A flavorful South Indian vegetable and split pigeon pea soup with fresh herbs and spices – powered by plant protein and fiber. Serve with steamed rice, dosa, roti, naan, or idli.
It’s no secret. My husband and I love Indian food. We enjoy eating it in a restaurant and we enjoy ordering it to go. We especially enjoy making it whenever we can. I just adore the exotic flavors and spices. And I’ve said this before in previous posts – my husband’s favorite dish is Chana Masala and my favorite dish is Dosa. But it isn’t just the masala potatoes and dosa, I also enjoy eating the soup that accompanies it. Meet Sambar.
Sambar is a South Indian soup comprised of split pigeon peas, vegetables, fresh herbs, and spices. It’s not just healthy, it’s absolutely delicious. Literally hands down my favorite soup right now. And I really enjoy a good soup. In addition to loads of fresh ingredients, the key to sambar is the blend of spices known as Sambar Powder.
While you can make your own Sambar spice blend by combining and grinding bengal dal, skinned urad dal, split pigeon peas, red chilies, coriander seeds, fenugreek (methi) seeds, curry leaves, cumin, pepper corn, asafoetida (hing), and turmeric; I cheat and buy a ready-made packet at an Indian market. You can also purchase sambar powder online.
If you don’t like spicy foods, I highly recommend using one tablespoon to start. You can always add more. If you prefer your foods on the spicier side, feel free to use two tablespoons of sambar powder.
In order to make Sambar, you need split pigeon peas, also known as toor dal or arhar dal. Other names include Togari bele, Congo pea, Angola Pea, Red gram, No-eye pea, tropical green pea, Gungo pea, Puerto Rico Pea; Pois cajanor or pois d’Angole. These are used all over the world and are named accordingly.
Split Pigeon Peas are hulled, split legumes that break down easily and thicken up nicely when cooked. Not only does it do double-duty by thickening this soup, these pigeon peas also provide hefty doses of dietary fiber, plant protein, and essential amino acids – methionine, lysine, and tryptophan. (My Favorite Pastime)
Split pigeon peas are used extensively in both Africa and India to create sauces, soups, and stews. They’re also used to make dal, sambar, or tempeh. I like cooking the split pigeon peas in a pressure cooker. Mostly because they turn out perfectly every time, but it also makes the process super easy and quick. Once they’re cooked, simply mash them up until they’re nice and smooth. These split pigeon peas provide so much body and goodness to this Indian soup.
The next ingredient is actually a set of fresh vegetables. You can use a variety of vegetables, but I enjoy using onion, carrot, zucchini, eggplant, tomato, moringa, and okra. You can omit a portion of these or use all of them like I do.
If you have never used moringa, it is often referred to as a vegetable drumstick. Sometimes I’m unable to get moringa at all. Other times, I can get it, but it doesn’t look very fresh and green. But moringa is a traditional vegetable used in sambar. Simply remove the stringy exterior with a sharp knife or vegetable peeler, then cut it into 2-inch pieces.
The vegetables are sautéed in a pot while the split pigeon peas are cooking in the pressure cooker. Then, they’re both ready to go about the same time, which makes this sambar a breeze. The key is to ensure the vegetables are cooked until tender. This process can take about fifteen minutes.
The next ingredient is the liquid used to make the soup itself. I like using my Umami Vegetable Broth because it contains so much flavor and zero salt. And because the broth is comprised of kitchen scraps, it’s practically free. If you don’t have any vegetable broth, you can also use water. The choice is yours.
The final step is tadka, which translates as “tempering.” Used widely in Indian cuisine, spices are heated in hot oil or ghee for a brief stint and then added to a dish. It is typically done at the beginning or at the end of the cooking process. When making Sambar, the tempering is completed at the end.
The temper is seasoned with black mustard seeds, cumin seeds, fenugreek seeds (methi seeds), curry leaves, and hing (asafoetida). So, I need to level with you here. In order to make a successful temper, you need a little oil. I use avocado oil. I have attempted making Sambar without oil in the temper and it simply doesn’t work.
The end result is toasted seeds and leaves; but it definitely does not produce the same results or flavors. The seeds also tend to sink instead of magically remaining on the surface. I have found that a small amount of oil creates an incredible aromatic blend that transforms this Sambar into a masterpiece.
I hope you enjoy this Sambar as much as I do.
I would love to see your results! Please leave a comment and rate it down below, tag a picture @pebblesandtoast and #pebblesandtoast on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook! Enjoy!!
