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Sambar Recipes


DanM

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Good morning.

My wife has thrown down the gauntlet and asked me to make vada, idli and sambar for her this weekend. The vada and idli are no problem, but I need help with the sambar. I have been searching through eGullet, the interweb and my cookbooks, but so far, no luck. I would appreciate it if the kind people here would post their favorite recipe and tips for making sambar.

Thank you!

Dan

"Salt is born of the purest of parents: the sun and the sea." --Pythagoras.

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  • 3 weeks later...

So you can make idli and vada but not sambar? Interesting. Do you mean that you do not know how to make sambar at all, or are you just having trouble getting the taste right? Because a quick google will draw you up many sambar recipes, and many Indian cookbooks these days have a sambar recipe too. I'm sure you know the basics - boil toor dal, soak dried tamarind in hot water, etc. Or are you not looking for a recipe for the whole dish sambar, but for the sambar powder itself?

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So you can make idli and vada but not sambar? Interesting. Do you mean that you do not know how to make sambar at all, or are you just having trouble getting the taste right? Because a quick google will draw you up many sambar recipes, and many Indian cookbooks these days have a sambar recipe too. I'm sure you know the basics - boil toor dal, soak dried tamarind in hot water, etc. Or are you not looking for a recipe for the whole dish sambar, but for the sambar powder itself?

It is more along the line of not finding a recipe that meets my wife's taste. When I look at the recipes online, I don't know which are authentic recipes and which are Americanized.

Idli and vada are not difficult. I have a baking background, so these pastries, for lack of a better term, tie into old skills of mine.

Dan

"Salt is born of the purest of parents: the sun and the sea." --Pythagoras.

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Well, I've not ever heard idlis being refered to as pastries!

Anyway, I'm not really sure what you mean by americanized. Have a look on one of the many blogs run by those who are South Indian or of South Indian descent and I'm sure you will find a good recipe. The key thing to remember is that sambar is made with variations all over South Indian. Some use coconut in the sambar powder and some don't; some add a little bit of jaggery to the sambar whilst some don't, and so on. So, there is room for a few differences between recipes.

As a rough guide to making sambar, here are the main points. Cook toor dal with a little turmeric and water. When cooked, add whatever vegetables you fancy (I recommend drumsticks), sambar powder and tamarind paste. Don't use pre-made tamarind paste. You will get so much more flavour by soaking dried tamarind in hot water and squeezing out as much paste/ tamarind water as possible. If you like, you can add a little bit of jaggery, but this is optional and does not appear in all sambars. When vegetables are done and tamarind has lost its raw taste, turn off heat. Finally, make a tadka of mustard seeds, cumin, fenugreek seeds, a little asafetida, dried red chillies and curry leaves. When mustard seeds have popped and fenugreek is a shade darker (not too dark, or it will be bitter), add to sambar. I like a little fresh coriander in my sambar, right before serving.

Sambar can contain lots of vegetables, or just one kind. Sometimes the vegetables are fried a little before they are added to the toor dal, especially the little onions that are added to sambar whole. Good veggies for sambar are mooli, carrot, green beans, drumsticks, okra, aubergine, small whole onions, tomato...you get the idea. Sambar should not be too thick, but it is thicker than rasam. Here is a great recipe for sambar powder. You will notice that this sambar powder does not contain coconut, though some do. You can also buy reasonable sambar powder from most Indian grocery stores, if you don't want to make it fresh. I tend to make a big batch of sambar powder, as I use it up quite quickly. Some sambar recipes don't call for a pre-made powder, but for a spice paste that you make fresh for the sambar. These often contain coconut.

I hope this is enough to be going on with. Remember that sambar is a versatile dish that goes well with rice and dosas as well as idlis and vada. Happy cooking!

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  • 2 weeks later...

Jenni, thanks for the info on sambhar. I was watching Vahrehvah chef, Sanjay Thumma do his version of Sambhar and can't wait to try it one day. The tamarind is something I have not worked with but one time, but he showed how to soak it to extract the juice and flavor. I would like the flavors of South India from what I have learned so far. Making the sambhar powder is shown in his video also.

Bonnie

'Variety is the spice of life'

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This is very good timing!

I am right now eating sambhaar I made using a recipe from eGullet's own Suvir. I have never eaten it before, so I don't know what it is "supposed" to taste like but my taste buds are singing! The flavour is complex, intriguing and if I hadn't made it, I would have a very hard time picking what is in it (which is to say that the flavours complement each other well and don't dominate).

I found it here, in the dhal thread.

Note that in the original post he forgot to give the amount of toor dal needed, so scroll down a few more posts and he writes it in.

Hope this is to your taste :)

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This is very good timing!

I am right now eating sambhaar I made using a recipe from eGullet's own Suvir. I have never eaten it before, so I don't know what it is "supposed" to taste like but my taste buds are singing! The flavour is complex, intriguing and if I hadn't made it, I would have a very hard time picking what is in it (which is to say that the flavours complement each other well and don't dominate).

I found it here, in the dhal thread.

Note that in the original post he forgot to give the amount of toor dal needed, so scroll down a few more posts and he writes it in.

Hope this is to your taste :)

Sadly, that recipe calls for tamcon, which I fully believe should be banned! It does not have the correct tamarind flavour!

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  • 4 weeks later...
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