MTR Sambhar powder recipe is an integral part of south Indian cuisine with lots of vegetables and lentils. It is a wonderful accompaniment for idli, dosa , pongal , vada and variety of breakfasts recipes.

In my current blog, i would like to share the pretty simple method recipe of sambhar loaded with many vegetables. Sambhar is also used as the main dish in a meal as its wonderful combination when you mix with plain rice.

There are varieties of sambhar recipes made in the South Indian kitchen. Let us get started with the most commonly made recipe. This vegetable soup with lentils can used with a simple meal or a breakfast.

MTR Sambhar Powder Recipe

Simple Homemade MTR Sambhar powder recipe for Beginners

Sambhar is a nutritious recipe as its loaded with many vegetables. It can also be made with varied consistency according to the individual preference. Let us get started with the simple procedure of making MTR Sambhar. 

Pre-Preparation Requirements for Recipe of MTR Sambhar

It is very important to know the different utensils and ingredients used in any cooking. This way you can avoid running around and keep them ready before you start to cook. This will help to cook faster as well.

UTENSILS NEEDED

Pressure cooker (To cook yellow lentils or dhal )

Knife to cut vegetables

Frying pan

Small bowl to soak tamarind

Bowl to store Sambhar

Spoons to add ingredients

Spatula for frying the ingredients

Cutting board to cut vegetables

TOTAL PREPARATION TIME

30 Minutes

VEGETABLES CUTTING TIME

10 Minutes

COOKING TIME

20 Minutes

Ingredients used in Recipe of MTR Sambhar

All the Ingredients needed to make this simple sambhar will be available in all the Indian households. You make sure to have the ingredients for the sambhar and tempering seperately. Because it will be easy to temper at the beginning and prepare the sambhar next.

QUANTITY OF INGREDIENTS for TEMPERING 

1 Pinch of Hing or Asafoetida powder

Cumin Seeds – 1/2 teaspoon

Fenugreek seeds – 1/2 teaspoon

5-6 Curry Leaves

Vegetable Oil – 2 Tablespoon

Mustard Seeds – ½ teaspoon

EXACT QUANTITY OF INGREDIENTS FOR SAMBHAR

Carrot – 50 grams

Beans – 50 grams

Drumstick – 50 grams

Cauliflower – 50 grams

Toor dal (Yellow lentils) – 1/4 cup

Water – 3 Cups

Turmeric powder – 1/2 teaspoon

Green Chillies -2 

Onions – medium sized 2

Tomato – medium sized 2

Salt to taste

MTR Sambhar Powder – 3 teaspoons

Grated Coconut – 4 tablespoons

Coriander Seeds – 1 tablespoon

two inches piece of tamarind

Coriander leaves – 1/4 cup

Complete Procedure of Delicious Recipe of MTR Sambhar

You know all the ingredients and utensils required for making this delicious sambhar. Let us now get started with simple step by step simple procedure of the traditional way of making the sambhar. You will be surprised to see that its cooked in few minutes. Because it is often misunderstood as a tiresome process.

Clean the vegetables with water

Add 50 grams of each vegetable like carrot, Beans, cauliflower and drumstick in the large bowl.

Rinse it with two cups of water to clean the vegetables. 

MTR Sambhar Powder Recipe

Cut the vegetables with Chopping board

Once you clean the vegetables well. Take a vegetable chopping board.

Cut all the cleaned vegetables into uniform size of one inch and keep it aside. 

MTR Sambhar Powder Recipe

Clean the toor dhal or yellow lentils

After you cut the vegetables and ready to use, add half cup of yellow lentils  to a bowl.

Rinse with the required amount of water. 

MTR Sambhar Powder Recipe

Cook the lentils in pressure cooker

Once you clean the yellow lentils well. Its time to cook the lentils for which you need a pressure cooker. 

Take a medium sized pressure cooker. add the yellow lentils to it with two cups of water.  

Now close the lid of the pressure cooker and place it on the stove with medium flame. 

After you cook the lentils, use the vegetable masher to mash the lentils. Transfer the mashed lentils to a small bowl and keep it aside

MTR Sambhar Powder Recipe

Soak the tamarind in warm water

Soak a small piece of tamarind in warm water. Leave it in the water for about 10 minutes until the pulp softens.

MTR Sambhar Powder Recipe

Prepare Tamarind juice  

Squeeze the tamarind piece with your fingers. Strain the juice and discard the pulp.

MTR Sambhar Powder Recipe

Grind the coconut n coriander paste

Grate 50 of fresh coconut.  Add it to the mixer or blender with 1 tablespoon of coriander seeds.

Turn on the mixer to grind it for 1 minute. This gives a nice and smooth coconut coriander paste.  Now transfer that into a small bowl.

MTR Sambhar Powder Recipe

Heat the oil for tadka

In a small pan heat about one tablespoon of oil. Keep the flame on medium.

I used Light Oilve Oil. However, Coconut oil and groundnut oil are also some good options. In case you have none of these, use some refined oil or ghee (clarified butter).

Keeping the flame on medium heat

MTR Sambhar Powder Recipe

Adding rest of the tempering ingredients to the pan

Add mustard seeds once the oil is hot enough. Let the mustard seeds crackle.

Once the seeds have crackled, quickly add 5-6 curry leaves and a pinch of asafoetida into the oil. Remember, the flame is still on medium heat.

Increasing the flame can cause the tempering or tadka to burn. After the above step, add 1/2 teaspoon of cumin and 1/2 teaspoon of fenugreek seeds. 

Cook the mixture in the pan for about half a minute while constantly stirring it.

MTR Sambhar Powder Recipe

Add the cut vegetables to the frying pan

First add cut onions and saute well in the frying pain. After onion becomes  transparent , add tomatoes and saute.