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Ingredients
- 1 cup toor dal (arhar dal or split pigeon peas)
- ¼ tsp ground turmeric
- 3 cups water
- 1 onion, chopped
- 1 carrot, diced
- ½ cup zucchini, chopped
- ½ cup eggplant, chopped
- 1 large tomato, chopped
- 1 moringa (vegetable drumstick) (optional)
- 2-3 okra, chopped (optional)
- 1 Tbsp minced garlic (3-4 cloves)
- 4 cups Umami Vegetable Broth
- 1-2 Tbsp sambar powder
- 1 tsp tamarind paste
- 1 Tbsp jaggery (or coconut sugar, date sugar, or brown sugar)
- ½ tsp kashmiri red chili powder
- 1 tsp avocado oil (optional)
- ¾ teaspoon black mustard seeds
- ½ tsp cumin seeds
- ½ tsp methi seeds (fenugreek)
- 10 curry leaves
- ¼ teaspoon hing (asafoetida)
- salt and pepper to taste (optional)
- chopped cilantro to garnish
Instructions
- Rinse the split pigeon peas well in water. In the Instant Pot or pressure cooker, add the split pigeon peas, turmeric, and 3 cups of water. Cook on High Pressure for 9 minutes. Allow the pressure to release naturally. Remove the lid and mash until smooth.
- Meanwhile, sauté the onion, carrots, zucchini, and eggplant in a large pot over medium heat for about 10-12 minutes, until vegetables are tender. Stir in the tomato, moringa, okra, and garlic. Continue cooking 5 more minutes. Add in a little broth or oil, if needed, to prevent sticking.
- Pour in 4 cups of Umami Vegetable Broth (or water), 1 teaspoon tamarind paste, 1 tablespoon sambar powder, coconut sugar or brown sugar, and Kashmiri chili powder.
- Bring to a simmer and cook 10 minutes. Stir in the mashed dal and continue cooking 5-10 minutes.
- Adjust the Stir in the chopped cilantro.
- Meanwhile, in a small pan, make the temper. Add the avocado oil, if using. Then stir in the mustard seeds, cumin seeds, methi seeds, and curry leaves for 1-2 minutes, until seeds pop. Add the hing. Remove from heat and stir into the sambar.
- Adjust seasonings to taste, including salt and pepper (if using), increasing the sambar if you want more heat or spice flavor, more tamarind to increase acidity. Add in 1-2 cups of water, if desired, if the sambar is too thick.
- Garnish with additional cilantro, if desired.
- Serve with steamed rice, dosa, roti, naan, or idli.
NOTES
You can also use ½ cup split pigeon peas, ¼ cup split mung beans, and ¼ cup split red lentils to make this sambar.
Also, if you do not have a pressure cooker, you may cook the split pigeon peas on the stove, adding a little water as necessary, until the split pigeon peas are soft and tender, about 20-25 minutes. Then mash until smooth.
This recipe was adapted from Cooking with Manali.
Sambar (South Indian Soup)
Equipment
- Pressure Cooker
- stove
Ingredients
- 1 cup split pigeon peas (toor dal)
- ¼ tsp ground turmeric
- 3 cups water
- 1 onion chopped
- 1 carrot diced
- ½ cup zucchini chopped
- ½ cup eggplant chopped
- 1 large tomato chopped
- 1 moringa vegetable drumstick (optional)
- 2-3 okra chopped (optional)
- 1 Tbsp minced garlic 3-4 cloves
- 4 cups Umami Vegetable Broth
- 1-2 Tbsp sambar powder
- 1 tsp tamarind paste
- 1 Tbsp jaggery or coconut sugar, date sugar, or brown sugar
- ½ tsp kashmiri red chili powder
- 1 tsp avocado oil optional
- ¾ teaspoon black mustard seeds
- ½ tsp cumin seeds
- ½ tsp methi seeds fenugreek
- 10 curry leaves
- ¼ teaspoon hing asafoetida
- salt and pepper to taste optional
- chopped cilantro to garnish
Instructions
- Rinse the split pigeon peas well in water. In the Instant Pot or pressure cooker, add the split pigeon peas, turmeric, and 3 cups of water. Cook on High Pressure for 9 minutes. Allow the pressure to release naturally. Remove the lid and mash until smooth.
- Meanwhile, sauté the onion, carrots, zucchini, and eggplant in a large pot over medium heat for about 10-12 minutes, until vegetables are tender. Add in the tomato, moringa, okra, and garlic. Continue cooking 5 more minutes. Add in a little broth or oil, if needed, to prevent sticking.
- Pour in 4 cups of Umami Vegetable Broth (or water), 1-2 teaspoons tamarind paste, 1-2 tablespoons sambar powder, coconut sugar, and chili powder. Bring to a simmer and cook 10 minutes. Stir in the mashed dal and continue cooking 5-10 minutes. Stir in the chopped cilantro.
- Meanwhile, in a small pan, make the temper. Add the avocado oil, then stir in the mustard seeds, cumin seeds, methi seeds, and curry leaves for 1-2 minutes, until the seeds pop. Add the hing. After 1 minutes, remove from heat and stir into the sambar.
- Adjust seasonings to taste, including salt and pepper (if using). Add in 1-2 cups of vegetable broth or water if the sambar is too thick.
- Serve with steamed rice, dosa, roti, naan, or idli.
- Garnish with additional cilantro, if desired.
Thank you for linking to my post. I am going to try this recipe. it sounds delicious!
Stay safe!
Liz