Skip to main content

Yogurt Sambol with Tomato and Shallot

This yogurt relish comes from the Tamil communities of Sri Lanka and is called Curd Sambol. It may be served with most South Asian meals. It may also be eaten at lunch as a salad.

Recipe information

  • Yield

    serves 4

Ingredients

1 cup plain yogurt
1/4–1/2 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1/8–1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 medium tomato, cut into small dice
1 medium shallot, peeled and chopped finely
1 tablespoon olive or canola oil
1/4 teaspoon whole brown mustard seeds
8–10 fresh curry leaves or 4 fresh basil leaves

Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Put the yogurt in a bowl. Mix gently with a whisk or fork until smooth and creamy. Add the salt, pepper, cayenne, tomatoes, and shallots and mix again.

    Step 2

    Pour the oil into a very small pan and set over medium-high heat. When hot, put in the mustard seeds. As soon as they start to pop, a matter of seconds, add the curry leaves and then quickly lift up the pan and empty its contents into the bowl of yogurt. Mix.

Image may contain: Human, Person, Madhur Jaffrey, and Plant
Excerpted from At Home with Madhur Jaffrey: Simple, Delectable Dishes from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka by Madhur Jaffrey. Copyright © 2010 by Random House. Excerpted by permission of Alfred A. Knopf, a division of Random House LLC. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher. Buy the full book from Amazon.
Read More
Like “absolutely decadent” chocolate pudding and fattoush salad.
Keep this easy frittata recipe on hand for quick breakfasts, impressive brunches, and fridge clean-out meals.
A warmly spiced Ashkenazi charoset, perfect for your Passover seder—or spooned over yogurt the next morning.
Turn humble onions into this thrifty yet luxe pasta dinner.
This one-pot dinner cooks chicken thighs directly on top of a bed of flavorful cilantro rice studded with black beans for a complete dinner.
Like lemony risotto and tandoori-style cauliflower.
Filberts, goobers, scaly bark nuts: Explore the world beyond almonds in this guide.
The most efficient method takes less than an hour, but you might not even need it.