Pumpkin Sambar

Ingredients :

• Pumpkin - 2 cups (cubed pieces)
• Toor Dal - 1 cup
• Onion - 1 small
• Pearl Onions - 15
• Tomato - 2 medium
• Tamarind Paste - 1 tbsp
• Sambar Powder - 2 tbsp
• Mustard - 1/4 tsp
• Curry leaves - 1 sprig
• Jaggery - 1 tsp
• Oil - 2 tbsp
• Salt to taste

Method :

• Wash and pressure cook toor dal for 3-4 whistles or till it is cooked well.
• In a pan heat oil. Add in mustard seeds and let it splutter.
• Add chopped onion, whole pearl onions and curry leaves. Saute till onions are transparent.
• Add in cubed pumpkin pieces and saute. Add water and allow cook the pumpkin until half done. (Do not over cook as the pumpkin would get smashed by the end of cooking).
• Add chopped tomatoes, tamarind paste, sambar powder, jaggery, salt and cook till tomatoes are soft and raw flavor of tamarind goes away. 
• Add cooked dal along with required amount of water and allow it boil for 5-6 mins on medium flame.
• Serve hot with steamed rice. It goes well with idli too.

Variation :

• In the same process you can make sambar with any vegetables (Drumstick, Brinjal, Raddish, potato, beans, carrot, pearl onion) or combination of them. 
• As pumpkin has sweetish taste, jaggery is added to give sweet taste for the sambar. Skip adding jaggery while preparing sambar with other veggies.