Chennai Sambar

1 cup ( 100 g ) tur dal
2 1/2 cups water
1 teaspoon oil
1 teaspoon turmeric powder
1 onion, roughly chopped
2 tomatoes, roughly chopped

Wash and clean tur dal.

In a steel bowl, mix tur dal, water, oil and turmeric powder. Pressure cook tur dal along with water, turmeric powder, oil, onion and tomatoes for 20 minutes ( reduce heat after 2nd whistle and cook cook on a low heat for 15 minutes. Allow the pressure cooker to cool naturally.

Open the lid. Blend / mix cooked dal- tomato - onion mixture well.

15 sambar onions (small onion / shallots / chuvannulli in Malayalam / Piyyavu in Konkani )
2 drumsticks, cut into 4 cm pieces
3/4 teaspoon salt ( or to taste
2 1/4 teaspoon Eastern / Melam / MTR Sambar powder

2 teaspoon cooking oil
1 teaspoon mustard seeds
1 spring curry leaves
1 red chilli, broken
2 pinches hing ( asafoetida ), optional
1 teaspoon chopped coriander leaves

Boil small onions and drumstick with cooked dal mixture. Adjust with 1/4 cup water if required ( also you can add 1 - 2 teaspoon tamarind paste if you required ). Add salt to taste. Cover with lid and cook on a medium heat for 5 minutes. Stir occasionally.

Add sambar powder and boil again for 15 minutes on a low heat till done ( drumsticks are soft ). You can find slight reduction in the quantity of the sambar and nice aroma of sambar powder / sambar thickens.

Heat oil in a pan . Add mustard seeds. When they start crackle add curry leaves and broken red chilli. Saute for 2 - 3 minutes and pour this seasoning over sambar. Sprinkle asafoetida and garnish with chopped coriander leaves. Serve with Idli / Dosa / Pongal / Rice ....