Potato Sambar For Rice, Dosa & Idli

Potato sambar for rice can be easily made in pressure cooker using just potatoes, dal (toor dal – yellow pigeon peas), tamarind and spices.

Potato sambar(also known as urulakizhangu sambar or urulai kizhangu sambar in malayalam and tamil) also goes great with South Indian breakfast dishes like dosa and idli.

I didn’t use any other vegetables in this recipe, but you may add some shallots if you wish as it will make the potato sambar more delicious.

I love adding shallots to sambar but I often forget to buy them so end up not adding them many times.

This potato sambar for rice is one of the most easy sambar recipes just like tomato sambar for rice, the only extra time it takes is to peel and cut the potatoes (which takes more time than cutting tomatoes) and adding the tamarind extract which we don’t need for tomato sambar.

I highly recommend adding tamarind extract for this sambar recipe since it adds enough sourness to the sambar which doesn’t have any tomatoes in it.

Buy Organic Sambar Powder Here

You can use this potato sambar for rice, dosa or idli as you wish.

See my post on tomato sambar for rice, dosa and idli

See my post on moong dal tomato sambar recipe

Potato sambar is naturally thicker than other types of sambar due to the use of more number of starchy potatoes, so it tends thicken more as it cools down.

You can add more water if you wish (as it thickens after cooling down) more liquid like consistency.

Also we will use less dal in this sambar recipe as the sambar is already thick from potatoes.

So basically you make this easy potato sambar for rice in the pressure cooker using potatoes, dal, tamarind extract, spices and water.

Then we make the seasoning and add it to the sambar which will make it more delicious.

So here is how you can make this easy and delicious potato sambar at home.

How to make potato sambar for rice, dosa and idli?

We use the following ingredients to make delicious potato sambar that goes great with rice or side dish for breakfast items like dosa and idli.

ingredients to make potato sambar

4 medium sized Potatoes

½ cup toor dal (yellow pigeon peas)

5 shallots sliced, optional

1 green chilies cut lengthwise

1 tablespoon tamarind paste

4 cups water (plus more as needed)

Spice Powders

1 teaspoon turmeric powder

½ teaspoon red chili powder

2 tablespoon coriander powder

2 teaspoons sambar powder

¼ teaspoon fenugreek powder

asafoetida a pinch, optional

For seasoning

1 tablespoon oil

1 teaspoon mustard seeds

1 string fresh curry leaves

4 dry red chilies broken

For garnishing (optional)

1 tablespoon cilantro leaves chopped

Step by step instructions

Peel and cut the potatoes in medium sized pieces and add it to the pressure cooker.

Wash the dal (toor dal – yellow pigeon peas) and add it to the pressure cooker.

Add the green chili and shallots to the cooker.

Add all the spices, salt and water, mix everything well (if the potatoes you used are large you may need more water, adjust accordingly).

Close the lid of the pressure cooker with the safety valve.
Cook in medium heat for about 10 to 12 minutes (after the steam begins to release) or until 3 whistles come.

After 12 minutes of cooking, switch off the pressure cooker and allow it to cool down.

Meanwhile you can prepare the tamarind by dissolving the tamarind paste in about ½ cup of water.

You can keep the tamarind in water for about 5 to 10 minutes so it will dissolve nicely.

If the tamarind you use has strings (fibers), filter this tamarind after its dissolved and the tamarind mixture is ready to be use. Keep this aside.

(If it’s store bought and there are no strings, you can use it directly).

Instead of using tamarind which needs to be dissolved in water and filtered, you can also use tamarind extract which can be directly added (I have given the link).

Once the pressure cooker is cooled, you can open the lid and see if the potatoes and dal are cooked and soft.

Add the tamarind and also add more water if needed, and bring the mixture to a boil.

Heat for another 1 minute and the potato sambar is ready, you just need to prepare the seasoning for the sambar if you wish to add the seasoning.

You can add even more water if you prefer less thickness for the sambar, as potato sambar thickens pretty fast.

As it cools down, potato sambar thickens even more more but you can always add more water as needed and heat the sambar before serving.

To add seasoning (if using)

Heat oil in a pan and add mustard seeds.

When the mustard seeds splutter, add broken dry red chilies and curry leaves and lightly fry.

Make sure there is no water content in the leaves.

Pour this prepared seasoning over to the sambar and gently mix.

You may also use a light seasoning just with mustard seeds or curry leaves. (It’s good to have all ingredients for seasoning, but this is not a must).

Garnish with chopped cilantro leaves if you like! (Again, this is optional.

It is always good to garnish sambar with cilantro leaves as it adds more flavor to the sambar, but its not a must for this potato sambar)

More Pictures From The Preparation Of Potato Sambar

Also you can add some freshly chopped cilantro leaves (coriander leaves) on top to garnish the sambar, but this is optional (I didn’t use since I didn’t have any).

Below you can get the detailed recipe for potato sambar.