Sambar Rice / Spicy vegetables cooked with Lentils and Rice

Sambar sadam……There are lotsa places in chennai famous only for its sambar sadam! Saravana Bhavana, Komalas. I’ve tried making them with the homemade/ready made sambar powder, but it never tasted as good as it looked. But this time, my mom asked me to make a fresh powder and use it immediately for this. Ah!! Divine! It took me so many days to master this simple dish.

For the Powder:
4 tablespoon chana dal
1 teaspoon urad dal
4 tablespoon dhania
10-12 red chillies
1 teaspoon fenugreek seeds
Pinch of hing powder/ katti perungayam
1 teaspoon oil
3 tablespoon dry/freshly grated coconut

1. Fry the above ingredients except coconut (chana dal first, followed by urad dal, fenugreek, dhania, red chillies, hing) in oil.
2. Let it cool completely. Add coconut and grind to a fine powder (do not add water) and keep aside.

2 cups mixed vegetables (Carrot, green beans, radish, peas, murungakkai)
1/2 cup toor dal
Pinch of turmeric

Pressure cook vegetables with toor dal and turmeric. Separate the cooked vegetables and mash dal well. Keep aside.

1/2 cup thick tamarind paste
1 medium tomato
4-5 pearl onions/chinna vengayam
2 tablespoon oil
1 teaspoon each mustard seeds, urad dal
pinch of hing
2 red chillies
1 spring curry leaves
2 cups water
Salt to taste
2 tablespoon ghee
4 cups well cooked rice

1. Add oil to the deep pan or use a cooker. When hot temper with mustard seeds, urad dal, hing, red chillie and curry leaves.
2. Add onion and saute for a minute. Add tomato and saute.
3. Add tamarind paste, water, salt, 4 tablespoon freshly made sambar powder and cook on medium heat until onions are cooked partially.
4. Now add the separated vegetables and bring it to a boil. Then add the toor dal and bring it to a boil and simmer for few minutes. Check for water/salt/sambar powder. Add more if required.
5. Finally add cooked rice and mix well. Add dollop of ghee and serve hot.

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