GOOD RASAM

I really don’t know how this rasam got its name but it had been very popular in our household since our grand parents’ times! This rasam is basically tamarind soup with a tadka which has a tsp of tuvar dal. Personally I have never felt that it has any nutrition. But this was a daily preparation in addition to koottaan and thoran every day when my parents were in their late seventies - I think they relished it for its lightness and tanginess.

It tastes very good with rice and any ‘mezhukkuvaratti’ / 'thoran' / pappadam / appalam / karuvadam (fryums).

Ingredients –

Tamarind – 1 lemon-sized ball – soaked in water

Turmeric powder – ½ tsp

Salt to taste

Sambar / rasam powder – 1 tsp

Tuvar dal – 1 tsp

Mustard seeds – 1 tsp

Fenugreek seeds – ½ tsp

Whole red chilli – 2 pieces

Asafetida – ¼ tsp

Curry leaves – 8

Ghee – 1 tsp

Method –

Extract the tamarind pulp and 1 cup of water to it.

Pour it in a vessel and boil it with turmeric powder and salt.

In a small pan, add 1 tsp of ghee and add the mustard and fenugreek seeds and tuvar dal and red chilli pieces. When they crackle, turn off the gas and add asafetida and curry leaves and add it to the tamarind water.

Continue to boil for 10 minutes.

Add 2 – 3 cups of water and boil well. Check for the sourness.

Eat it hot with rice and thoran.

It tastes good as soup too.

 © Copyright 2011. Brinda Balasubramonian.