Onion Sambar - Madras Style - with ghee-fried mini-onions ground with coconut

Onion Sambar and Potato Curry is the classic combination that any South-Indian (vegetarian) would love to eat on any given day! This is a very traditional recipe and I've tried my best to preserve its authenticity. Both my mom as well as mom-in-law make this wonderfully super-delicious! (Pardon my excessive use of adjectives, but I really wanted to emphasize that). Do try it once and you're sure to make it again and again! 

Vengaya Sambar - Onion Sambar

Yield - for 4 people (or 2 people * 2 meals)

Time - 45 minutes to an hour

Ingredients :

Toor dal - 2 handfuls (about 3/4 th of a cup)

Red Onion - 1 big (or 2 medium)

Mini onions/ Sambar onions - about 25

Set A - 

Bengal gram dal/Channa dal (கடலை பருப்பு ) - 1 1/2 tbsp

Dhania / Coriander seeds - 1 1/2 tbsp

Dry Red Chillies - 4 (remove stalks and break into 2)

Mini onions - about 6-8 ~ preferred (or) Half of a big onion

Grated Coconut (Fresh or frozen) - 1 handful 

Asafoetida / Hing (பெரும்காயம்) - 1/4 tsp

Oil - 1 tsp

Set B -

Tamarind - about the size of a lemon

Ghee / Clarified butter - 1 tsp

Black Mustard seeds - 1 tsp

Curry leaves - a few

Asafoetida - 1/4 tsp (Use the solid block for better taste, as shown here)

Turmeric / हल्दी/ மஞ்சள் பொடி - 1/2 tsp
Sambar powder - 3 tsp (Any brand will do, as long as you like it. I use Ambika's )

Salt - to taste
Coriander leaves/ Cilantro - to garnish
Jaggery - 1 tsp (optional)

Procedure :

Preparatory steps - 

1. Pressure-cook toor dal (துவரம் பருப்பு) with 3 times water, for 3 to 4 whistles.
2. Peel the big onion as well as the minions. 

            Tip ~ Soak the small onions in water for about 15 minutes and then start peeling them. They would  soften a bit and would yield easily.

You could do these the previous night, if you want to save time in the morning rush hour :) Please remember to refrigerate the cooked dal and the peeled onions. 

Making of the Sambar -

 

• Soak tamarind in 200 ml of warm water (to save time) for about 10 minutes and extract tamarind juice. Discard the seeds and strands. 

• In the mean time, take a tsp of oil in a kadai, keep it on medium-high heat and roast Set A ingredients. Once they turn slightly reddish, switch off the flame, transfer to a heat-tolerant bowl and allow to cool. Grind into a fine paste after about 20 minutes.

Paste for onion-sambar, roasted in a little oil

Paste after grinding

• Take the same kadai, melt ghee (Clarified butter) and fry the mini onions as well as the medium-sized ones (cubed). You may sprinkle a little salt now. Enjoy the awesome aroma  :)

Onions fried in ghee

• Take your sambar vessel (usually flat bottomed and made of stainless-steel), pour the tamarind juice and add the fried onions.

• Add turmeric, asafoetida, salt and sambar powder. Let cook until the smell of tamarind disappears slowly. That's about 5-7 minutes.

• Now, add the ground paste from Set A ingredients. Let boil for 5 minutes.

• Add the water from the cooked toor dal first. Then, mash the dal and add to the sambar vessel. Mix well and allow it to boil for about 7-10 minutes.

• Check for salt. At this stage, I would like to add a little jaggery. That really enhances the taste of the sambar.

• Temper with mustard seeds and curry leaves. You could actually start with mustard and curry leaves in ghee before frying the onions :)

Onion Sambar -Madras Style

• Garnish with coriander leaves.

Enjoy Sambar rice with Potato Curry or Chepankizhangu roast This is indeed, a combo made in heaven

Reposting this for "Only South Indian" event at Foodelicious