Dosa with sambar and coconut chutney

Ingredients for 4 portions

• 1 kgIdli/dosa batter, home-ground or bought
• 4 tbspRefined oil, for the tawa

On the side

• 100 gToor dal
• ≈ 1 lWater
• 1 mlTurmeric
• 1 tbspTamarind
• 2Drumsticks (moringa), in finger-length pieces
• 150 gPumpkin, in cubes
• 1Tomato, in chunks
• 1 ½ tbspSambar powder
• 1 tspJaggery (optional)
• 1 ½ tbspRefined oil, for the tadkas
• 1 tspMustard seeds
• 1 mlFenugreek seeds
• 3Dried red chillies
• 2 sprigsCurry leaves
• 1 mlHing (asafoetida)
• 2 tbspCoriander leaves, chopped
• 100 gGrated coconut, fresh or frozen
• 2 tbspRoasted chana dal (pottukadalai)
• 2Green chillies
• 1 tspUrad dal
• to tasteSalt

Method

1. Rinse the toor dal and put it in the pressure cooker with a third of the water and the turmeric.
2. Pressure-cook on medium for 4 whistles, about 15 minutes, and let the pressure drop by itself.
3. Soak the tamarind in a little hot water. Cut the drumsticks into finger-length pieces, the pumpkin into cubes and the tomato into chunks.
4. Squeeze the tamarind well in its water and strain the juice into a pot, discarding the pulp. Add the vegetables, sambar powder, jaggery if using, salt and half of the water and bring to the boil.
5. Boil until the drumsticks and pumpkin are tender, about 10 minutes.
6. For the chutney, grind the coconut, roasted chana dal, green chillies and salt with the rest of the water in a mixie to a thick, smooth paste. Heat a third of the oil in a small pan, add half the mustard seeds, the urad dal, one dried red chilli and a sprig of curry leaves, and when they splutter, pour over the chutney.
7. Mash the cooked dal smooth and stir it into the vegetables. Simmer for 5 minutes, until the sambar turns frothy on top.
8. For the sambar tadka, heat the rest of the oil and add the rest of the mustard seeds and the fenugreek seeds. When they splutter, add the remaining red chillies, curry leaves and hing, pour over the sambar and scatter over the coriander leaves.
9. Heat a tawa over a medium-high heat and wipe it with a few drops of oil. Stir the batter, pour a ladleful into the middle and quickly spread it out in circles into a thin round. Drizzle oil around the edge and cook until the underside is golden and crisp, about 2 minutes. Fold and serve straight away with the sambar and chutney, then make the rest the same way.

More recipes

• Dal tadka with steamed rice40 min
• Sambar with steamed rice45 min
• Jeera aloo with roti50 min
• Aloo gobi with roti50 min