Sambar (dish)

Sambar (Tamil: [saːmbaːɾ], romanized: Sāmbār) is a lentil-based vegetable stew/soup, cooked with pigeon pea and tamarind broth. It is popular in South Indian and Sri Lankan cuisines.

Not to be confused with Sambal.
For other uses, see Sambar.

Sambar
TypeHighly Spiced Curry
Place of originIndia
Region or stateSouth India, Sri Lanka
Main ingredientsTamarind broth, lentils, vegetables

History

According to food historian K. T. Achaya, the earliest extant mention of sambar in literature can be dated to the 17th century.[1]

The word sambar (சாம்பார்) stems from the Tamil word champaaram (சம்பாரம்).

A Tamil inscription of 1530 CE,[2][3] evidences the use of the word champaaram, in the sense of meaning a dish of rice accompanying other rice dishes or spice ingredients with which a dish of vegetable rice is cooked:

அமுதுபடி கறியமுது பல சம்பாரம் நெய்யமுதுள்ப்பட தளிகை ஒன்றுக்கு பணம் ஒன்றாக

Amutupaṭi kaṟiyamutu pala campāram neyyamutuḷppaṭa taḷikai oṉṟukku paṇam oṉṟāka.

Cooked rice offerings, including curry rice (pepper rice or vegetable rice), many types of spiced rice (pala champaaram) and ghee rice, at the rate of one pa’nam (a denomination of money) per one portion.

See also

References
  1. G. J. V. Prasad (2017). "Idli, Dosai, Sambar, Coffee: Consuming Tamil Identity". In Shweta Rao Garg; Deepti Gupta (eds.). The English Paradigm in India: Essays in Language, Literature and Culture. Springer Singapore. pp. 98–99. ISBN 978-981-10-5332-0.
  2. South Indian Inscriptions vol.4. New Delhi: Archaeological Survey of India. 1986.
  3. "South Indian Inscriptions Vol 04 1923".
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