Varutharacha Sambar
- 75 min
- medium
- Serves 4
Varutharacha sambar of toor dal, drumstick and brinjal in a roasted coconut and chilli paste with tamarind. Medium-spicy, serves 4, 75 minutes plus soaking.
You’ll need: Pressure Cooker
Ingredients
Toor Dal150 grams
Water, For Cooking1100 ml
Turmeric Powder1.5 grams
Drumstick150 grams
Small Onion (Shallots), Peeled90 grams
Tomato, Chopped2
Green Chilli, Slit10 grams
Salt1½ tsp
Brinjal150 grams
Coconut Oil1 tsp
Coconut (Grated), Grated75 grams
Coriander Seeds12 grams
Dry Red Chilli, De-stemmed5 grams
Cumin2 grams
Fenugreek Seeds1 grams
Tamarind25 grams
Mustard Seeds1 tsp
Curry leaves4 grams
Asafoetida0.5 grams
Coriander Leaves, Chopped6 grams
Contains: wheat.
Nutrition
Per 1 person, and for all 4 people. Worked out from the ingredients, so treat it as a close guide.
| Nutrient | Per 1 person | All 4 people |
|---|---|---|
| Energy | 328kcal | 1312kcal |
| Protein | 12g | 49g |
| Carbohydrate | 44g | 174g |
| Fat | 14g | 54g |
| Fibre | 14g | 54g |
| Sugar | 9.8g | 39g |
Method
Rinse the toor dal well. Wash the vegetables, cut the drumstick and brinjal, peel the shallots, chop the tomatoes and slit the green chillies. Grate the coconut, remove the chilli stems, break the chillies for tempering, and wash the curry leaves and coriander leaves. Chop the coriander leaves. Soak the tamarind in 150 ml water for 15 minutes until soft, then squeeze and strain the extract.
Add the rinsed dal, 600 ml water and turmeric powder to a pressure cooker. Pressure cook on medium flame for 4 whistles until the dal is soft and mashes easily. Let the pressure release on its own, then mash the dal until smooth.
Add the drumstick, shallots, tomato, green chilli, 500 ml water and salt to a kadai. Cover and cook on medium flame for 7 to 8 minutes. Add the brinjal and cook for another 6 to 7 minutes until the vegetables are tender but not falling apart.
Heat 1 teaspoon coconut oil in a small kadai on low flame for 1 minute until hot. Add the coconut, coriander seeds, de-stemmed dry red chillies, cumin and fenugreek seeds. Roast for 5 to 6 minutes until the coconut is light golden and the raw smell goes.
Cool the roasted mixture for 5 minutes until it is no longer hot. Grind it in a mixie with 150 ml water until smooth.
Add the mashed dal, roasted coconut paste and strained tamarind extract to the cooked vegetables. Mix well and simmer gently on medium flame for 5 to 6 minutes until the sambar thickens slightly and the raw smell of the paste goes.
Heat 1 tablespoon coconut oil in a kadai on medium flame for 1 minute until hot. Add the mustard seeds and cook for 1 minute until they crackle. Add the broken dry red chillies, curry leaves and asafoetida, and fry for 1 minute until the curry leaves are crisp, then pour the tempering into the sambar.
Mix in the coriander leaves and simmer on low flame for 2 minutes until the sambar is hot and pourable. Turn off the flame.
Before you start
- How long does Varutharacha Sambar take?
- 1 hour 15 minutes from start to finish. That is 15 minutes of preparation and 1 hour of cooking.
- How many people does Varutharacha Sambar serve?
- 4. The ingredient quantities on this page rescale if you are cooking for a different number.
- Is Varutharacha Sambar vegetarian?
- Yes. No meat, no fish and no egg.
- Is Varutharacha Sambar spicy?
- It is medium: 2 on our scale of 3. Chilli scales gently when you change the servings, so doubling the recipe does not double the heat.
- What do I need to make Varutharacha Sambar?
- 150 grams Toor Dal, 1.5 grams Turmeric Powder, 150 grams Drumstick, 90 grams Small Onion (Shallots), 10 grams Green Chilli, 150 grams Brinjal, and a few more listed on this page.
- Do I need a pressure cooker for Varutharacha Sambar?
- Yes, this one is cooked under pressure.
- How many calories are in Varutharacha Sambar?
- About 328 a serving. The full nutrition table is on this page, per serving and for the whole batch.
Tips from other cooks
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