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1. Rinse the toor dal in several changes of water until the water runs mostly clear, then drain well.
1 cup toor dal,
3.5 cup water
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2. Add the rinsed toor dal, water, and turmeric powder to a pressure cooker or deep pot, then cook until the dal is completely soft and mashable.
1 cup toor dal,
3.5 cup water,
0.5 tsp turmeric powder
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3. Once cooked, mash the dal with the back of a ladle or whisk until smooth and set aside.
1 cup toor dal
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4. Soak the tamarind in hot water and let it sit until softened, then squeeze and discard the pulp, reserving the tamarind extract.
2 tbsp tamarind,
0.5 cup hot water
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5. Finely chop the onion, tomatoes, green chili, and garlic, and keep them ready near the stove.
2 piece tomato,
1 piece onion,
2 piece green chili,
3 piece garlic clove
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6. Heat gingelly oil in a kadai or saucepan over medium heat, then add mustard seeds and let them splutter.
0.5 tsp mustard seeds,
2 tbsp gingelly oil
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7. Add cumin seeds, fenugreek seeds, dried red chili, and curry leaves, and fry briefly until aromatic without burning.
0.5 tsp cumin seeds,
0.2 tsp fenugreek seeds,
2 piece dried red chili,
12 piece curry leaves
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8. Add the chopped onion, green chili, and garlic, then sauté until the onions turn soft and lightly golden.
1 piece onion,
2 piece green chili,
3 piece garlic clove
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9. Add the chopped tomatoes and cook, stirring, until they break down and turn pulpy.
2 piece tomato
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10. Sprinkle in the sambar powder, red chili powder, and asafoetida, then sauté briefly until the spices lose their raw smell.
1.5 tbsp sambar powder,
0.2 tsp red chili powder,
0.2 tsp asafoetida
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11. Pour in the tamarind extract and bring the mixture to a boil, then simmer until the raw taste of tamarind fades and the sauce slightly thickens.
2 tbsp tamarind
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12. Add the mashed dal to the pan, mix well, and adjust the consistency with a little water if needed to reach a pourable but slightly thick kuzhambu.
1 cup toor dal,
3.5 cup water
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13. Season with salt, simmer gently to let the flavors meld, then turn off the heat and garnish with chopped fresh coriander leaves.
1 tsp salt,
0.2 cup fresh coriander leaves
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14. Serve the paruppu kuzhambu hot over steamed rice or alongside idli or dosa.
