Sambhar

    Hi all.... back from my short vacation.  And since my daughter leaves to her summer camp, my routine life is almost back... Filling up my refrigerator with freshly brought veggies and fruits, cleaning up my partially-messed home, ... list goes on.  Going on vacation sounds much easier, but when it comes to post-vacation work, I always save an huge 'sigh' :/   Yesterday, day went quite interesting watching over election results.  Victory was predicted, as usual, but winning by 1:6 ratio (Congress: BJP) was quite an 'whooping result'.  Similarly goes with Tamilnadu where ADMK gained 37 out of 39 available seats.  Fabulous, isn't it?  Let us see if this decision solves our stagnating economy and deals with the price rise as well....

   Yes and coming back to our post, born and brought up at Chennai, I could'nt miss this special SAMBHAR prepared by my mom.  Infact, this is my favourite and same with my husband too.  Sambhar is south-indian dal preparation, mostly tuvar dal (yellow pigeon peas), with sambhar powder (an aromatic powder made out of chana dal, dried red chillies, curry leaves, whole cumin seeds, fenugreek seeds, coriander seeds, asafoetida, few peppercorn etc), tamarind, assorted set of vegetables (like brinjal, drumstick, snakegourd, pumpkin etc), finished with an sweet touch of jaggery.

The trick in preparing an perfect sambhar lies in perfect balance of spice-sour and an sweet taste.  As an first-try, I have messed up by adding more sourness (more amount of imly/tamarind) into my sambhar.  So, I strongly recommend you to add only half of prescribed tamarind during cooking, other half you can wait till you complete the cooking, check the sambhar and add accordingly.  Also, kindly note that this 'sour' factor depends on tomatos you are adding.  Since, I have added hybrid tomatos, I have included tamarind.  In case, I am going with country tomatos ,(which has an higher sour content) I would prefer not to add tamarind as the former itself gives out required 'sour' effect.

Besarette Dosa Recipe | Healthy Green Gram & Rice Dosa

Besarette Dosa

Besarette Dosa is a traditional South Indian dosa prepared using green gram (moong dal), rice, ginger and green chillies. The batter is fermented overnight, resulting in a flavorful and satisfying dosa that makes a wonderful breakfast.

Ingredients

• ¾ cup green gram dal (moong dal)

• ½ cup uncooked rice

• 2-inch piece of fresh ginger

• 4–5 green chillies

• ½ tsp hing (asafoetida)

• ½ cup water, approximately

• 1 tsp salt, or to taste

• Oil, as required for cooking

Method

1. Wash the green gram dal and uncooked rice thoroughly.

2. Soak both the dal and rice together in sufficient water for 6–8 hours or overnight.

3. The next morning, drain the soaked dal and rice.

4. Transfer them to a blender and add ginger, green chillies, hing and salt.

5. Add water gradually and grind into a smooth, thick dosa batter. Avoid adding too much water at once.

6. Transfer the batter to a clean bowl and cover it.

7. Allow the batter to ferment in a warm place for at least 6 hours, or until it becomes slightly airy and rises.

8. Once fermented, gently mix the batter. If it is too thick, add a little water to achieve a spreadable dosa consistency.

9. Heat a dosa tawa over medium heat and lightly grease it with oil.

10. Pour a ladleful of batter onto the hot tawa and spread it gently into a thin or medium-thick circle, depending on your preference.

11. Drizzle a few drops of oil around the edges and cook until the underside turns golden.

12. Flip the dosa and cook the other side until completely done.

13. Repeat with the remaining batter.

Serving Suggestion

Serve hot Besarette Dosa with fresh coconut chutney, tomato chutney or sambar for a delicious South Indian breakfast.