If you love sambar- the famous Indian lentil soup, you’ve got to give this mango sambar recipe a try. This sambar has a unique, tangy flavor from raw mango, and is super savory, delicious and incredibly versatile.
The sambar is ridiculously easy to put together, and is a great one pot dish you can make in under 15 minutes.
Ready to give this recipe a try? Here’s all you need to know about it before you do.
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Ingredients For the Recipe
To make the mango sambar, here is what you will need.
- Oil: 2 tbsp
- Mustard seeds: 1 tsp
- Hing: A pinch
- Garlic cloves: 3-4
- Dry red chilies: 2
- Curry leaves: 8-10
- Raw mango (chopped): ¼ cup
- Yellow moong dal (soaked): ¼ cup
- Sambar powder: 4 tbsp
- Red chili powder: ½ tbsp
- Salt: 2 tsp
- Coriander leaves (chopped): 3 tbsp
- Water: 2.5 cups
How to Make the Mango Sambar
Once you have all the ingredients ready, here is what you will need to do to make the mango sambar
Heat oil in a pressure cooker. Add the mustard seeds, hing, garlic cloves, dry red chilies, and curry leaves. Saute.
Add the raw mangoes next and saute. Let it cook for a minute.
Next, add the powdered spices and salt and mix.
Add the water and coriander leaves and mix well.
Pressure cook for 7-8 whistles or until the dal becomes soft.
Serve hot with dosas or rice of your choice.
Frequently Asked Questions
In addition to all the ingredients, you can also add some veggies to the mango sambar.
Drumstick, shallots, okra, green beans, carrots and pumpkin are all great choices and can be a nice addition to the sambar, improving its nutritive value. 
Yellow moong dal is the best choice for this recipe because it is super easy to cook and readily available- you don’t even need to soak it overnight.
If you don’t have yellow moong dal, you can use toor dal (split yellow lentils) instead. Just remember to soak it for at least 30 minutes, ideally for 6-8 hours.
Your leftover mango sambar can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
You can then reheat the sambar in a pot on low heat or just microwave it until it is nice and hot.
Tips & Tricks to Make the Mango Sambar
While making the mango sambar is super easy, you might want to keep these little tips and tricks handy too.
- Make sure you cut the row mangoes into slightly bigger chunks. This will help keep them from overcooking and getting mushy in the sambar.
- You can also choose to remove the raw mango chunks from the dal mixture, blend the dal until it has a smooth consistency using an immersion blender, and then add the raw mango chunks in again.
- The raw mango is what lends this sambar that much needed tangy flavor. If you really want some extra sourness to the sambar, you can add just a teeny bit of tamarind pulp or some freshly squeezed lemon juice into it too.
- To add some more heat to the sambar, you can also throw in some finely chopped green chillies and allow the sambar to simmer for a while before you serve it.
- To balance the sourness and spice from the sambar, you can also add some jaggery into the sambar, and lend it a bit of sweetness.
- If you can, use ghee or mustard oil for the tempering- both these just add that extra unique flavor to the sambar.
Serving Ideas & Suggestions
The best way to serve this flavorful mango sambar is to team it up with any of your favorite south Indian mains like dosas, uttapams or idlis.
I love teaming this sambar up with some vadas too- they can really take the flavors of this simple dish up a notch.
And of course, you can never go wrong with some good old sambar rice- serve this sambar with some steamed rice and turn it into a nice and filling comfort meal.
If you enjoyed trying your hands at this sambar, and are inspired to try out some more such flavor packed Indian recipes, here are a few good ideas you might want to take a look at.
📖 Recipe
Mango Sambar
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoon Oil
- 1 teaspoon Mustard seeds
- 1 teaspoon Hing
- 3-4 cloves Garlic
- 2 Garlic cloves
- 8-10 Curry leaves
- ¼ cup Raw mango , (chopped)
- ¼ cup Yellow moong dal, (soaked)
- 4 tablespoon Sambar powder
- ½ tablespoon Red chili powder
- 2 teaspoon Salt
- 3 tablespoon Coriander leaves, (chopped)
- 2.5 cup Water
Instructions
- Heat oil in a pressure cooker. Add the mustard seeds, hing, garlic cloves, dry red chilies, and curry leaves. Saute.
- Add the raw mangoes next and saute. Let it cook for a minute.
- Next, add the powdered spices and salt and mix.
- Add the water and coriander leaves and mix well.
- Pressure cook for 7-8 whistles or until the dal becomes soft.
- Serve hot with dosas or rice of your choice.
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