Jesse’s Tomato Rasam
Rasam is a staple dish in South Indian homes - it’s a light and tangy soup served piping hot, either on its own or with rice. This tomato rasam recipe is a soul soother and definitely the best thing to sip on, on sick days. Its fast, easy with peppery, spicy flavours.
Servings: 6 people
Ingredients
Dry Mixture
- 2 Tablespoons whole Black Pepper
- 1 Sprig Curry Leaves
- 1 Tablespoon Cumin Seeds
- 1/4 Cup Coriander Leaves with stems
- 1 Bulb Garlic unpeeled
Boiling
- 5 Cups Water
- 2-3 Tomatoes approx 120 grams
Tempering
- 2 Teaspoons Oil
- 1 Teaspoon Mustard Seeds
- 3 Byadgi Dry Red Chillies
- 4 Small Round Dry Red Chillies
- 1 medium Onion sliced
- 3-4 Garlic cloves unpeeled and smashed lightly
- 1/2 Teaspoon Turmeric Powder
- 1 1/2 Teaspoon Salt
- 1 1/2 Teaspoons Rasam Powder
- 1 Piece Tamarind lemon sized approx 12 grams
- 2 tablespoons fresh Coriander for topping
Instructions
Dry Mixture
- Add all the ingredients mentioned under ‘dry mixture’ to the chutney jar of a mixer grinder or to a spice grinder and grind to a chunky dry mix consistency. Don't add any water while grinding
Boil Tomatoes
- Heat 5 cups of water in a pot and add tomatoes. Boil for 10-15 minutes till the tomatoes soften. Remove the tomatoes and reserve the water.
- Once the tomatoes cool down slightly, mash them with your hands. You can also use a potato masher to do this. Keep them chunky and don’t mash them to a pulp.
- In a different bowl, soak tamarind in ¼ cup hot water and set aside.
Tempering
- In a pot or kadhai, heat oil and add mustard seeds. Once they start spluttering, add all the dried red chillies and curry leaves. Saute for about 30 seconds.
- Add sliced onions and fry till light golden. Add smashed garlic cloves and saute. Add the ground coriander masala, turmeric, salt and saute for 2-3 minutes.
- Add the mashed tomatoes, all the reserved tomato water, rasam powder and tamarind water. Add another cup of water if you want the consistency to be thinner. Bring this to a boil and simmer for 2 minutes. Turn off the heat, top with fresh coriander leaves and let this rest for 10-15 minutes.
Video
Notes
- Tomatoes: Mash the tomatoes slightly with your hands, keeping them chunky - never works well with a mixer grinder. We want the soup to have some tomato chunks for the best taste. Make sure to reserve the leftover tomato water to add to the broth! This will add more flavour.
- Don’t boil the rasam too much after adding rasam powder. Just a quick boil and turn off the heat.
- Resting: Let the rasam sit for 10-15 minutes before serving to allow the spices and juices to slowly marry together. Trust me, it’s worth the wait.
- Tamarind: Make sure to soak the tamarind in hot water for at least 10 minutes so that maximum pulp can be extracted from it.
- How do I serve rasam? You can serve rasam on its own as a soup or with steamed rice. You could also serve it with idlis and vada.
- Can I substitute fresh tamarind with tamarind paste? Yes, substitute with 1 teaspoon tamarind paste.
- How long can rasam be stored for? Rasam can be refrigerated for up to 2-3 days or frozen for up to a month. It reheats well!
Nutrition
Calories: 49kcal | Carbohydrates: 8g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 2g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 1g | Sodium: 598mg | Potassium: 218mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 594IU | Vitamin C: 15mg | Calcium: 46mg | Iron: 1mg