If you wish to discover out what comforting, on a regular basis Indian meals tastes like, then it’s essential do this one pot Sambar Rice or Sambar Sadam ASAP. It’s a tangy, spicy dish that comes collectively rapidly in a single pot and may have you licking your fingers clear!Â
A whole lot of South Indian households have sambar rice, additionally generally known as sambar sadam, a minimum of a pair occasions every week. Sambar rice is Tamil Nadu’s model of the well-known bisi bele bathtub from Karnataka and is a one-pot rice and lentil dish that tastes like pure consolation.Â
I often flip to this sambar rice after a busy day or on a Sunday night after I don’t wish to put an excessive amount of effort within the kitchen however nonetheless need one thing that’s soothing, healthful, and scrumptious. And since all the pieces comes collectively in only one pot, there’s minimal clean-up after too. It’s a complete win-win!Â
My youngsters love consuming sambar rice with my air fryer potato chips, and we adults eat it with a facet of cucumber raita, papadums, sliced onions and a lemon wedge. However regardless of the way you serve it, that is the sort of dish that wins each single time.Â
Leap to part: One-Pot Sambar Rice
Sambar Rice Substances
- Dal – toor dal is essentially the most generally used lentil in sambar rice, and that’s what I’ve used. You need to use moong, masoor, chana dal or a combination. Nevertheless, it should change the style and texture of the dish barelyÂ
- Rice – I’ve used jeera samba, however you should utilize any small grain rice selection accessible to youÂ
- Aromatics and herbs: peeled sambar onions and curry leaves add depth of taste and a stunning perfumeÂ
- Spices: mustard seeds, fenugreek seeds, asafoetida (hing), turmeric powder, cinnamon powder add taste, heat, and colourÂ
- Sambar powder: it is a star spice that provides this one pot sambar rice its genuine taste. If you’re exterior India, you’ll discover it at most Indian shops Â
- Veggies: tomatoes, chow chow and capsicum for texture, taste, and vitaminÂ
- Tamarind: soaked in water. Provides tanginess that takes the entire dish a number of notches larger. You possibly can add lemon juice in a pinch, however the taste received’t fairly be the identicalÂ
- Oil – I’ve used cold-pressed sesame oil because it provides a really good nutty taste. Nevertheless, you possibly can exchange it with any neutral-flavored oilÂ
- Salt – for seasoningÂ
For tempering
- Ghee –provides richness and a ravishing taste and aroma. You possibly can exchange with a impartial oil with a excessive smoke level (like peanut, sunflower, vegetable, and so forth.) in the event you’re veganÂ
- Spices: hing, Kashmiri crimson chilli powder, and cumin seeds add closing taste and colourÂ
- Herbs: contemporary coriander leaves and many curry leaves add freshness and essentially the most scrumptious final touchÂ
Richa’s High Ideas
- Rinse rice and dal very well till the water runs clear to forestall a gummy texture.
- Soaking the rice and dal shouldn’t be necessary, however it helps them cook dinner sooner and digest higher. So I extremely suggest this step.Â
- This recipe is of course vegetarian and may simply be made vegan by changing ghee within the tempering with oil.Â
- Sambar rice thickens because it cools. So preserve that thoughts when adjusting the consistency.Â
- Reduce all of the greens to a small, even dimension to assist all the pieces cook dinner good and evenly.Â


Incessantly Requested Questions
Completely! This dish is tremendous customisable and forgiving. Veggies like inexperienced peas, bottle gourd, pumpkin, drumstick, carrots, potatoes, and so forth. all style superb on this dish. Â
Sure, you possibly can. Stress cook dinner sambar rice on excessive for 10 minutes after which permit the strain to launch naturally for an additional 10, earlier than doing a fast launch. And your one pot sambar sadam in an Immediate Pot is prepared!
Storage Ideas
- Refrigeration: Retailer in an hermetic container for as much as 2 days. The flavour truly improves by the subsequent day.
- Thickens on cooling: This dish corporations up within the fridge. Whereas reheating, add a splash of scorching water, combine nicely, and warmth gently.
