Bengaluru or Chennai sambar? Meals supply platform Zomato sparked debate not too long ago with its viral X publish siding with Bengaluru over Chennai after the Royal Challengers Bengaluru defeated the Chennai Tremendous Kings within the newest Indian Premier League 2026 match on the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru. Nonetheless, social media didn’t take it calmly. One wrote, “Cautious there. Are you able to shut your operations in Chennai? Behave like a listed firm, not like a avenue vendor. It’s only a league cricket match in spite of everything.”
As calls to boycott the app grew louder on social media, we reached out to consultants to know the nuances of every sambar and what makes them distinctive.
Bengaluru sambar > Chennai sambar.#RCBvCSK
— zomato (@zomato) April 5, 2026
Sambar varies considerably throughout South India, and the variations are largely formed by how it’s consumed in every area, based on Vinayak Shah, chef and founding father of Foodcraft Hospitality. “In Bengaluru and throughout Karnataka, the sambar usually has a barely thicker consistency with a touch of sweetness, usually coming from components like jaggery. The spice mix is often thicker, and the dish is often paired with objects akin to idli, vada, or dosa, so the flavour is constructed to enrich these textures,” Shah mentioned.
DISCLAIMER: This text relies on info from the general public area and/or the consultants we spoke to.
In Chennai and far of Tamil Nadu, sambar tends to be extra fluid in consistency, with a extra pronounced tanginess from tamarind and a sharper spice profile, mentioned Shah. “It’s often served as a part of a full meal with rice, so the stability of flavours is adjusted accordingly,” mentioned Shah.
Lots of people make sambar with a great deal of greens (Picture: Wikimedia Commons)
The selection of greens, the roasting of spices, and even the ratio of dal to liquid can differ between the 2 kinds.
Meals historian and educational Pushpesh Pant weighed in on the origins and mentioned that the sambar served in each these cities represents distinct regional variations that may be traced to the influences from the Thanjavur-Maratha reign. Legend has it that sambar was born when Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj visited the Thanjavur court docket. A royal prepare dinner, discovering himself with out kokum for the standard amti, turned to tamarind and added greens, making a lentil stew that got here to be often known as sambar within the king’s honour.
Whereas Chennai sambar is spicier and tart in flavour, owing to the extra intensive use of tamarind, paired with a single vegetable like drumstick, brinjal, or pumpkin, Bengaluru sambar gives a milder, sweeter, and fragrant flavour, owing to using jaggery and sometimes options a mixture of greens. “It options loads of greens and even freshly floor pastes fairly than simply dry sambar powder,” Pant advised indianexpress.com.
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Mohammed Chef Eliyaz, govt chef at Conrad Bengaluru, concurred, noting that he sees each as two distinct expressions of the identical dish. “Bengaluru-style sambar is extra rounded and comforting – it’s barely candy, fragrant, and layered due to the freshly floor masala. Chennai-style sambar, then again, is extra direct and assertive. It leans into tanginess and spice, with tamarind and sambar powder giving it a sharper, extra pronounced character,” mentioned Eliyaz.
Pant additional highlighted that whereas there are variations to the usual Tamil sambar, most function hing and are characterised by the absence of onion. “Bengaluru sambar is extra inclined in direction of the sweeter Udupi model delicacies,” Pant mentioned.
These variations aren’t incidental; they replicate regional cooking practices, native palates, and the function the dish performs inside a meal, Shah mentioned.
Over time, regional kinds emerged, every reflecting its personal philosophy. Eliyaz famous that in Bengaluru, the freshly floor masala builds depth, layer by layer, giving the sambar a wealthy, fragrant, nearly velvety physique. “In Chennai, it’s all about restraint and precision: the cautious use of sambar powder and the timing of tamarind create a cleaner, sharper, and extra outlined flavour. In essence, Bengaluru sambar looks like a fancy, built-up symphony, whereas Chennai sambar is a disciplined, elegant composition – each rooted in the identical legendary origin.”
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Shubham Parikh, a meals blogger and founding father of Mumbai Meals Heaven, shared that the distinction actually reveals up in how the flavours hit you. “In some locations, the sambar feels a bit fuller and barely candy, whereas in others it’s lighter with extra tanginess. Even the way in which it sits on the palate is completely different; you discover it extra once you’ve eaten each kinds a number of occasions, not simply as soon as,” mirrored Parikh.
He expressed, “I’ve at all times felt the distinction isn’t drastic once you take a look at it as soon as, however once you eat it frequently, you begin noticing how the flavour, texture, even the aftertaste modifications from place to put. It’s the identical dish at its core, simply formed by native habits and what folks develop up consuming.”
DISCLAIMER: This text relies on info from the general public area and/or the consultants we spoke to.
