Sambhar, Huli a South Indian Vegetable Stew

 I love Sambhar, also called as Huli in Kannada it is one versatile lentil based stew.

Make Sambhar as an accompaniment to idli, dosa, rice, gundpangalla/appe .

Sambhar

Sambhar is very easy and cooks fast. Huli is also very versatile add any vegetable or remove ant that you do not have. The difference between Rasam or saar and sambhar is not just the different masala it is the consistency. Sambhar is thicker than saar.

For making my sambhar the most important is the sambhar masala and I prefer making my own sambhar masala.  I just could not understand, why till my friends and I had eaten the sambhar I made for a kitty party. Maya, the lady who diagnosed the problem told me it was the additional ingredients like cinnamon and dagadphool that I used, made it different and an “additive flavour”.

 How to make sambhar…

Ingredients:

• 1 cup Toor dal/turichi dal /togri bali
• 1 tomato medium sized
• ½ teaspoon haldi
• 1 onion diced
• 1 cup pumpkin
• a few lady finger cut in big pieces
• 2 tablespoon oil
• 1 teaspoon mustard
• 2-3 springs curry leaves
• 2-3 red chillies broken into pieces
• ½ haldi
• 1teaspoon asafoetida
• 1 tablespoon sambhar powder (adjust as per taste)
• A lemon sized ball of tamarind
• A marble sized ball of jaggery(adjust as per taste)
• Salt

How to make Sambhar

 Method:

•  Pressure cook Toor dal with the tomato and haldi and pumpkin.
•  Soak the tamarind in a¼ cup of water and extract the juice.
•  Heat oil add the mustard when it splutters add the red chillies, curry leaves, haldi, and asafoetida.
• Sauté the onions when they become transparent add the vegetables.
• Mash the tomato and dal and add to the vegetables. Mix well.
•  Add the tamarind juice extract, jaggery salt and bring to boil.
• Serve hot.