- Reheat technique: Reheat on the stovetop or microwave and stir sometimes for even heating.
- Not freezer-friendly: Rice-based one-pot dishes are likely to lose texture when frozen, so that is greatest loved contemporary or refrigerated solely.
- Pack-for-lunch tip: Add a bit additional ghee earlier than packing—it retains the rice moist and flavourful till lunchtime.
Serving Concepts
- This dish is historically eaten with crispy papad (roasted or fried) on the facet and a spoonful of ghee on high. That crunch is all the pieces!Â
- Plain curd or buttermilk assist cool issues down, particularly if the sambar rice is spicy.
- A easy potato stir-frymakes for a soul-satisfying mixture.Â


This one pot sambar rice is the sort of dish I make when I’m craving one thing easy, homely, however nonetheless filled with taste. It’s my go-to dish after busy days. In case you do this sambar sadam recipe at dwelling then ship me photos of your recreations over in my Instagram DMs @my_foodstory.Â
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil, divided
- ½ teaspoon mustard seeds, rai
- ¼ teaspoon fenugreek seeds, methi
- 1 sprig curry leaves
- â…› teaspoon asafoetida, hing
- 30 sambar onions, peeled
- 2 tomatoes, chopped into 1 inch cubes
- ½ teaspoon turmeric powder
- 2 ½ teaspoon sambar powder
- 1 ¼ teaspoon salt
- â…› teaspoon cinnamon powder
- 3 ½ cups water, divided
- â…“ cup chow chow, chopped into 1 inch cubes
- â…“ cup capsicum, chopped into 1 inch cubes
- 2 teaspoons tamarind soaked in 1 ½ tablespoons of water
- ½ cup toor dal, soaked for quarter-hour
- ½ cup rice, soaked for quarter-hour
Forestall your display screen from going darkish
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Warmth 2 teaspoons of oil in a strain cooker, add mustard seeds, fenugreek seeds and after they splutter, add hing, curry leaves and saute for a couple of seconds on low. Add onions, tomatoes, turmeric, sambar & cinnamon powders, salt and saute for a couple of seconds on low. Add 2 cups of water and produce to a boil.
1 tablespoon sesame oil,½ teaspoon mustard seeds,¼ teaspoon fenugreek seeds,1 sprig curry leaves,⅛ teaspoon asafoetida,30 sambar onions,2 tomatoes,½ teaspoon turmeric powder,2 ½ teaspoon sambar powder,⅛ teaspoon cinnamon powder,3 ½ cups water,1 ¼ teaspoon salt
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Add chow chow, capsicum, pressure soaked tamarind, add the tamarind water & discard the pulp.
⅓ cup chow chow,⅓ cup capsicum,2 teaspoons tamarind soaked in 1 ½ tablespoons of water
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Add dal, rice, remaining 1 ½ cups water, 1 teaspoon oil, give a superb combine, cowl the lid and strain cook dinner for 10 minutes on low after the primary whistle. Let it depressurise by itself. Open the lid and blend nicely.
½ cup toor dal,½ cup rice
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Warmth ghee in a tadka pan, add cumin seeds & as soon as they splutter, add hing, kashmiri chilli powder, coriander leaves, curry leaves, stir for a couple of seconds and add the tadka to the sambar rice. Combine nicely and serve.
1 tablespoon ghee,½ teaspoon cumin seeds,⅛ teaspoon hing,1 teaspoon kashmiri chilli powder,1 tablespoon coriander leaves,1 sprig curry leaves
Energy:641kcal,Carbohydrates:126g,Protein:19g,Fats:9g,Saturated Fats:3g,Polyunsaturated Fats:2g,Monounsaturated Fats:3g,Ldl cholesterol:10mg,Sodium:924mg,Potassium:1446mg,Fiber:20g,Sugar:39g,Vitamin A:1096IU,Vitamin C:96mg,Calcium:231mg,Iron:4mg
This text was researched and written by Urvi Dalal.
