Sambar is one of the most loved lentil based dish in the South Indian cuisine. This versatile recipe of sambhar is  mom’s  and is one of her well loved recipes.

This sambhar does not use the store bought powder instead the masala is made from scratch. Lentils, spices etc are roasted and then ground along with coconut and tamarind. Drumstick is the main vegetable in this, but you can substitute with other vegetables like brinjal, radish, carrots, beans etc. 

Serves well with plain rice, idli, dosas or vadas. 

Ingredients: 

• 1 cup Tur dal
• 2-3 medium drumsticks ( cleaned and cut into 3 inch pieces)
• 2 tsp Chana Dal           
• 1 ½ tsp urad dal
• 1 tsp coriander seeds
• 3-4 Black Pepper corn
•  ½ tsp Jeera/cumin seeds       
• ¼ tsp Mustard seeds    
•  ¼ tsp Fenugreek seeds  
• ¼ tsp Turmeric Powder      
• ½” piece Cinnamon                
• 2 Cloves
• 1 tsp jaggery               
• Tamarind  Lemon size (soaked in water)
• ¼ cup Coconut scraped      
• Curry leaves
• 3-4 Red Chillies
• Asafetida a pinch         
• Salt to taste
• Oil  for seasoning 

Procedure: 

• Boil the Tur dal in a pressure cooker along with Drum sticks in enough water. Switch off the gas and keep aside.
• Add 2 Tbsp of oil in a pan, add the chana dal, urad dal, coriander seeds, jeera, black pepper,  red chillies, cloves, cinnamon and sauté it until it turns light brown. Let this cool.
• Grind the above mix along with scraped coconut, tamarind, sufficient water to a smooth paste.
• Heat a saucepan and add the boiled tur daal along with drumsticks. Next put the above ground paste in the boiled tur dal.
• Add turmeric powder, salt, jaggery and boil it thoroughly.
• Seasoning: In a small pan put 2 tsp oil and heat it. Add mustard seeds, asafetida, curry leaves and let it splutter.
• Add the seasoning to the boiled sambar, cover with lid. Serves well with plain rice, idli, dosas or vadas.