Pongal Sambar

Ingredients:

* Pumpkin, Ash-gourd, Sweet potato, Potato, Carrot, Beans, Avarai, Mochai, Drumstick, Brinjal, Ridge-gourd – totally 1 kg – cleaned and diced.

* Door dhal -200g

* Red chili 10, Coriander 6 TBS, Bengal gram 2 TBS, Fenugreek 2 TBS, Pepper 1 TSP, Jeera 1 TSP, Snauf half TSP, raw rice 1 TSP, Asafoetida 1tsp.

* Small onion – whole, pealed – 200g

* Tomato 200g

* Green chillies – diced -4 no

* Curry leaves, coriander leaves for garnishing

* Oil 50ml, 2 TBS ghee, mustard seeds 2 TBS, Split urad dhal 1 TBS, red chili 4, Asafoetida 1 TSP for seasoning.

* Tamarind juice – 2 Tsp

Procedure:

1. Pressure cook Door dhal with Asafoetida, turmeric powder and adequate water (4-5 whistles)
2. Bring to boil two litres of water in a heavy bottomed vessel, add pinches of Asafoetida and turmeric powder, add diced vegetables. Add hard cooking vegetables first, after ten minutes, add the other vegetables and add salt 1 TBS, 1 TSP red chili powder, 2 TSP coriander powder. Cover with a lid and cook till the vegetables get fully cooked. If more water is needed, add only hot water. Add tamarind paste or juice.
3. Dry roast channa dhal, coriander seeds, red chili, Fenugreek, pepper, Jeera, Snauf, raw rice, Asafoetida one by one in slow fire or adding one after the other in ten second intervels. Allow it to cool and powder it coarsely.
4. Add cooked door dhal to the vegetables in step 2, continue to cook for two more minutes, add the ground masala powder, mix well add hot water for needed Sambar consistency. Check for salt level.
5. Heat oil in a kadai, add split urad dhal, mustard seeds, Asafoetida, broken red chili, curry leaves till they splutter. Remove from heat and add ghee. Mix this seasoning to the Sambar mix, boil for one more minute, add the garnish and serve with white pongal, rice, idli or dosai.