Spicy Tomato Saar With Beetroot.

Spicy And Hot Tomato Saar with Beetroot .... Can be served as Appetizer, with Rice, Jeera Rice and Mildly spiced Pulav ........

This tomato saar is the same as the one’s I have previously posted. The only difference beeing that I have added one cup of beetroot juice to the same. This saar is really good for health as beets have lots of healthy properties in them. Addition of cooked beetroot water to the saar not only enhances the taste but also gives it that blood red colour which is otherwise difficult to get. 

Peel off the skin of one large sized beetroot and cut them into quarters. Wash and put them in a pressure cooker and add in one cup of water. Pressure cook to 2-3 whistles. Remove and keep it aside for the pressure to fall on its own. Once cooled, open the lid and drain off the cooked water.

Use the cooked water for the preparation of saar and the cooked beetroot can be used in making upkari / bhaji or just thinly sliced and served as a salad sprinkled with some salt and black pepper powder. 

Wash and wipe 4 large sized tomatoes. Chop them to small pieces and keep aside. Chop one cup of coriander leaves. Soak a small marble sized tamarind in water for 10 minutes. Squeeze out the mixture, strain and keep aside.

Put the tomatoes and the tamarind water in a vessel with 4 cups of water and bring to a boil. Mash the tomatoes with a masher for the juices to come out and blends well. Add in the strained beetroot water, 1 tablespoon prepared hing water if adding (leave out if adding hing powder) and mix well. Bring to a boil and lower the heat. 

Heat 2-3 tblsp of oil in a medium sized kadai, when hot lower heat and add in 1 tsp of rai (sasam / mustard), when they splutter, add 1 tsp of hing powder (if adding, leave out if prepared hing water is added) and 2 tblsp of sambar powder and fry well for a minute, add 8-10 curry leaves and fry further for a minute. 

Remove and pour over the tomato mixture. Bring it all to a good boil. Simmer the saar for 15 – 20 minutes till it reduces a little bit in quantity.

Add in salt to taste and 1 cup of chopped coriander leave. Remove and serve hot with rice or as an appetizer.