A soupy, tangy South Indian lentil stew loaded with vegetables and finished with a mustard seed tempering. Vegan, filling and very cheap.
Prep
20 mins
Cook
45 mins
Servings
6
Per serving
£0.70
Difficulty
medium
Sambar is a daily dish in much of South India and endlessly adaptable to whatever vegetables you have. The two non-negotiables are tamarind for sourness and a proper tempering poured over at the end. This version builds its own sambar powder so there is no risk of a wheat-bulked commercial blend.
Put the toor dal in a large pan with 1.2 litres water and the turmeric. Boil hard for 5 minutes, skimming, then simmer for 30 minutes until completely soft. Whisk smooth and set aside.
While the dal cooks, toast the coriander seeds, chana dal, dried chillies and fenugreek seeds in a dry pan for 3 minutes until fragrant and golden. Cool completely, then grind to a powder.
In a second pan, bring 400ml water to the boil with 1 tsp of the salt. Add the shallots and drumsticks and cook 5 minutes, then add the squash and cook 8 minutes more until just tender.
Add the tomato wedges and the tamarind paste to the vegetables and simmer for 5 minutes. Taste: it should be noticeably sour at this stage.
Tamarind pastes vary hugely in strength. Start with two tablespoons, taste, then add more.
Pour the whisked dal into the vegetable pan along with your ground spice blend and the remaining salt. Add hot water until it is the consistency of a thin soup.
Simmer gently for 10 minutes, uncovered, so the flavours settle. Do not boil hard, as the dal will catch.
For the tempering, heat the oil in a small pan, add the mustard seeds and wait until they pop, then add the curry leaves and let them crisp for 10 seconds.
Pour the tempering over the sambar, stir once, add the coriander and serve hot with plain rice.