Sambar idly or the famed 14 idlies of Saravana bhavan is one dish that even idly haters will not be able to resist.Small and cute liilte idlies drowned in a bowl of piping hot sambar with fresh onions and a dollop of ghee atop is something gourmet. Any one who has tasted this in saravana bhavan will agree with me.This is an absolute favorite dish of my sister.Mini idlies make an excellent alternative for normal idlies to serve for kids as these are attractive and easy for them to eat.Along with sambar these idlies make quite a meal loaded with protein vitamins and carbs and when made at home you can be double sure on using fresh ingredients of finest quality possible.
This is one form of sambar my mom makes for sambar idly. This is very simple to make with day to day ingredients and tastes delicious with complementing flavors.Unlike popularly known hotel sambar this recipe does not call for coconut and does not involve any grinding. Perfectly suitable for lazy cooks like me :). When this sambar is made we always wanted mini idlies to be made so as to eat like how we eat in hotels :) Though you can absolutely serve this sambar with normal idlies,it is simply fun to eat mini idlies dunked in this sambar that you would not want to miss.Try it at least once to know what I mean :)
Ingredients:
1/2 cup moong dal
1/2 cup toor dal
1/2 carrot chopped fine
1/2 capsicum chopped fine
1 small brinjal chopped fine
2 beans chopped fine
1/8 cup finely chopped sweet pumpkin
1/8 cup green peas
2 small tomatoes
1 small onion
2 green chillies
Salt to taste
For tempering:
1 teaspoon mustard seeds
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1/2 spoon turmeric powder
1/2 spoon chilli powder
1/2 spoon coriander powder
Cilantro for garnishing
Method:
1.Pressure cook both toor and moong dal up to 4 whistles ,mash very well, add 1 cup of water and keep aside.
2. In a thick bottomed kadai,add 2 teaspoons of sesame oil,add mustard and cumin seeds and let them splutter.Add chilli powder,turmeric powder coriander powder,green chillies and fry well.
3. Now add tomatoes and fry well.Next add all the vegetables and fry well for five minutes.
4.Add the mashed dals to the fried vegetables and combine well. Add salt and boil for 10 minutes.Remove from heat and granish with cilantro.
To Serve:
In a deep add the required number of mini idlis and pour sambar generously over it.Add 2 teaspoons of fresh ghee and finely chopped onions,mix well and serve immediately.
Time: 30 minutes
Serves: 6
Variations
1.Instead of chopping the tomatoes,you can grind them in to puree and add along with dals and that will give an entirely different taste
2.Vegetables like chow chow,potato can also be added
3.Onions can also be sauted and added
4.If needed 1/2 teaspoon of lemon juice can be added before adding cilantro.
Notes:
1.This is a bit dilute compared to sambar we serve with rice
2.Instead of adding ghee during the time of serving you can also add 2 to 3 teaspoons of ghee before adding cilantro.
3.This can also be served as soup or with plain rice.
I am sending this to the event Dish name starting with S hosted by Akila
