Arachivitta Sambar(Freshly grounded masala sambar)

Sambar is a very important dish in south Indian cuisine. My dad is a great fan of this arachivitta (freshly grounded masala) onion sambar. He always asks me to prepare this sambar with arbi(sepakezhangu) fry curry. I make this sambar mostly every weekend and enjoy with fried curries like potatoes, arbi or ladies finger.


INGREDIENTS:

1. Shallots/small onions- 5-6 pcs.
2. Drumsticks- 3-4 pcs.
3. Toor dal/ Thuvaram paruppu- 3 tbls.
4. Mustard seeds- 1 tsp.
5. Fenugreek seeds- 1tsp.
6. Cumin seeds- 1tsp.
7. Oil- 2 tsp.
8. Tamarind- gooseberry sized piece.
9. Salt- As needed.
10. Coriander leaves- for garnishing.
11. Dried red chilly- 1
12. Curry leaves- few.
13. Turmeric powder- 1tsp.

FOR GROUND MASALA:

1. Coconut scrapped- 3 tbls.
2. Urad dal/ ulutham paruppu- 1 tsp.
3. Channa dal/ Kadalai paruppu- 2tsp.
4. Coriander seeds- 3tsp.
5. Red chilly dried- 3-4.
6. Sesame seeds- 1/2 tsp.

METHOD:

1. Peel shallots and keep it aside. Pressure cook toor dal with 2 cups of water for 10-15mins. The dal should be in mashing consistency. Once done, keep it aside.


2. Soak tamarind in 1 cup of warm water for 10mins and extract the juice. Heat a pan with 1tsp oil and add all the items except coconut for the ground masala mentioned above. Fry in low flame until dal turns golden brown. Do not allow to burn as it will taste very bad. Allow this to cool and grind along with coconut into a smooth paste. Add little water while grinding. Keep this ground masala aside.


3. In the same pan, add the remaining oil and temper with mustard seeds, fenugreek seeds and cumin seeds. Add the dried red chilly and curry leaves. Keep in low flame. Do not allow this to burn. Add the peeled shallots and drumstick pieces and fry for 2-3mins.


4. Once the raw smell of shallots goes off, add the tamarind extract. Keep in medium flame and let it boil until the raw smell of tamarind goes off. Add turmeric powder and salt at this stage.


5. Once the tamarind water is well boiled, add the ground masala and boil in low flame for 4-5 mins. Add water if its too thick.


6. Finally add the cooked toor dal and boil for 3-4mins in low flame. Add water to adjust the consistency. Once it is nicely boiled, transfer it in a bowl and garnish with fresh coriander leaves.


Serve hot with steamed rice and 1tsp ghee. It will taste awesome with fried root veggies as a side dish.

NOTES:
1. If you want you can add 1tsp sambar powder.
2. You can also replace toor dal with moong dal or masoor dal.




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