Sambar with Soya Beans (Soya Vada Sambar)

I make sambar with all sorts of veggies. I try to make with only vegetable and not with many veggies as the sambar tastes confusing with so many varieties in there. Drumstick, Pumpkin sambars when you make them with only those in there they you can feel the taste of those veggies in there. This time I wanted to try a new version with vadas. As you all might already know the health benefits of having Soya.. so I came up with these vadas made with soya beans and made sambar which was good. It definitely tasted different and different in a good way. I wanted to share it with all of you. Here is how you make it:

For Vadas:
1/3 cup soya beans
2 tbsp urad dal
1/2" piece of ginger
2 green chillies
1 tsp cumin seeds
salt as per taste

Oil for deep fry

For Sambar:
1/3 cup toor dal
few curry leaves
little turmeric powder
1 lemon sized ball tamarind
2 tbsp sambar masala
4 tbsp grated fresh coconut
salt as per taste

For tempering:
2 tsp oil
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
2 dry red chillies split into halves
a dash of hing

Few cilantro leaves for garnishing.

1. Wash and soak the dals overnight. Next day morning grind dals with other ingredients with out adding any water. Make them into small balls and drop them into hot oil and fry them in medium flame. Keep them aside.

2. Wash and soak tamarind in little warm water. Wash and pressure cook toor dal with curry leaves and turmeric powder upto 3 whistles.

3. Grind coconut and sambar masala with little water in blender to make a smooth paste.

4. Squeeze and extract tamarind pulp and add to the dal. Add the coconut paste also the dal and add enough water. Bring it to boil and add salt and vadas to the sambar and cook until the vadas are cooked. Vadas become double in their size and becomes soft. When you prick with fork it goes into it easily. Turn off the heat.

5. Heat oil for tempering  in a pan and add all the ingredients. When the mustard seeds splutter add it to the sambar and cover with a lid. Serve it with hot rice and some pappadams.

Linking this to CMT - Daal/Kadhi/Sambar/Rasam event being hosted by PriyaVaasu at Enveetu Kitchen originally started by Jagruti at her blog named Joy of Cooking.

And I have something to share my first blog award which was extended by Akila of Learning To Cook. Thank you Akila for considering a budding cook for this award and I would like to share this with one and all for stopping by my blog and encouraging me to go further with this blog.