Quick Ladies Finger / Vendaikai Sambar

Sambar – Ladies Finger/Vendaikaai Sambar

Ingredients

250 gms Ladies Finger

1 medium sized Onion

1 medium sized Tomato

1 green chilly

4 garlic flakes crushed

1 ½ tbsp sambar powder

Small lemon sized tamarind/ 1 tbsp tamarind paste

Salt to taste

½ tsp turmeric powder

For seasoning:

1 tsp mustard

1 tsp Sombu

1 red chilli

½ tsp asafetida

2 strands of curry leaves

Small bunch of coriander for garnishing

Method:

Step 1 : Wash and cut ladies finger, onion, tomato, slit green chilly.

Step 2: Prepare dal. For this take dal in a bowl, wash it once and add 1 cup of water. To this add turmeric powder, cumin seeds, crushed garlic, and half a portion of onion, tomatoes, green chilly, ¼ tsp asafetida and 1 strand of curry leaves. Pressure cook for 5 whistles.

                                                                        

Step 3: First heat pan and add 1tbsp of oil. Sauté ladies finger and onion for few minutes by adding little salt, till the onions become transparent and ladies finger tends to shrink. Transfer it to a bowl and keep it aside.

Step 4: Now heat the pan again and add the cooked dal (Step 2) and boil it, till the dal becomes thick consistency. Keep stiring the dal and try to smash it with ladle.

Step 5: Now add ladies finger and onion fried to the gravy followed by sambar powder, salt and 1 ½ cup of water. Stir it well and allow it to boil for 4 to 5 minutes with lid closed.

Step 6: It is time to add tamarind paste/ water to the boiling sambar. Let it boil for another 2 minutes and put off the fire.

Step 7: Heat oil in another pan and add mustard, sombu (Fennel Seeds), fenugreek, asafoetidaa,red chilly and curry leaves. Add this content to the boiled sambar and cover the sambar with a lid for a while, so that the aroma gets incorporated with sambar.

Step 8: Serve with plain rice, idli or dosa.