We need to add all the other cut vegetable to the frying pan.  Make sure all through the process the stove is on medium flame to avoid burning.

MTR Sambhar Powder Recipe

Cook the Vegetables for 5 mins with closed lid

Saute them well with the tempered ingredients. Also add salt and closed the lid for five minutes.  This enables the vegetables to cook faster.

MTR Sambhar Powder Recipe

Add MTR Sambhar powder to the sauteed vegetables

Take three teaspoon of MTR Sambhar powder to the vegetables. Mix the vegetables well so that the vegetables are coated well with sambhar powder. Also add 1/2 teaspoon of turmeric powder.

You may adjust the spiciness of the sambhar by adding one teaspoon more or less. 

MTR Sambhar Powder Recipe

Add mashed lentils to the frying pan

After you add the sambhar powder and turmeric, You must add the mashed lentil paste to the frying pan.

Now mix all the vegetables gently so that the vegetables dont get mashed.

MTR Sambhar Powder Recipe

Add Tamarind juice and the coconut coriander paste 

After you add the lentil paste,  You must add the extracted tamarind juice and stir well.

Now add the coconut coriander paste as the last step to fix the ingredients all well together. You can feel the enhanced aroma immediately after you add the coconut coriander paste

MTR Sambhar Powder Recipe

Adjust the sambhar consistency with water 

You can add 1 cup of water to the sambar to adjust the consistency of the sambhar. Because sambhar gets thicker because of the ground coconut paste and the sambhar gets little more thicker after its cool down

MTR Sambhar Powder Recipe

Let the sambhar cook for 10 mins

Once you add  and mix all the ingredients well, You must leave the sambhar to boil well for ten minutes.

You dont have to close the lid while the sambhar is cooking 

MTR Sambhar Powder Recipe

Garnish the sambhar with coriander leaves

Now the sambhar is ready with all the different vegetables with the right spiciness. Its time to turn off the stove. 

Chop the coriander leaves and spread it on the sambhar to get a beautiful aroma.

MTR Sambhar Powder Recipe

Serve the flavorsome sambhar with rice idli or with plain rice as a meal

Delicious and Aromatic Sambhar is ready and serve it with soft and hot rice idlis. You can also have the sambhar with the meal with the plain rice.

MTR Sambhar Powder Recipe

Important Tips for Fault Free recipe of MTR Sambhar

Though its a very simple method of cooking sambhar, its very important to know the tips to make the flawless sambhar. I would like to share the tips that i follow to ensure hassle free  cooking. This helps you to get the sambhar right every time you make.

1. Keep all the ingredients ready 

Before you start cooking, keep all the ingredients in one place. This makes cooking more efficient and you won’t forget.

2. Ensure to cook the lentils well

You must ensure to cook the lentils well in the pressure cooker. Allow atleast five whistles in the pressure cooker. So it can be easily mashed as a smooth paste.

3. Mash Lentils well to make a paste

Use a vegetable masher to mash the yellow lentils well to get a smooth paste of the yellow lentils. Because the lentil paste should get blended with the vegetables and tamarind juice

4. Prepare tempering on medium flame

Always prepare the tempering for the sambhar on a medium flame. If you keep it at a high flame, the tempering will burn and give your sambhar a bitter taste.

5. Add Fenugreek at last in the tempering

Fenugreek gets burnt easily and gives a bitter taste. You make sure to all tempering ingredients and then add the fenugreek as the last tempering ingredient. This way you can ensure fenugreek is not burnt

6. Soak the Tamarind in warm water for ten minutes

You make sure to soak the tamarind in warm water for ten minutes. Then squeeze it multiple times to get the tamarind juice until the squeezed juice turn light brown. This color will ensure all the juice has been extracted from the tamarind

7.  Tamarind adds tangy flavor 

Tamarind imparts tangy flavor to the food. Also Tamarind is the important ingredient in all South indian dishes. It has many health benefits and also improves appetite.

8. Add Asofoetida to the tempering

Asofoetida is an important spice in indian recipes. It aids digestion , adds flavor to the food and beneficial for the health too.

9. Cook lentils and Vegetables seperately

It always advisable to cook the lentils and vegetables separately. Because lentils need deep cooking to mash them well. Cooking vegetables along with lentils will mash the vegetables too.  

10. Consistency to be changed for meals and breakfast

Sambhar consistency should change for meals and breakfast. Sambhar used for meals to be mixed with plain rice need to be thick than the one used for breakfast or snacks

11. Coconut paste to enhance the taste

Grind the coconut paste with the coriander seeds and add them to the sambhar while cooking. This will help you enhance the taste of the sambhar. You can see the difference in the aroma right after you add the paste and boil. 

12. Use New tamarind for sambhar

Old Tamarind is generally dark and sticky which is not used in sambhar. Please use the New Tamarind which is light brown in color and less sticky.

13. Curry leaves important in tempering

Curry leaves is an important ingredient in tempering which helps in giving good aroma. It also has many health benefits. Most of our Indian dishes are tempered using curry leaves for the same reason. 

14. Garnish with Coriander leaves 

Once all the process is done in making a sambhar, garnish it with coriander leaves. Aroma from coriander leaves is so good and also helps in the digestion. Many of the indian dishes uses curry leaves and coriander leaves for aroma and health benefits

15. Tamarind juice can be refrigerated .

You can soak the tamarind over night. Pulp softens and squeeze the pulp to extract the juice. Discard the pulp and store the tamarind juice in refrigerator. This can be used whenever needed in the cooking.

Hope you enjoyed the delicious recipe of sambhar. Its wonderful accompaniment for idlis, podi idli, vada, pongal and many more south indian breakfasts. Please share your comments or questions in section below. I will be happy to answer.