Avarakkai sambar recipe, broad beans sambar

Avarakkai sambar recipe, a basic south Indian everyday sambar. Avarakkai is broad beans in English. Step by step pictures detailed post.

When I posted vendaikkai sambar, as I said its my mom’s version of making sambar. And this is my MIL’s version of making sambar. I love both versions. Though its similar, the method is slightly different. My mom and maami both cook in organized way but in their own ways. MIL has specific vessels for each and everything and she wont like if we change that routines. She uses the water that we drain by washing the rice (arisi mandi/ kazhani) and uses it for making sambar/ rasam. The vessel in which the rice washed water is kept is same every time. Always it will be filled up to rim, so that the measurement is also same.

The sambar turns out consistently same flavourful and delicious. She extracts tamarind juice using that water and says its healthy as well as makes it more tastier. My mom first cooks the veggies and then add to sambar. She boils only for little time after adding dal. But MIL boils it for long time and adds veggies all together and boils until the vegetable is cooked and by that time, the sambar also will be in right consistency.

Few things to note while making sambar:

• Dal can be soaked for 15 mins prior cooking and add few drops of sesame oil while cooking. This ensures dal is cooked well.
• Adding oil in dal while cooking prevents overflowing.
• Mash dal when it is hot.
• Drain the excess dal water if any and then mash so that it is easy to mash to a creamy consistency.
• Dal water if any can be used in rasam or add to sambar itself.
• Adding a dash of turmeric and asafoetida (perungayam) will give flavourful pleasant looking dal.
• New harvest variety tamarind is best for sambar. It is mild in sourness as well as have a slight sweet taste.
• If it is old variety tamarind, the colour of sambar turns out darker. Also reduce the quantity according to sourness.
• While tempering, make sure the red chilli seep in hot oil for more time to bring out flavour and spice.
• Boil sambar with water according to the cooking time of veggies. The sambar turns thick according to the sambar powder you use.
• You can pre cook broad beans too.

So here is my MIL’s version of making sambar. I posted this in my last week’s lunch menu.

If you do not have sambar powder refer this post for fresh ground sambar powder. Note that, you have to add fresh ground sambar powder in last step as mentioned in that post.

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Avarakkai sambar recipe

Avarakkai sambar recipe, a basic south Indian everyday sambar. Avarakkai is broad beans in English. Step by step pictures detailed post.

Course Main Course

Cuisine South Indian

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes

Servings 4

Cup measurements

Ingredients

• Toor dal - ½ cup
• Broad beans/ Avarakkai - 10
• Onion - 1
• Tomato - 1 small
• Tamarind - 1 tbsp tightly packed
• Sambar powder - 2 & 1/2 tsp heaped
• Turmeric - 1/4 tsp
• Curry leaves - few
• Salt - As needed

To temper

• Oil - 2 tsp
• Fenugreek seeds 1/4 tsp
• Dry red chilli - 1
• Mustard - ½ tsp
• Asafoetida - 1/4 tsp
• Cumin seeds - 1 tsp
• Curry leaves - A sprig

Instructions

• Soak tamarind in hot water. Pressure cook dal with water for 4 whistles. Wash broad beans and first trim the edges as shown in the picture. You can to tear it in such a way to take out the fiber in the sides. Then try tearing the broad beans into 3 to ensure removing all the thick fiber part and also check any insects inside.
• Keep all the other ingredients ready too. Extract tamarind juice and make it 3 cups adding water as needed. Slice onion length wise. Chop tomatoes. I used solid asafoetida so powdered that too.
• Heat a kadai and temper with the items given under ‘To temper’ table in order. Follow by onion and fry till transparent.
• Add chopped tomatoes and fry till soft. Transfer to another big enough vessel and add the extracted tamarind juice.
• Add salt, turmeric, sambar powder and bring to boil. Add avarakkai. Bring to boil again.
• Add cooked dal. Boil in medium flame.
• Boil until avarakkai gets cooked and the sambar reaches desired consistency. It will slightly thicken when cools, so switch off accordingly. Garnish with torn curry leaves to make it more flavorful.

Notes

• Broad beans takes a while to get cooked, so add water accordingly while boiling. I guess 3 cups to 3 & 1/2 cups is enough.
• You can use the other variety of broad beans too.
• I used solid asafoetida, but you can use powder asafoetida too.

Avarakkai sambar step by step method:

1. 1. Soak tamarind in hot water. Pressure cook dal with water for 4 whistles. Wash broad beans and first trim the edges as shown in the picture. You can to tear it in such a way to take out the fiber in the sides. Then try tearing the broad beans into 3 to ensure removing all the thick fiber part and also check any insects inside.
   2. Keep all the other ingredients ready too. Extract tamarind juice and make it 3 cups adding water as needed. Slice onion length wise. Chop tomatoes. I used solid asafoetida so powdered that too.
   3. You can optionally pre cook the avarakkai. Boil 1 & 1/2 cups water and add cleaned avarakkai. Simmer for 5 minutes until it is cooked soft. Proceed with the recipe and adjust water as needed as we wont be boiling for long time.
   4. Heat a kadai and temper with the items given under ‘To temper’ table in order. Follow by onion and fry till transparent.
   5. Add chopped tomatoes and fry till soft. Transfer to another big enough vessel and add the extracted tamarind juice.
   6. Add salt, turmeric, sambar powder and bring to boil. Add avarakkai. Bring to boil again.
   7. Add cooked dal. Boil in medium flame.
   8. Boil until avarakkai gets cooked and the sambar reaches desired consistency. It will slightly thicken when cools, so switch off accordingly. Garnish with torn curry leaves to make it more flavorful.

Flavorful sambar, serve it with rice, we had it with small potato curry.