kadhamba kai sambar

கதம்ப காய் சாம்பார்

Sambar is a very popular and a very common dish which can be found in most of the South Indian house menu  on a daily basis. It is a very versatile dish which goes well with rice and  tiffin items like Idly or.Dosa.I usually make this in a large batch and store it in the fridge.When hunger strikes all I have to do is cook some rice or make dosa or idly, warm a few cups of this sambar in the microwave and Ta Da your meal is ready!!!

Ingredients:

Toor dhal 1 cup

water 11/2 cups

Turmeric powder 1 pinch

Asofoetida 1 pinch

garlic 2 cloves

tamarind  pingpong ball size

water 1/4 cup (soak the tamarind in the water and extract the pulp.)

Mixed veggies(Drum stick,egg plant,winter melon,green beans,carrots) 2 cups

water 1/2 cup

Turmeric powder 1 pinch

salt 1 tsp

oil  2tbsp

mustard seeds 1tsp

fenugreek seeds 1tsp

cummin seeds 1tsp

curry leaves 10 no

onions medium size 1 no

tomatoes 2 nos

red chillie pwdr 1 tsp

sambar powder 3 tsp

salt 1tsp

cilantro   a fist full

Method:

• soak the toor dhal in water for 15mins and pressure cook with the above ingredients.The cooked dhal should be soft and mushy.Mash it with a wooden spatula.  
• cook the veggies in water ,salt and turmeric.

•  chop the onions and tomatoes

• In a wide pan temper the oil with the mustard seeds, fenugreek seeds ,cummin seeds ,and curry leaves .Then add the chopped onions ans saute when the onion turns golden add the tomatoes and fry till the are tender and mushy.Throw in  the masala pwdrs and fry them for a couple of secs.Now add the cooked veggies , mashed dhal and tamarind extract..add salt,Bring to a boil and simmer for a couple of mins.

Check for salt and garnish with chopped cilantro.