Sambar Masala

-
 

I am glad to bring my own twist of authentic Sambar Masala/Sambar Powder recipe, so lets get started. 

Ingredients and Proportions:
Sambar Masala is a Ground Spices Mix unique to the Southern part of India. I learnt to make via many tutorials and a lot of trial and error. Now, to clarify Sambar Masala is not basically a masala but more of a Sambar Flavor Mix. It contains a variety of ground spices & ground lentils. 
Each Masala/Spice Mix Powder has basically three types of ingredients:
  1. Base
  2. Aromatic Spices
  3. Earthy Spices
In Sambar Powder, we are going to use Red Chilies, Coriander Seeds & Cumin Seeds as a base, Lentils as earthy ingredients & Curry Leaves, Asafetida & Fenugreek as aromatic spices.
The composition is as follows:

Base

Quantity

Aromatic Spices

Quantity

Earthy Ingredients

Quantity

Red Chilies

10 Pieces

Curry leaves

20

Toor Daal

1 Tablespoon

Coriander Seeds

2 Tablespoons

Asafetida

1 Teaspoon

Urad Daal

1 Tablespoon

Cumin Seeds

1 Tablespoon

Fenugreek Seeds

1 Tablespoon

Chana Daal

1 Tablespoon

 

 

 

 

Rice

1 Tablespoon




Procedure:

The procedure after calculating & collecting all of the above ingredients in required mentioned proportions is quite simple. We have to dry roast the ingredients in a pan just enough to relieve them of their moisture. Dry roasting also helps in releasing the flavorful essential oils in the spices and makes them easy to grind. Try not to over roast the ingredients as this depletes the essential oils in them and you will be left with a bowl dust instead of a aromatic masala.

When you are making a large quantity of the masala, be sure to roast each of the ingredients separately.
The dry roasting can also be done in a microwave at 900Watts for 120secs. But remember to stop the microwave every 30sec and stir the ingredients.

Now we have to wait till the whole spices are completely cooled naturally. When they are completely cooled, grind the ingredients to a fine powder in a grinder with at least a 600W motor for proper grinding. And thus your awesome Sambar powder is ready.

Pro Tips:

  • Add a little salt to the whole spices before grinding (this will help with heat generated during grinding and avoid overheating which can lead to loss of essential oils)
  • You can mix the turmeric powder later to the grounded ingredients.
  • The quantity of Asafetida & Fenugreek Seeds & Curry leaves can be increased to get that tangy restaurant like taste.
  • Do not forget to put the ground powder in an airtight jar.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Tomato Ketchup

-
Image
  Various varieties of Tomato Ketchup have been around since the first one was published in a cook-book by James Mease in 1812 more than 200 years ago. American cooks later started adding sugar to ketchup in the early 20th century. It was the F&J Heinz company that started selling ketchup in 1876 and made it the household item it is today by the early 1900s. Since Sodium Benzoate was banned in 1906 for use as a preservative, the current version of ketchup using sugar & vinegar as natural preservatives was developed. Like every year, I sowed hybrid tomato seeds in my kitchen garden, and I maintain 20 plants which yield up to 5kg per plant easily. Since the past 3 years, to preserve these high-quality organic home-grown tomatoes, I started making ketchup so that it may be stored for up to 6 months easily. Mind you, this recipe is lengthy, easy to get wrong and tedious, so not for the faint of heart. This recipe also uses onions & garlic, but they are optional.   Prep...
Read more

Mixed Pickle (Lemon/Chili/Raw Mango/Carrots)

-
Image
This is the classic Indian Pickle which you would find in every Indian household and is loved by everyone. Making pickles is a delicate art and many do not attempt as a small mistake might spoil the whole pickle. I bring you my own tried and tested recipe which has been tweaked for maintaining simplicity of the process. This pickle turns red in color due to red chilies. If you want a green pickle recipe click here. This recipe makes 2kg of pickle. Ingredients and Proportions: (All proportions are in percentages & grams so you can scale up or down the quantity) For Pickle Masala: Fenugreek Seeds (Sabut Methi) - 1 Tbsp/kg of Pickle Coriander Seeds (Sabut Dhaniya) - 3/4 cup/kg of Pickle Red Chilies 3/4 cup/kg of Pickle Yellow Mustard Seeds (Pili Sarson) -3/4 cup/kg of Pickle Fennel Seeds (Saunf) -3/4 cup/kg of Pickle Salt 1 cup/kg of Pickle Turmeric - 3/4 cup/kg of Pickle Asafoetida (Hing) -1 Tbsp/kg of Pickle For Pickle: 1kg Raw Mango Pieces/Green Chilies/Lemons/Carrots 1kg Rice Br...
Read more

Chettinad Spice Mix

-
Image
  Chettinadu is the land of  the Chettiars who are the mercantile, weaving & agricultural people to the south of India mainly in the states of Tamil Nadu & Kerala. Chettinad cuisine is the cuisine of the Nattukotai Chettiars or Nagarathars. In addition to the traditional Southern Indian Staples like Coconut, Legumes & Pulses, during their centuries of participation in the spice trade, the people of Chetiinad added many spices to their cuisine like Indonesian Nutmeg, Ceylon Cinnamon, Madagascar Cloves, Tellicherry Pepper and sometime even blue Ginger from Vietnam & Laos. Chettiars were traditionally vegetarian, and to this day, their traditional & festive feast remain vegetarian. Centuries over centuries of delicately mixing & layering spices, we got the our beloved Chettinad Spices Mix which can be used in a variety of vegetarian and non-vegetarian dishes.    I always recommend getting the choicest whole spices from your trusted market and mak...
Read more