Indian Cooking Recipe: Sambaar
The following are the instructions on how to cook delicious Indian food: Sambaar
Ingredients:
1. Tamarind(size of a golf ball) 1 tsp
2. Turmeric powder 1/2 tsp
3. Salt to taste
4. Oil 1 tsp
5. Mustard seeds 1/2 tsp
6. Methi seeds/menthayam (fenugreek) 1/2 tsp
7. Green chillies 3
8. Dry red pepper/red chillies 1-2
9. Dhania/cilantro seeds 2 tsps
10. Channa dal/kadalai paruppu 2 tsps
11. Toor dal/thuvaram paruppu/chick peas 3 tbsps
12. Jaggery or sugar 1/2 tsp
13. Dry grated coconut 2 tsps
14. Rice flour 1 tsp
15. Cilantro/coriander leaves
16. Curry leaves (a few)
17. Desired vegetables like Tomatoes, Drumstick, Ladiesfinger/Okra, Capsicum/Green Pepper, Radish/Daikon/Turnips, carrots
18. Onions (preferrably, the small whole ones).
Method of Preparation:
The tomatoes, drumsticks, ladies finger and capsicum can be cooked over a flame in tamarind water during the process of making saambar. The other vegetables have to be cooked earlier in ordinary water. Pressure cook toor daal with water. Take a hard bottomed/non stick vessel, sauté mustard, methi seeds, green chillies, dhania, red pepper, channa dhal. Add dry coconut to this after the above are slightly roasted and the mustard splinters. Fry for a few seconds. Grind all of these into a smooth paste.
Sauté mustard in a little oil. Add the tamarind dissolved in water to this. Add salt. After this boil it for sometime, add the vegetables (cooked or uncooked depending on the type of vegetable). Let it boil till the vegetable takes in the salt and tamarind taste. Mash the pressure cooked toor daal, mix the ground paste in it. Add this mixture, let it boil for sometime. Add the jaggery or sugar. If the concoction is very watery, mix a spoon of rice flour in a spoon of water and add to the saambar...this will help thicken the saambar. Turn off the stove. Garnish with finely chopped coriander (cilantro) and curry leaves. Mix with cooked plain rice and eat as main course.
