Yellow lentils with vegetables and rice, South Indian style – Sambar Masala

Ingredients for 2 servings:

• 210 g water
• 80 g basmati rice
• 2 Pepper, red, long, mild
• 1 spring onion(s), green part only, in rings
• 60 g lentils, yellow
• 350 g water
• 16 onions, red, peeled
• 2 small spring onions
• 80 g carrot(s)
• 100 g eggplant(s)
• 2 Pepper, red, long
• 10 g ginger
• 2 tbsp sunflower oil
• 2 Pepper, red, long, hot, dried
• 10 g Indian spice mix (Sambar Masala, ground)
• 1 tsp coriander seeds, roasted, crushed
• 1 tsp curry powder
• 1 tsp turmeric powder
• 2 tbsp tamarind paste
• n. B. Salt
• 3 medium-sized garlic cloves
• 1 tbsp honey, light

Instructions

Working time approx. 20 minutes; Cooking/baking time approx. 30 minutes; Total time approx. 50 minutes

A spicy lentil stew served as a starter without rice and as a main course with rice.

Bring the water to a boil in a covered pot. Add the rice and stir. Cover and simmer gently over low heat for 12 minutes. Remove from the heat and let stand for 25 minutes without removing the lid. To garnish, quarter the washed peppers lengthwise, starting at about 2 cm below the stem, and remove the seeds. Halve the quarters lengthwise and let them bloom in cold water. If desired, slice the green part of a washed spring onion crosswise into thin rings. Soak the washed lentils in plenty of water for 15 minutes. Peel the onions and leave them whole. Simmer the lentils, water, and onions with the lid on for 20 minutes. Stir occasionally to prevent them from sticking to the skin. Meanwhile, wash all the vegetables. Remove the roots from the spring onions, remove any wilted leaves, and cut them crosswise into approximately 1 cm wide rings. Keep the white and green parts separate. Peel the carrot and cut into approximately 1.5 cm pieces. Cut a 1 cm cut off the bottom of the eggplant, cut crosswise into approximately 2 cm slices, and then halve these. Cut the peppers diagonally into approximately 1 cm wide rings and remove the seeds. Discard the stems. Peel the ginger and finely grate it. Strain the lentil mixture, add the lentils to a blender with 1/4 of the stock, and roughly puree. Cook the carrot pieces with the rest of the stock for 10 minutes, then add the white parts of the spring onions, the eggplant pieces, and the peppers and cook for 5 minutes. Mix in the green parts of the spring onions along with the lentil puree and simmer with the lid on. Heat the sunflower oil in a wok until very hot, add the peppers, and stir-fry until they begin to blacken. Deglaze with the lentil mixture and reduce the heat. Stir in the sambar masala powder, coriander seeds, curry powder, turmeric powder, and tamarind paste. Season with salt and honey. Peel the garlic cloves and press them in. Bring the finished sambar masala to a boil, divide between serving bowls, garnish, and serve with rice. Enjoy. Note: Sambar masala is a spice mix used primarily for vegetables. The basic ingredient of the sauce is dried seeds such as chickpeas, yellow or red lentils. These are soaked in water, coconut water, or coconut milk and cooked. Then, the sauce is made into a creamy sauce, to which the sambar masala and other spices are added. The vegetables are then cooked in this sauce or in water at the same time and added to the sauce at the end of the cooking process. Spices such as salt, garlic, and honey are added at the end to taste.