Meals.AncientAyurved.com

Every South Indian mom has their own version of Sambar Soup, a popular dish from the heartland of Ayurveda with variations to suit any dosha. This variation, with sour limes and turmeric, invigorates the blood and liquefies secretions during Kapha season, helping relieve sinus congestion and release excess fat before the coming of spring.

Turmeric is a key ingredient for clearing kapha from the system. It thins the blood and dilates blood vessels, cleansing liver congestion and heating the blood. The heat of turmeric also pacifies vata and clears vata ama from the lymphatic system and joints. Sour limes encourage secretions in the digestive tract, release of bile from the liver, and also liquefies thick mucus for easy removal.

Tomato and potato are both nightshades. In general the nightshade plant family vitiates the blood. Consumption of nightshades should be limited to once every 3 days or less.

Sambar soup is essentially a red & yellow coconut soup with cumin. The red is tomato. The yellow is turmeric. Sambar soup is typically served with dosas (fermented daal crepes), idlys and mint chutney. Other optional flavors include mustard seed, garam masala, cinnamon, lime, garlic, etc.

Reported by Frank Cook, herbalist and world traveler from North Carolina (http://www.plantsandhealers.com).

Soups follow the adage – “Cook with oil, salt, sweetener and simplicity”. A correctly salted broth tastes like a tear drop. The surface should glisten with oil. A dash of sweetener encourages merriment of any house guest.

Although this soup appears complex, it is simple when approached architecturally. Black pepper, salt, limes, and sucanat provide pure pungent, salty, sour and sweet tastes. Onion, garlic and ginger form the classic tri-root found commonly throughout Asia. Turmeric, mustard seed and cumin form a base spice combination through much of South India, here supplemented by two additional spices coriander and fennel. Cilantro and coconut are classic garnishes for South India meals. The vegetables, potato, carrot and zucchini are simply standard soup vegetables from any continent of the world.

Grind the spices into a powder and make into a thick paste with water. After five minutes, fry the spices in 1 Tbsp hot oil. Remove from heat before the spices brown and lose their flavor. Fry the onions in the remaining 1 Tbsp of oil. When the onions turn clear, mix in the garlic and continue frying for thirty seconds. Add the spicy oil, onion mixture, and remaining ingredients. Fill the pot with water until it covers the vegetables. Bring the entire mixture to a boil, cover, and simmer on low heat for one hour or until vegetables are tender.