice, dosa, idly or roti, sambhar goes well with almost every other dish. Sambhar originated in South India and has its roots in Sri Lankan Cuisine. In South India Sambhar is prepared in different styles across the states and my favorite is the one which is prepared in Kerala. Usually, people use Sambhar Powder to prepare this gravy, but today I will show you a method of preparing it with our very own home-ground sambhar powder and I am sure you will relish it too.
Sambhar is usually made with Toor Dhal and loads of vegetables and is more like a diet gravy, as oil is used in limited quantity. The ground masala and asafoetida added to this gravy gives it a unique flavour.
Sambhar derives its name from “Sambhaji” cousin of Thanjavur Maratha ruler Shahuji who had served this dish to the king with his experimental recipe which converted a normal dhal dish called “amti” into Sambhar. Shahuji liked it as he replaced kokum with Tamarind water for this dish. For people who don’t know about Kokum, it’s a dried fruit which adds sour taste to food and is commonly used in Maharastrian cuisine.
So, here is my recipe for making tasty South Indian Sambhar.
Ingredients for Sambhar Masala:
½ Cup Grated Coconut
3-4 Small Onions (Sambhar Onions)
Small piece of Asafoetida
4-5 Red Chillies
½ Tsp Fenugreek Seeds
½ Tsp Turmeric Powder
1 ½ Tbsp Coriander Seeds
6-8 Fresh Curry Leaves
3 Tsp Oil (Preferable Coconut Oil)
Main Ingredients for Gravy:
1 Cup Toor Dhal
½ Tsp Turmeric Powder
2 Ladies Fingers
2 Brinjals
1 Drum Stick
2-3 small pieces of Bitter Gourd (Optional)
Small Piece of White Pumpkin
Small Piece of Yellow Pumpkin
1 Large Onion
2 Tomatoes
2 Carrots
Small Lime Size Tamarind .
Salt to Taste.
For Seasoning:
2 Red Chillies
Few Curry Leaves
½ Tsp Mustard Seeds
Ghee for seasoning and Oil for frying.
Masala Preparation:
Heat oil in a pan, add a lump of Asafoetida (hing) and fry on low flame. Ensure that the lump does not get burnt; add red chillies, coriander seeds, fenugreek seeds and fry further. Add curry leaves and fry further, add grated coconut and small onions and fry further. Don’t brown the coconut and onion. Add turmeric powder and fry till the masala gets cooked. Now remove from flame, cool it, then ground it to fine paste and masala for Sambhar. You can add more red chillies if you like your sambhar spicy.
Gravy Preparation:
Wash the toor dal and cook in a pressure cooker along with turmeric powder and tomato. After the dhal is cooked, set it aside. Cut all the vegetables into medium pieces and cook in water. Make it a point to fry the lady’s finger and brinjal in oil before cooking in water. Now, take small lime sized tamarind and soak it in warm water and extract the water and keep that aside.
Add the soaked tamarind water to the cooked dhal and boil. Remember not to steer the gravy till the mixture comes to a boil. Add the ground sambhar masala and cooked vegetables to this mixture and cook further. Add salt to taste. Once the gravy is cooked give it a seasoning of mustard seeds along with curry leaves and red chillies.
Your Sambhar is ready and can be served with hot rice and I am sure a dash of ghee will take the taste to a different level. Try it out and let me know your experience. Also note, that you can control the consistency of the gravy by adding water, however, usually, Sambhar tastes great when it is thick in consistency.