Pressure Cooker Sambar

To those who are familiar with sambar, the title of this post perhaps makes little sense. This is basically an easier, one pot (well almost) version of making sambar - a vegetable and lentil gravy cooked in a tamarind broth. Usually, yellow lentils are cooked separately, the vegetables and spices are stewed in tamarind juice, and then the two are mixed together. In this version, everything is plopped into a pressure cooker and the sambar is ready within minutes. While the cooker is working, I usually saute some onion and tomatoes in spices and then add it to the sambar to make the dish a little more tastier. If you choose to not do this extra, then this is truly a one-pot-dish!

I must thank my cousin for introducing me to this version. It is one of my frequent go-to methods of making dinner. I rummage the fridge and throw in all the veggies I can get my hands on into the cooker, add the lentils, spices, and tamarind juice and after two whistles, sambar is ready, and surprisingly it's so much more tastier because the flavors of the vegetables truly seep in to the sambar. The only thing to do ahead of time is to soak the lentils for at least 30 minutes so that they cook in time with the vegetables in the cooker.

Tiffin Sambar / Hotel Sambar

Sambar, the most common South-Indian gravy/side dish has many avatars with slight variations. The most common form of sambar is made by stewing spiced vegetables in a tamarind broth and cooked yellow lentils. In this version of sambar that mirrors the version that's served in hotels, cooked mung beans (moong dal) is added instead of yellow lentils. Also, there's freshly ground spices such as coriander seeds, red chillies,  coconut, cumin, ginger, and garlic. Finally, as an irrevocable rule, there's ghee (clarified butter)! Un-apologetically so.

I have added radish, eggplant, onion and tomatoes. You can add any kind of vegetables, but try to always include onion and tomato. They make a difference to the flavor. 

This sambar goes great with dosas and idlis. It's simply a fantastic combination, which is why this is specifically called "tiffin" sambar (in South-Indian lingo, dosas and idlis are called tiffin items). 

Here's how it's done.

Arachu Vitta Sambar / Sambar with freshly ground spices

Arachu vitta sambar, meaning, sambar made with freshly ground spices, is a slightly special and tastier version of regular sambar (which is a tamarind and lentil stew made with vegetable/s or greens). It is commonly made during festive and special occasions, but in our house, I usually make only this kind of sambar, because it so much more flavorful with just a little extra step. Plus, adding freshly ground spices makes the sambar attain its optimum consistency every single time! It's rich, thick, and a very easy crowd pleaser!

In this recipe, I have added pearl onions and radish/daikon to make this sambar. Pearl onions (chinna vengayam) are a popular choice for this kind of sambar. You can add any (diced) vegetable/s of your choice using this basic procedure. Here's how it's done.

Vendhaya Keerai Sambar / Methi Sambar

After almost 350 posts and three years of writing about South-Indian food, I finally get to sambar, the most ubiquitous of all South-Indian foods. What a cardinal sin this is! I have no excuse for putting off this post for so long, other than mere intimidation and self-doubt.

 Do I know enough about making a good pot of precious sambar? Good enough, at this point. But there's always things to learn and improvise.

Anyway, sambar is a basic lentil gravy/stew that is flavored with sour tamarind extract, vegetables or greens, spiced with a rich set of spices that make sambar powder, and seasoned with ghee or coconut oil to make a truly one-of-a-kind dish.

The recipe I am sharing today is the most basic form of sambar - no frills attached. This is the kind that is made almost every single day in most families in South India. In subsequent posts, I will write about slightly more nuanced versions of sambar.

Making sambar is all about knowing how much water to add. Water? Yes, water :). You can measure the water/liquid you add today and try to replicate it tomorrow, but if the chemistry is not just right, you will upset the sambar Gods. I am not saying this to make it seem like this is an unconquerable, finicky, complicated dish! But just to highlight the fact that although the procedure is simple and straightforward, there is a certain amount of skill (and a rabbit's foot) that is required to make a pot of sambar that truly balances all the spices, tartness, and flavors from the vegetables such that it hits all the right notes on your palate. But, worry not, I have a little trick that I mention in the end to make sure you can work around the uncertainties of sambar :)

Sambar is usually prepared with vegetables and very rarely prepared with greens such as fenugreek leaves. As I have mentioned before, fenugreek leaves are also nutrient rich like most greens. They have a slightly bitter taste to them, so stewing them in sambar with tamarind juice and spices is a great way to cut down the bitterness. But the leaves also have a nice aroma, so the whole dish becomes infused with a lovely aroma, thanks to the greens.

Sambar Powder

Sambar is a classic lentil-based gravy that features in almost every meal in every South-Indian home. It should have been the second recipe on this blog, but I have been putting it off for a long time now. I'm preparing a fairly long and comprehensive post on sambar and its variant recipes, so I'll eventually finish it and have it up.

There is a certain mix of spices that give the sambar its classic flavor. This spice-mix is called the Sambar powder, and it is almost a treasured secret in every family's recipe book. Most of us South-Indians don't buy this powder from the store. Our grandmothers, aunts, and mothers prepare this every year (or every other year) and the recipe is handed down to us as almost a rite of passage. Since I've started to try out masala powders and spice mixes, I wanted to record sambar and rasam powder recipes on this space as well.

My mother-in-law gave me the sambar powder recipe that came from her family (and my father-in-law's). It's quite precious, so I thank her for sharing it with me!

Since the powder is usually made in huge quantities, note the proportions of the ingredients and try out a small batch - substitute the kilos with cups or tablespoon equivalents.

Ingredients:

1. 1/4 Kilo dry red chillies
2. 1/2 Kilo coriander seeds
3. 100 grams Thoor dhal / thuvaram paruppu
4. 100 grams Bengal gram dhal / kadala paruppu
5. 50 grams de-husked Urad dhal / ullatham paruppu
6. 25 grams fenugreek seeds
7. 25 grams black pepper corns
8. 25 grams turmeric (the actual dried root or powder)

Preparation:

1.  Dry roast each ingredient separately. Cool slightly
2. Grind together to a smooth powder.

The ingredients in the powder are pretty much the same across families and communities. But, I think the proportions vary slightly, and there might be a secret ingredient or two causing variations in this classic spice mix.