Milagai Killi Potta Sambar

Recipe for Milagai killi potta sambar. Sambar made with tempered red chillies. Spice powders, sambar powders etc are not used in this sambar… Recipe with step by step pictures.

Milagai killi potta sambar just means sambar made with broken chillies. There is no spice powders used in this particular sambar recipe. The heat and spice comes only from the chillies and is a very different and lite sambar. It goes well with rice and potato roast.

Heat oil in a pan and add in the mustard seeds, cumin seeds, curry leaves and fenugreek seeds. Add in the dried red chillies. Break the chillies into two and then add it to the kadai. I leave the stem on as it has a lot of flavour too.

Add in a few green chillies too. This sambar does not have any sambar powder or any spice powders. So be generous with the chillies as the chilli flavour has to be predominant in this sambar.

Sauté the chillies until they fluff up and slightly brown. Switch on the chimneys in the kitchen as its gonna be a little smoky. Add in the sliced onions.

Add in the salt. Rock salt is preferred for this recipe. Sauté the onions till they are soft. It will take about 2-3 minutes. No need to brown the onions.

Add in the tomatoes, asafoetida and turmeric powder. Sauté till the tomatoes are mushy.

Soak half a lime size tamarind in a cup of hot water for twenty minutes. Squeeze the tamarind to extract the pulp. Discard the seeds and the pith. Do not use a lot of tamarind extract for making this sambar. The sambar should be only slightly sour.

Add in the tamarind extract and cook for five minutes.

Add in the cooked toor dal. Here is how I cook the dal. Add half a cup of dal and 2 cups of water in a bowl and place the bowl in a pressure cooker that has been already filled with half a cup of water. Cooking the dal in a separate bowl in a cooker is how I cook my dal. The dal does not spew out of the whistle from the cooker so cleanup is easy. Cook the dal for 6 whistles – about 10-12 minutes. After 6 whistles from the cooker, remove from heat and set aside to cool. Let the pressure release naturally. Then open the cooker and mash the dal. Mashing is important as the dal becomes homogeneous and creamy. Set aside.

Simmer the sambar for five minutes on a low flame.

Add in the chopped coriander leaves. Simmer for a minute more. Milagai Killi potta sambar is ready. Serve with hot rice.