Family Fridays #2 Drumstick Sambhar

(To hear more from Alexandra, check out her blog!)This sambhar is my husband's favorite and one of the classic comfort-food recipes for any Indian wife. It has a perfect amount of vegetable, protein from the dal, and spice. There is no chilli powder and not much oil in it, which makes it a versatile dish. It is very popular in South India and you can get it at any restaurant, or as Indians say "hotel"! Plus, it's a sure way to any South Indian man's heart!

 

Ingredients:

 

- 1 cup toor dal

- 2 cups water

- 8-10 pearl onions, whole

- 2 drumsticks (mulakkada) 

- 1 carrot

- 1/2 tsp turmeric

- 1/2 tsp salt

- 2 tbsp sambhar powder

- 1/2 cilantro

 

Tempering ingredients:

- 1 tbsp oil (peanut or sunflower)

- 1 tsp mustard seeds

- 1 tsp cumin

- 2 dashes asefotida

- 10-15 fresh curry leaves

 

Directions:

 

Wash dal, drain it, and put it in the pressure cooker along with 2 cups of water. 

Take the skin off the pearl onions and add them whole into the pressure cooker.

Peel the carrot. Chop the drumsticks and carrot in half, and then cut to finger-length size pieces. Add to pressure cooker.

Add the turmeric, salt and sambhar powder to the pressure cooker.

Pressure cooker for 8-10 mins, then turn off and let it cool down.

 

Open up the pressure cooker and add 1-2 cups of water and bring it to a boil.

Add 1/2 cup cilantro to the boil.

When it gets to the perfect consistency, start the tempering.

 

For the tempering, in a small omelette pan, pour 1 tbsp oil over medium heat.

Add the mustard seeds and let it crackle. 

Once the mustard seeds crackle, add the asefoetida and cumin.

When the cumin starts to brown, add the fresh curry leaves and saute for 10 seconds.

Then pour in the tempering into the boiling sambhar, mix and turn off.

 

This sambhar is great along with idly, dosa, over rice, or as a soup.

 

Don't forget to check out our very first Family Friday post!