Arachi Vitta(Iyer) Sambhar (Lentil curry)

Usually this sambhar is cooked by Brahmin's of Tamilnadu, so we call it as 'Iyer Sambhar'. I got this recipe from one of my Brahmin friend in Hyderabad, India.

Ingredients:
Lentils (Toor Dal/Tuvaram paruppu) - 1 cup
Vegetables (any - Drumstick/Plaintain/Flat beans) - 1 cup
Small Onions (Madras Sambhar Onions) - 1 cup, skin peeled and washed
Asafoetida powder - 1/2 teaspoon
Curry leaves - few
Mustard seeds - 1/2 teaspoon
Red chillies - 2
Tamarind - small lemon sized
Coriander leaves - few
Oil - 1 tablespoon
Salt to taste

For paste:
Red chillies - 3
Coriander seeds - 1 Tablespoon
Black gram (Urad dal/Uzhunthu) - 1/2 Tablespoon
Split chickpeas (Channa Dal/Kadalai paruppu)- 1/2 Tablespoon
Raw rice - 1 teaspoon
Fenugreek seeds - 1/2 teaspoon
Grated coconut - 3/4 cup
Oil - 1/2 teaspoon

Method:
Roast all the paste ingredients in oil, except coconut. Grind the roasted ingredients and coconut to a fine paste. Add very little water if needed.

Soak tamarind in 1/2 cup of warm water for 15 minutes. Extract the juice and keep aside.

Pressure cook lentils, smash it ad keep aside. In a big pan, add all vegetables, small onions, 1/4 teaspoon of asafoetida powder, smashed lentils, 1 cup of water. Bring it to a boil, until all vegetables are cooked.

Add tamarind extract, grinded paste, salt to taste to it. Allow it to boil, but keep stirring.

Meanwhile, in a small pan, add 1 tablespoon of oil, Splitter mustard seeds in it, add red chillies, curry leaves, 1/4 teaspoon asafoetida powder and fry for a minute. Transfer it to the boiling curry and mix well.

Garnish with coriander leaves and serve hot with rice.


Cooking time : 45-60 minutes
Serves - 3-4 persons