Udipi is a small town in Karnataka state which is very famous for its temples and it’s delicious cuisine. It’s one of my most favourite cuisine. No restaurant can match the dosa and sambar that are served in Udipi restaurants.
I have made Udipi rasam earlier, but today was the first time that I tried Udipi sambar. The spices used for this sambar are almost the same as the ones used for bisibela bath.

The sambar was very aromatic, mildly sweet and indeed very delicious. It was a super hit with my family. I hope you all would like it too:)

Ingredients

Tuvar dal ( pigeon peas) – 1 Cup

Peeled shallots – 1 cup

Tomatoes – 2

Tamarind – small lemon sized

Turmeric powder- 1/2 tsp

Grated jaggery – 2 tsps

Salt to taste

Grated coconut – 4 tbsps

Oil – 3 tsps

Mustard – 1 tsp

Curry leaves – few

Hing( asafoetida/ perungayam) – 1/4th tsp

To roast and grind

———————–

Coriander seeds ( dhania) – 2 tsps

Urad dal ( black gram/ ullundhu)- 1 tsp

Chana dal ( Bengal gram/ kadala paruppu) -1tsp

Pepper – 1/2 tsp

Cumin seeds ( jeera) – 1/2 tsp

Fenugreek seeds ( methi/vendhayam) – 1/4th tsp

Red chillies – 6-7

Method

Soak tamarind in 2 cups of water for 30 mins. Squeeze well and take the extract.

Wash and soak tuvar dal for 30 mins. Drain the water completely. Add 2 cups of fresh water and 1/4th tsp of turmeric powder.

Pressure cook for 3-4 whistles. It should be very soft and mushy.

Wash the shallots. Wash and chop tomatoes.

Add the shallots, tomatoes, remaining turmeric powder, jaggery and salt to taste to the tamarind extract. Boil till the vegetables are cooked.

Roast the ingredients mentioned for grinding in a tsp of oil.

Cool and grind it along with coconut to a smooth paste.

Add the ground paste and the cooked dal to the tamarind mixture and mix well. Add required amount of water to get the sambar consistency( like a thick soup). Check for the seasonings and let it simmer for few mins.

Heat 2 tsps of oil in a pan. Add mustard. When it starts spluttering, add hing and curry leaves. Sauté for few seconds and add the tempering to the sambar.

Serve the sambar hot with steamed rice/ idli/dosa 🙂