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Cooking
Sambar
I (Curry of Excellence)
1/2 cup (heaped) tuar
dal
2 Tbs. coconut gratings
1 Tbs. bengal gram dal
2 sprig curry leaves
1 tsp. mustard seeds
tamarind lump (the size of a marble)
2 tsp. (heaped) coriander seeds
2 Tbs. oil
1/2 tsp. cumin seeds
1 bunch coriander leaves
1/2 tsp. fenugreek
seeds salt to taste
8 pepper corns
chunks of vegetables (tomato, turmeric, onion, squash, potato,
asafoetida (ingua) okra, raw banana, 6 red chillies.
Wash tuar dal thoroughly.
Boil 1 litre of water. Drop dal in boiling water. Cook until soft.
Take a little oil in a frying pan on another flame. Roast mustard,
coriander, fenugreek, cumin, pepper, turmeric, red chillies, asafoetida,
bengal gram dal, coconut gratings and 1 spring of curry leaves
- all in the same sequence, until brown. Grind all the roasted
ingredients with tamarind to a fairly smooth paste. To the cooked
tuar dal, add vegetable pieces and a few coriander leaves. Cook
until tender. Then add salt along with ground masala (paste made
above) and some water. Boil well. When done, remove from flame.
Garnish with bits of coriander leaves. This is usually served
with idli.
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Sambar
II
half cup tuar dal or
yellow split peas
2 onions
10 or 12 medium okra - (fresh or frozen)
3 large tomatoes (optional),
quartered tamarind extract
1 tablespoon coriander powder
1 teaspoon chilli powder (as per your taste)
1 tablespoon turmeric powder
1 teaspoon methi powder
1/2 teaspoon hing powder
1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds
1/4 teaspoon methi seeds
1/4 teaspoon veg. Oil
1 tablespoon salt to taste
4 tablespoons coriander leaves, chopped a few curry leaves
Cook the dal with chopped
onions, turmeric powder, chilli powder and sufficient water. Cut
the okra in two inch pieces and sauté them in a frying pan with
one teaspoon oil till dry and slightly browned. Mash the cooked
dal with a wooden spoon and add the salt, coriander powder, methi
powder, hing and the tamarind extract. Simmer for a few minutes
and add the tomatoes and okra and half of the coriander leaves.
When the vegetables are cooked, heat oil in a fry pan with a splatter
screen or a lid and pop the mustard seeds. Remove pan from the
fire, add the curry leaves and methi seeds. Add this seasoning
to the sambar and garnish with the rest of the coriander leaves.
Hint: Other vegetables that can be added to sambar are potatoes
(which do not freeze well), shallots, pearl onions (available
frozen), cucumber, Indian or oriental eggplant (baingan), beans,
carrots, lima beans or squash.
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All
Condiments Guaranteed Idli
1 cup black gram (urad)
dal
1 teaspoon methi seeds
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups cream of rice
spray oil or ghee for greasing cups
Lightly wash urad, and
cover with chlorine-free water. Grind methi and mix with urad,
along with salt, and allow to soak uncovered for 3 hours. Soften
the cream of rice by soaking for the final 15 minutes. Without
washing, grind urad in food processor to a fine paste. Add cream
of rice to paste, and grind again until mixed well. Place in ceramic
bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and place in a warm place until
double in bulk. The amount of time this will take depends on the
temperature. The batter will double in 8 hours if the temperature
is over 85 degrees, and at lower temperatures it can take as long
as 30 hours. If the batter doesn't rise, don't despair, just find
a warmer place. A small microwave oven, with the door open just
enough to turn on the light, works well, as does a cold oven with
the light on.
The fermentation process
depends on the presence of wild yeast, which appears to stick
well to the urad and to the methi. Soaking the dal uncovered allows
you to "catch" additional yeast from the air. Don't use baking
soda, baking powder, yeast, or yogurt to "help" fermentation.
Methi outperforms them. Baking soda, baking powder, and yogurt
retard fermentation.
After your batter has
gone nuts, you are ready to make idlis. Stir (don't beat) the
batter slightly, just enough to evenly distribute the bubbles
and not enough to make it subside. Grease idli cups (you can use
egg poachers if you want) with spray- on oil or butter, and fill
them (almost full) with the idli batter and steam in an idli vessel
(basically, a big steamer) for about 15-20 minutes.
The same idli batter
can be used to make Sannan. Pour the batter in the container of
a pressure cooker (previously greased with oil) about 3/4 full
and steam for 15-20 minutes as above. Take out and cut into pieces
with a spatula.
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Rasam
tuar dal - 1/4 cup
masoor dal - 1/4 cup
tomatoes - 1 16 oz. can or 4 large tomatoes
tamarind extract - 1/2 teaspoon
black pepper powder - 1/2 teaspoon
saunf - 1/2 teaspoon (optional)
whole red pepper (dry red chili) - 2 or 3
chili powder - 1/2 teaspoon
turmeric powder - 1/2 teaspoon
hing powder - 1/2 teaspoon
methi seeds - 1/2 teaspoon
garlic cloves - 3 cumin seeds - 1 teaspoon
mustard seeds - 1/2 teaspoon
coriander and curry leaves - a bunch salt to taste
Cook the dal well with
sufficient water. Add the tomatoes, salt, chilli powder, turmeric
powder and tamarind extract. Crush the cumin and garlic and add
to the rasam with the black pepper. Simmer for a few minutes and
add the hing powder. Heat a little oil in a fry pan and pop the
mustard seeds. Add the methi seeds saunf and curry leaves after
removing the heat source and add to the rasam. Garnish with coriander
leaves.
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