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Ratna Cafe Style Sambar
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4.31 from 46 votes

Madras Ratna Cafe Sambar Recipe | How to make Ratna Cafe style Sambar ?

Ratna Cafe is famous for the sambar they serve for the tiffin, especially the Idli Sambar. The flavor, texture and taste is very unique. People goes to Ratna Cafe especially to taste its Sambar. Let's learn how to make Ratna Cafe style sambar with step by step pictures and a recipe video.
Prep Time30 minutes
Cook Time20 minutes
Total Time50 minutes
Course: Accompaniment, Kuzhambu, Main Course
Cuisine: India, South Indian, Tamil Brahmin, Tamil Nadu
Servings: 8 people
Calories: 260kcal
Author: Sowmya Venkatachalam

Equipment

  • Pressure Cooker

Ingredients

To make fresh Sambar Ground Masala

  • ¼ teaspoon Mustard seeds
  • ¼ teaspoon Fenugreek seeds
  • 2 teaspoon Split Bengal Gram (Channa Dal / Kadalaparuppu)
  • 2 teaspoon Urad Dal
  • 6 nos Red Chili
  • 1 tablespoon Coriander seeds
  • 2 teaspoon Grated Coconut (preferably Desiccated Coconut)
  • 1 pinch Turmeric Powder
  • 1 pinch Asafoetida (Asafetida / Hing)

For Sambar Gravy

  • 2 nos Tomato small size
  • 1 nos Onion big size
  • 1 small piece Jaggery

Vegetables

  • 10 nos Shallots / Baby Onions
  • 1 nos Carrot chopped into cubes
  • 1 nos Drumstick chopped into 2" size
  • 1 nos Tomato chopped into 4 pices
  • 50 grams Yellow Pumpkin

Dals for the Sambar

  • ¼ cup Toor Dal (Pigeon pea)
  • ¼ cup Moong dal

For Tempering

  • 2 teaspoon Ghee
  • ¼ teaspoon Fenugreek seeds
  • 2 pinch Asafoetida (Asafetida / Hing)
  • 1 sprig Curry leaves
  • 1 teaspoon Cumin Seeds

Other items

  • 1 gooseberry size Tamarind
  • ½ teaspoon Turmeric Powder
  • Salt to taste
  • 1 handful Coriander Leaves chopped

Instructions

1. Preparation for making Sambar

  • Soak the tamarind in a water and extract the tamarind Juice
  • Take the Toor dal, Moong dal and roughly chopped pumpkin to a vessel and pressure cook them over 3-4 whistles.  Once cooked, mash this mixture nicely with a laddle.
  • Peel the baby onion. Also Chop the vegitables (1 drumstick, carrot and a tomato) keep it aside

2. Let's make the fresh sambar ground masala

  • Heat the pan and add a teaspoon of oil. When the oil is hot, add a pinch of mustard seeds and allow it to sputter.
  • Add the following one after another and fry them till nice aroma comes – fenugreek seeds, Channa dal, Urad dal, red chili, Dhaniya  and desiccated coconut. Make sure that the ingredients don’t burn
  • Take this to a mixer grinder. Add a pinch of tumeric powder,  hing and grind it by adding little water. Make sure that the masala mixture is coarse and not a nice smooth paste.

3. Gravy for the Sambar

  • Take two tomato, one onion (chopped), piece of jaggery and grind to a smooth mixture and set it aside.

4. Let's start making the sambar

  • Heat a teaspoon of ghee in pan, and add mustard seeds (1 tsp) when the oil is hot. Once the mustard seeds begins to sputter add the fenugreek seeds (½ tsp), curry leaves (few) and hing (a pinch) and fry for a minute.
  • Add the peeled onion and fry them for few minutes till the raw smell goes off.
  • Now add the chopped vegetables (carrot and drumstick), one tomato (chopped into 4 pices) along with turmeric and fry for a while. To this add water to cook the vegetables
  • Allow the vegetables to cook for about 5-10 minutes in medium flame. When the vegetables are almost cooked, add the tamarind extract and salt and allow the tamarind juice to boil for 5 minutes till the raw smell goes off. 
  • Add the gravy (onion, tomato & jaggery paste) now. Now adjust the consistency of the sambar by adding water (approx. half cup)
  • Also add the fresh sambar masala. Keep in medium flame  and let the mixture cook for about 5 minutes.
  • At this stage add the dal+pumpkin paste. Check the consistency of the sambar and adjust the same by adding water.
  • When the sambar starts to boil, switch off the flame and garnish with coriander leaves

Seasoning

  • Heat 1 teaspoon of ghee in pan, and add Cumin seeds when the ghee is hot. Once the cumin seeds begins to crack add the curry leaves and hing and fry for a minute. Add this to the Sambar

Sambar Ready!!

  • Phew... ! The flavorful, colorful Sambar is ready to serve !. Enjoy this with Idli / Dosa or with a hot rice

Video

Notes

  1. Cook the vegetables before adding tamarind mixture. Drumsticks won't cook in the tamarind water. 
  2. Choose the vegetables of your choice and add to this sambar. Usually sambar will be watery and less of vegetables.

Nutrition

Serving: 1bowl | Calories: 260kcal | Carbohydrates: 53g | Protein: 14g | Fat: 1.3g | Saturated Fat: 0.2g | Sodium: 404mg | Potassium: 1054mg | Fiber: 15g | Sugar: 18g | Vitamin A: 2300IU | Vitamin C: 94.1mg | Calcium: 110mg | Iron: 6.1mg