Sambhar

Sambhar is the most famous south Indian gravy without which the south Indian recipe book is not complete.  It is a must in the menu of all marriages. There are different varieties of Sambhar. Even in Tamil Nadu each region has a different kind of sambhar. Hotel Sambhar tastes different because they add besan instead of toor dhal. Now I am providing the kind we do in our house, especially in my mom's house. The sambhar my MIL prepared would beof a different taste. But I like this recipe very much. My daughter is a fan of sambhar which I prepare. Now to the recipe.......

Toor dhal(tuvaram paruppu)-1cup

Tomato-2

Small onion-10

Till oil-1tsp

Turmeric powder-1/2tsp

Radish-1

Carrot-1

Drumstick-1

Avaraikkai-4

Tamarind-a small lemon sized ball(prepare juice by soaking in water and filtering the water twice)

Mustard seeds-1/2 tsp

Urad dhal-1/2 tsp

Methi seeds-1/4tsp

Asafoetida - 1/4tsp

1. Pressure cook dhal, tomatoes,turmeric powder and till oil. You can reserve the extra water from the cooked dhal for preparing rasam)

2. Add sliced vegetables, small onions, sambhar powder and tamarind juice.

3. Add salt. Pressure cook for 2 whistles. Wait for 10 minutes before opening the cooker.

4. Now heat oil and splutter the ingredients for seasoning. Add it to sambhar.

5. Garnish with coriander leaves.

6. Sambhar when hot is watery and becomes thick when cool. So prepare it thin and serve it thick.