Brinjal Sambar

Ingredients

• - 1/2 cup toor dal
• - 250g brinjal
• - Lemon-sized tamarind
• - 2 tbsp sambar powder
• - 1/4 tsp turmeric
• - 2 tsp oil
• - 1 tsp mustard seeds
• - 2 dried red chillies
• - 1 sprig curry leaves
• - Salt to taste
• - Fresh coriander

Method

1. Cook toor dal: Wash half cup toor dal. Pressure cook with 1.5 cups water and half tsp turmeric for 4 whistles. Mash completely.
2. Prepare brinjal: Wash 3-4 small purple brinjals. Cut each into 4 pieces and soak in water.
3. Soak tamarind: Soak a marble-sized tamarind in 1 cup warm water 15 minutes. Extract pulp and strain.
4. Cook brinjal in tamarind: In a pan add tamarind water, drained brinjal pieces, half tsp turmeric, 1 tsp red chilli powder, 1 tsp coriander powder, 1 tsp sambar powder and salt. Boil and cook 8 minutes until brinjal is soft.
5. Add mashed dal: Add mashed dal to the pan. Add half cup water and stir well.
6. Simmer: Simmer on medium heat 8-10 minutes until sambar is well-blended and thickens slightly.
7. Make tempering: Heat 2 tbsp oil. Add 1 tsp mustard seeds — when they pop add half tsp cumin seeds.
8. Add aromatics: Add 2 dried red chillies, 1 sprig curry leaves and a pinch of asafoetida. Fry 30 seconds.
9. Add tempering: Pour sizzling tempering into the sambar.
10. Serve: Adjust salt. Brinjal sambar is one of the most popular Tamil Nadu sambar varieties. Serve with steamed rice, idli or dosa.