Why is toor dal and not moong dal the main ingredient in a regular sambar recipe? I’d really like to know, especially after making sambar with moong dal recently, for the first time. I absolutely loved it. Although more popular called tiffin sambar because it is served with tiffin, or breakfast items, I served this with plain white rice and some vegetable curry on the side.
Sharing step by step pictures of my sambar-making process feels very intimate and personal to me, for some reason. Probably it’s because sambar is made in practically every South Indian household and everyone has their own way of going about it. I make sambar atleast once a week and although I have shared recipes here in the past, it’s never been step by step.
Murungakai Tiffin Sambar (Sambar with Moong Dal)
Serves 4
Preparation time: 30 mins
Cooking time: 30 mins
Ingredients:
1/2 cup moong dal, cooked in a pressure cooker for 3-4 whistles or until soft and mushy
1 small lime-sized ball of tamarind soaked in 1 cup warm water for 15 mins (or ~1tbsp tamarind paste)
1 drumstick (murungakai) cut into 4″ long pieces
1 tomato
A few curry leaves
1/4 tsp turmeric powder
1 to 2 tbsp sambar powder, diluted in 1/4 cup water
A pinch of hing / asafoetida / perungaayam
Salt to taste
Chopped coriander leaves for garnish
To temper:
1 tbsp ghee or oil
1/4 tsp mustard seeds
1/4 tsp cumin seeds / jeera
A generous sprinkling of hing / asafoetida / perungaayam powder
How I Made It:
1. Squeeze the tamarind and extract all juices in the warm water. Discard pulp and fibers. If using bottled paste, dilute in 1 cup water. Place this in a pan and add the cut drumsticks, tomato, turmeric powder and hing. Turn on heat. Add another cup water (so totally there’s around 2 cups water in there – what you used for the tamarind and what you added after)
2. Add the cooked moong dal and the sambar powder dissolved in 1/4 cup water. I do this mainly to prevent the sambar powder from clumping up when added directly. I use my MILs homemade sambar powder which is a very fine powder. If using store-bought sambar powder, adding directly should be fine.
3. Mix well and bring to boil. Add salt and curry leaves. Simmer for about 15-20 mins until the drumstick is cooked and the sambar reaches the right consistency. You can add more water if you like it more watery. Generally, my sambar tends to be a bit on the thicker side. Adjust salt and remove from fire.
4. Heat oil or ghee for tadka in a small pan or tadka pan. Add mustard seeds and when they pop, add the cumin. When they sizzle and turn brown, add the hing and remove from fire.
5. Twirl it a couple of times in the pan and dunk into the sambar. It will give out a heavenly smell right about now.
You are done! Mix well after adding the tadka, garnish with coriander leaves, and serve hot with rice or any breakfast items.
This sambar will taste fabulous with egg dosa, idli, or pongal.
I have no words ! I already feel like pounding that rice and sambar and gulp it ! Good job !
I always run out of toor dal so make it often with mung dal which I stock in tonnes, though I never knew that it was a proper dish in itself! Tiffin is such a TN word! Miss hearing it 🙂
I bought some frozen drumstick a while back from the Indian grocery, Patel brothers, and have been looking for recipes to try them, as I have never eaten them before.
I am bookmarking this recipes..sounds delicious
nags..i must tell u that this post is of great help to me. I love a good sambara but have never really learnt how to make it properly. The step by step pics are of great help . thnks a bunch 🙂
I have never cooked or eaten sambar with moong dal but have often wondered how it would taste – should try this.
I too add the dal only later after the tamarind pulp has completely cooked down, so that the flavour of the dal and the vegetables is not lost. While the tamarind and spices are simmering, the veggies parboil in another vessel at the same time.
The sambar looks delicious. I used to crave the murungakai samabar a lot during my first pregnancy days..! Love it.
I am hosting my first blog event plus giveaway – Valentines Special. Do check it out and be a part of it. Would be great..!
I make moong dhal sambar for idly and pongal and I don;t use tamarind. Instead I add lemon juice and just after switching off the flame, I drizzle little coconut oil on top. It tastes like restaurant sambhar. The first picture with sambhar and rice makes me crave for sambhar rice now.
ghar ki yaad aa gayi. can't wait to go home and get my hands on some murungakai…
I usually do a moong dal sambar with eggplants, looks good, always been following you as a reader, now first time as a fellow blogger, one of my favorite blogs..
Tiffin Sambar is new to me, but I do remember my MIL using Moong dal in sambhar when she ran out of Toor dal. I never tried it though, will try this and let you know.
Nags,I'm new herre and great space u have. Would love to follow you 🙂
Thanks..
This looks so delicious,never tried sambhar with moong dal,
sambar with moong dal is very new to me..looks great and wonderfully prepared.
mouth wateringg 😛 😛 😛
Deepak
Super flavourful sambar, loving it.
Murungai kai and sambhar smells heavenly in eater's mind. Making it with moon dal is more healthy, some people say!
LOL at how sambar making feels personal and intimate to you. But really glad you put the step by step – that's too much prettiness not seen otherwise!
Mouthwatering recipe…….hmmmm yummy yummy
This is such a yummy one…I would love to try it..U have made perfectly Dear..Bookmarking it..
Aarthi
This is great with idlis…actually a healthier option compared to tur dal…even I have stuck to making it with idlis and pongal for some reason, never with rice !
Nags, your clicks are making me drool… Yum.
Nice and simple sambar… need to cook this way next time and some times I do use moong dal.
I too make with moong dal alone or sometimes with toor & moong combo. with drumstick , iam sure it must be flavorful and yummy :)Tempting clicks 🙂
One of the reasons I think moong dhal is used in a tiffin sambar is because it cooks faster. When you are cooking a tiffin, typically fast is the keyword (we have all heard/had our share of morning madness, right? :)) and typically toor dhal takes a while to cook whereas moong dhal cooks to mushiness real fast. In fact, some toor dhal (depending on the quality) takes an unusually long time to cook and the trick then is to add a handful of moong to them to enable them too cook faster.
That said your post is lovely and am a regular reader though don't comment often. The one difference in the way I make is I add the cooked dhal at the end, right before the tadka as my mom says that retains the dhal flavor better instead of double-cooking it – one to cook the dhal and the second time with the sambar – I don't know how true it is but it is something I blindly follow 🙂
That's a fantastic tip A-kay. Will try that from next time 🙂
Wow flavourful and yummy sambar