Instant Pot Millet Sambar
Foxtail millet, toor dal, and mixed vegetables cook together with tamarind and sambar powder for a thick one-pot bowl.
Equipment
- Instant Pot 6-quart or similar
Ingredients
Millet and dal
- 1/2 cup foxtail millet thinai, rinsed
- 1/4 cup toor dal split pigeon peas, rinsed
- 2 cups water for soaking; discard before cooking
Vegetables and base
- 1 1/2 cups mixed vegetables chopped; carrot, green beans, pumpkin or ash gourd, eggplant; drumstick if available
- 1 small tomato chopped
- 1/2 cup pearl onions or 1/2 small onion, sliced; optional, skip for Jain
- 1 teaspoon ginger grated; optional, skip for Jain
- 1 lime-sized ball of tamarind soaked in 1 cup hot water, juice extracted about 3/4 cup; or 1 1/2 tbsp tamarind paste mixed with 3/4 cup water
- 2-2 1/2 cups water for cooking; start with 2 cups
- 1 1/2-2 teaspoons sambar powder
- 1/4 teaspoon turmeric
- 1/2 teaspoon jaggery or coconut sugar; optional, balances tang
- salt to taste
- 2 tablespoons cilantro chopped, for finish
- 1 teaspoon ghee or oil, for finish; optional
Tempering
- 1 tablespoon oil or ghee
- 1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds
- 1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds
- 1/4 teaspoon fenugreek seeds optional
- pinch asafoetida (hing)
- 1 dried red chili
- 8-10 curry leaves
- 1 green chili slit; optional
Instructions
Soak
- Rinse foxtail millet and toor dal together until the water runs mostly clear. Soak in fresh water for 15 minutes, then drain well.
Saute in Instant Pot
- Set Instant Pot to Saute. Heat oil or ghee. Add mustard seeds and let them pop.
- Add cumin, fenugreek if using, dried red chili, curry leaves, hing, and green chili. Stir for a few seconds until fragrant.
- Add onion and ginger if using. Saute 1 minute until the onion softens. Add tomato and mixed vegetables. Cook 1 to 2 minutes so the tomato softens slightly.
- Stir in turmeric, sambar powder, salt, and jaggery. Pour in the tamarind extract and the drained millet-dal mix. Add 2 cups cooking water and stir, scraping the bottom so nothing sticks.
Pressure cook
- Cancel Saute. Seal the lid and set valve to Sealing. Pressure Cook on High for 8 minutes.
- Allow Natural Pressure Release for 10 to 12 minutes, then release any remaining pressure.
- Open the lid and stir gently. The millet should mash lightly into the dal. If it looks too thick, add 1/4 to 1/2 cup hot water and simmer on Saute for 1 to 2 minutes. If it looks thin, Saute uncovered for a few minutes until it spoons thickly.
- Finish with cilantro and a teaspoon of ghee or oil. Taste for salt and tang. Add a splash more tamarind water if you want sharper sourness.
Notes
Mistake + fix: if the millet stays firm after pressure cooking, it usually needed a longer soak or a little more water before sealing. Add hot water, stir, and cook another 2 minutes on High with a short natural release.
Foxtail is the default. Little millet and barnyard millet use the same ratio. Quinoa also works in a pinch with the same Instant Pot time.
For Jain / no onion no garlic: skip onion and ginger; rely on hing, curry leaves, and tomato.
Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. It thickens when cold. Loosen with hot water when reheating.
Freezes well for about 1 month in single portions.
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!