Tiffin Sambar stands as the ultimate accompaniment for idli, dosa, Pongal, and vadai, offering a blend of simplicity and ease of preparation.

Among the variations of tiffin sambar recipes showcased on my blog, this particular one holds a special place—it's my personal favorite. What sets it apart is its adaptability; it can be prepared with or without coconut and still deliver the same delightful taste.

It's important to note the distinctions between lunch sambar and tiffin sambar. Lunch sambar typically incorporates more vegetables, boasts a tangier flavor profile, and contains a higher proportion of lentils. Sometimes, coconut paste is added, resulting in a thicker consistency. On the other hand, tiffin sambar is lighter in flavors but perfectly balanced in consistency, making it an ideal dipping sauce for idlis, dosas, idiyappam, and similar dishes.

While lunch sambar leans towards nutritional richness, it's primarily suited for mixing with rice. Tiffin sambar, with its ideal consistency for dipping idlis or pairing with dosas, offers a flavor experience tailored for the breakfast or snack table.

Ingredients

1. Roast and grind with 1 tsp coconut 🥥 oil

1 /4 tsp methi seeds

1 tsp split udad dal

1 tsp chana dal

10 -12 pepper corns

1/2 tsp cumin seeds

1 tsp coriander seeds

4 red chilies

1 small piece of solid asafoetida

Curry leaves

1/2 cup fresh grated coconut 🥥

Pinch of turmeric powder to be added to roasted ingredients.

Roast all above as shown in video When cooled , grind to a smooth paste .

Keep this aside.

Method

• First Pressure cook 3/4 cup washed toor dal or a mix of toor and moong dal .

• Furthermore Wash and soak at least 30 minutes before so that they cook well and easily.

• 1/2 cup shallots

• 1/4 cup yellow pumpkin cubes

• 1/2 cup chopped tomatoes

• Pinch of Turmeric powder .

• Add sufficient water , pressure cook for 5-6 whistles depending on your cooker ( my cooker needs this many whistles) to get a smooth well cooked mixture .

• Prepare a tempering

• Add 1 tsp coconut 🥥 oil

• 1 tsp mustard seeds

• 1/2 tsp split udad dal

• 2 red chillies

• Curry leaves 🍃

• About 20 shallots sliced roughly

• Sautee all without burning .

• Keep aside .

• Meanwhile open pressure cooker after the pressure has subsided naturally, mash contents lightly with a ladle , transfer to a bigger wide pan as we will be adding more .

• Allow to boil on low flame .

• Add 1/2 cup finely chopped tomatoes 🍅 to cook , along with the cooked dal mixture, this is required even though we added some in cooker earlier , as no tamrind is used in recipe , the sour taste comes only from tomatoes so better to use small native naatu ( organic small variety ) thakkali.

• Add 1 tsp coriander powder .

• Salt as needed .

• Mix well .

• Cover and cook till tomatoes 🍅 have blended and cooked with the dal mixture .

• Now add the prepared tempering.

• Add a pinch of asafoetida powder .

• Continue to boil on low .

• When the shallots in the tempering are no longer raw , add the ground paste after diluting with little water or else it will become a lump in the boiling sambar mixture .

• Add some washed water of the mixie jar to dilute further .

• Garnish with chopped 🌿 leaves.

• Cover and keep the sambar .

• This sambar tastes heavenly after some time and gets even better after an hour when all ingredients , ground paste , dal and onions have blended well in the hot sambar .

• You may have to dilute further by adding little boiled water to adjust at the time of serving .

• Suggestion . A tsp of jaggery may be added to the sambar .

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