Sambar (,
romanized
Romanization or romanisation, in linguistics, is the conversion of text from a different writing system to the Roman (Latin) script, or a system for doing so. Methods of romanization include transliteration, for representing written text, and ...
: Sāmbār) is a
lentil
The lentil (''Lens culinaris'' or ''Lens esculenta'') is an edible legume. It is an annual plant known for its lens-shaped seeds. It is about tall, and the seeds grow in pods, usually with two seeds in each. As a food crop, the largest p ...
-based vegetable
stew
A stew is a combination of solid food ingredients that have been cooked in liquid and served in the resultant gravy. A stew needs to have raw ingredients added to the gravy. Ingredients in a stew can include any combination of vegetables a ...
, cooked with
pigeon pea
The pigeon pea (''Cajanus cajan'') is a perennial legume from the family Fabaceae native to the Old World. The pigeon pea is widely cultivated in tropical and semitropical regions around the world, being commonly consumed in South Asia, Sout ...
and
tamarind
Tamarind (''Tamarindus indica'') is a leguminous tree bearing edible fruit that is probably indigenous to tropical Africa. The genus ''Tamarindus'' is monotypic, meaning that it contains only this species. It belongs to the family Fabacea ...
broth. It is popular in
South India
South India, also known as Dakshina Bharata or Peninsular India, consists of the peninsular southern part of India. It encompasses the Indian states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and Telangana, as well as the union terr ...
n,
Sri Lankan and
Maldivian cuisines. The stew has been adapted into
Burmese cuisine
Burmese cuisine () encompasses the diverse regional culinary traditions of Myanmar, which have developed through longstanding agricultural practices, centuries of sociopolitical and economic change, and cross-cultural contact and trade with ne ...
as a popular accompaniment to
Burmese curries.
History
According to food historian
K. T. Achaya, the earliest extant mention of sambar in literature can be dated to the 17th century in
Tamilakam
Tamiḻakam (Tamil: தமிழகம்; Malayalam: തമിഴകം), refers to the geographical region inhabited by the ancient Tamil people, covering the southernmost region of the Indian subcontinent. Tamilakam covered today's Tamil Nad ...
.
The word ''sambar'' () stems from the
Tamil
Tamil may refer to:
* Tamils, an ethnic group native to India and some other parts of Asia
** Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka also called ilankai tamils
**Tamil Malaysians, Tamil people native to Malaysia
* Tamil language, na ...
word ''champāram'' ().
A Tamil inscription of 1530 CE, shows the use of the word champāram 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:
Regional variations
Sambar is variously called ''thizone chinyay hin'' (သီးစုံချဉ်ရည်ဟင်း; ), ''thizone pe kala hin'' (သီးစုံပဲကလားဟင်း, ), or derivatives like ''thizone hin'' or ''pe kala hin'' in the
Burmese language
Burmese ( my, မြန်မာဘာသာ, MLCTS: ''mranmabhasa'', IPA: ) is a Sino-Tibetan language spoken in Myanmar (also known as Burma), where it is an official language, lingua franca, and the native language of the Burmans, the coun ...
. The Burmese version incorporates dried
salted fish
Salted fish, such as kippered herring or dried and salted cod, is fish cured with dry salt and thus preserved for later eating. Drying or salting, either with dry salt or with brine, was the only widely available method of preserving fish unt ...
and a variety of vegetables including eggplants,
okra,
moringa Moringa may refer to:
* ''Moringa'' (genus), a genus of plants
* ''Moringa oleifera'', or just moringa, a plant species native to the Indian subcontinent
* ''Moringa stenopetala
''Moringa stenopetala'', commonly known as the African Moringa or ...
, gourd,
green beans, and potatoes in a soup base of pureed chickpeas, which is seasoned with ripe
tamarind
Tamarind (''Tamarindus indica'') is a leguminous tree bearing edible fruit that is probably indigenous to tropical Africa. The genus ''Tamarindus'' is monotypic, meaning that it contains only this species. It belongs to the family Fabacea ...
,
curry leaf,
''pyindawthein'' leaf,
masala
Masala, Massala or MASALA may refer to:
Spice
* Masala (spice), any of the many spice mixes used in South Asian cuisine
** Masala chai, a flavoured tea beverage
** Masala incense, Indian incense using a spice mix
** Masala dosa, an Indian dish
Pl ...
,