One Pot Sambar | Fast & Easy

Craving a comforting bowl of sambar with idlis and dosas? This one-pot sambar recipe is the proper answer — fast, flavorful, and made effortlessly in a strain cooker! 

I’m the form of one who can’t think about having my idlis and dosas and not using a large bowl of piping sizzling sambar on my plate. I feel it’s the proper method to spherical up the straightforward flavors of idli and dosa, in addition to make the meal extra nutritious. 

And contemplating how typically we make South Indian dishes on this family, the entire shabang of constructing sambar the standard means began to really feel too cumbersome fairly quickly. Enter: My one pot sambar recipe! With no compromise on the style or texture, it delivers all of the genuine South Indian goodness in a fraction of the time. So for those who love sambar however like me, not the lengthy cooking, this fast methodology may simply change into your new go-to.

One Pot Sambar Ingredients

For the sambar: 

• Toor dal: Split pigeon peas type the bottom of this sambar. 
• Aromatics: Garlic, inexperienced chillies, and curry leaves for taste and aroma
• Veggies: Diced carrots, tomatoes, sambar onions, or cubed common onions, beans, and drumsticks add plenty of taste, texture, and diet 
• Spices: Turmeric, pink chilli, and coriander powders together with sambar powder for heat and taste   
• Tamarind pulp: For a pleasant, refreshing tang. I extremely suggest not skipping this
• Salt: For seasoning
• Water: To strain prepare dinner and alter consistency
• Oil: Prevents the dal from overflowing and foaming when releasing strain. Any neutral-flavored oil resembling vegetable, sunflower, peanut, canola, and so forth. 

For tempering:

• Ghee or oil: Ghee provides a very nice taste and richness, however you possibly can substitute it with any neutral-flavored oil to make it vegan
• Spices: Mustard seeds, cumin seeds, hing or asafoetida, and curry leaves for heat, taste, and aroma
• Fenugreek seeds: It provides aroma and extra depth of taste to the sambar, together with aiding in digestion. A bit goes a good distance right here. You can skip it for those who don’t have it. Coriander leaves: Finely chopped for garnish. Adds recent, earthy flavors to the entire dish

How to Make One Pot Sambar

Unlike the standard sambar recipe that This one pot sambar recipe comes collectively totally within the strain cooker in simply three easy steps: 

01 Cooking dal: We begin by strain cooking our toor dal together with some turmeric powder, tomato, and oil till every thing is cooked down and tender

02 Making sambar: Now to the identical strain cooker, we add all our veggies, curry leaves, tamarind, and spice powders and prepare dinner for another whistle

03 Tempering: Once every thing is cooked by, we make a tadka with mustard and cumin seeds, hing, curry leaves, and so forth. add it to the ready sambar within the strain cooker, combine every thing effectively, and that’s it–our scrumptious, warming, one-pot sambar is able to be served! 

What is sambar powder

Sambar powder is a particular spice and lentil combine mix that lends sambar its genuine taste, heat, and aroma. It’s normally comprised of chana dal (break up chickpeas) as the bottom together with spices like coriander seeds, dried pink chillies, cumin seeds, fenugreek seeds, and hing (asafoetida). Some folks additionally add peppercorns to this mix, however that’s optionally available. 

Sambar powder is well accessible at most grocery shops on-line and offline in India, and at native Indian shops outdoors India. You also can simply make it at residence in underneath quarter-hour. It has an extended shelf life (stays good within the fridge for as much as 6 months). In my expertise, selfmade sambar powder makes the dish much more flavorful, however store-bought can simply be utilized in a pinch. 

Common Sambar Vegetables

Even although this sambar recipe makes use of only a handful of veggies, there are such a lot of you possibly can select from. Here are all of the veggies you possibly can add relying on choice and availability: 

• Potato
• Carot
• Drumstick
• Beans
• Cauliflower 
• Pumpkin
• Ladies Finger or Okra 
• Brinjal or Egg plant
• Radish
• Bottle gourd
• Broad beans
• Long beans
• Plantains 

Which lentils work finest in Sambar? 

Traditionally sambar makes use of simply simply toor dal or break up pigeon peas and that’s what we have now used for this one pot sambar recipe as effectively. However, you should utilize a mixture of toor and moong or masoor dal. The taste will change a little bit bit, however it’ll nonetheless be scrumptious! 

Richa’s Top Tips

• Follow the strain cooking time talked about within the recipe card, particularly when cooking the veggies. We want our veggies to be utterly cooked, however nonetheless have a little bit chew. Over cooking will result in mushy veggies, which isn’t ultimate for this sambar recipe 
• Sambar is mostly watery, however be happy to alter the consistency to your liking. 
• I’d extremely suggest utilizing recent spices and lentils for the perfect taste and texture 
• It’s vital to make the tempering on a medium flame to keep away from burning and maintain the spices and herbs fragrant 
• This sambar has medium spiciness and sourness. You can simply alter the portions of chilli powder, and tamarind to fit your choice. You also can add some jaggery to steadiness out the sourness for those who like. 
• Ghee is historically to mood because it provides a wonderful richness and aroma to the sambar. However, you possibly can simply substitute it with coconut oil or neutral-flavored oil to make it vegan. 

Storage Tips

Refrigerator: When saved in an hermetic glass or metal container, sambar stays good within the fridge for as much as 2-3 days.Reheat totally on the stovetop and produce it to a boil to kill any micro organism earlier than serving. 

Freezer: Sambar is tremendous freezer-friendly and stays effectively for as much as 3 months. Store in single-servings as repeated thawing and freezing causes it to spoil in a short time. Thaw it out within the fridge in a single day after which reheat within the microwave or on the stovetop earlier than serving. Please observe: Veggies could change into a bit mushy when thawed which can change the feel barely, however the flavors nonetheless stay intact. 

Serving Ideas

There are so some ways to eat sambar. Here are just a few favorites that all the time hit the suitable spot: 

• With steamed rice or bisi bele tub and crunchy papadam for a easy but satisfying meal
• As a facet with idli, dosa, uttapam, or upma together with coconut chutney  
• Poured over crispy medu vadas for essentially the most satisfying breakfast ever 
• Simply drink it by the bowl for a lightweight and satisfying meal  

Sambar Variations

• Oil: While oil is historically used to mood sambar, some recipes, particularly from Tamil Nadu, use gingelly or sesame seed oil (totally different from toasted sesame oil), whereas recipes from Kerala use coconut oil. 
• Jaggery: In Karnataka, including a little bit jaggery to the sambar is a fairly widespread apply. Jaggery helps steadiness out the sourness from tamarind, whereas including only a trace of sweetness. 
• Coconut: You can add toasted coconut shavings or make a paste by grinding toasted coconut and complete dried pink chilli so as to add a nutty, spicy taste to your sambar.
• Raw mango: A number of sambar recipes add uncooked mango when it’s in season for a deliciously tangy kick. 

So now that you know the way straightforward and hassle-free it may be to make sambar, there’s no purpose to not make it the subsequent time you’re making a South Indian unfold. Once you make sambar for idli and dosa on this means, there’s no going again, I promise! 

If you do this straightforward sambar recipe, don’t overlook to ship a DM with the photographs over on my IG @my_foodstory in addition to tag me in your tales! 

Watch One Pot Sambar Recipe Video

This article was researched and written by Urvi Dalal.