Lemon-size tamarind;
           -soaked in 1 cup water
           Pearl onions/shallots;peeled
      2    Dried red chilli pods

  1 1/2 ts Sambar powder

  1 1/2 ts Rice flour; mixed with a

           -little water for thickening
           Salt; to taste
           Mustard (seasoning)
           Chana dal (seasoning)
           Curry leaves (seasoning)
      1 pn Hing

      2 tb Oil

  Warm oil. Season with mustard , chana dal and curry powder. SautB peeled
  onions till translucent. Add squeezed out extract of tamarind. Throw the
  sambar powder, salt and hing in. Let simmer till onions are cooked. Add
  dissolved rice flour water for thickening. Stir and wait till it simmers
  again a couple of minutes. Remove.
  Variations:
  Tomatoes with chick peas makes a delicious vatha kozhambu. Add some slit
  green chillies if you would like to spike it up. Other suggestions are
  diced sweet potato, diced butternut squash, daikon (Chinese radish),
  drumsticks (available fresh in Indian stores or canned, pre-cooked) all on
  their own.
    U15297@uicvm.bitnet (Shyamala Parameswaran)