Rasam

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Rasam can be made in several ways.  If you travel to Kerala and eat at a local restaurant your table will always have two or three white jugs filled with rasam, butter milk and another with spiced, warm buttermilk.  These come on all table in spite of a sambar or dhal curry.  I always like the rasam they serve which is watery, tangy and spicy.  I can drink it as it is reminding me of a clear thin soup.  Today, I am sharing this recipe with some tricks shared by a Tamil friend of mine.  She encouraged me to just bring the rasam to boiling point and never over boiling.  I have to agree with her that the taste of the rasam when just brought to boiling point is just right for my taste rather than when its is let to boil for a long time.  I know there will be difference of opinion on this but I like my rasam the best this way.  Again, this is spicy, tangy and lip smacking.

Ingredients:
Tomato (on the vine kind) - 2 medium
Shallots chopped    - 1 Tbspn
Garlic                     - 6-8 cloves (plump)
Curry Leaves         - 1 spring
Dry red chilies        - 5
Green chilies          - 2 (optional)Jeera                      - 1/4 tspn
Mustard                 - 1/2 tspn
Asafoetida             - 1/4 tspn
Methi powder        - 1/4 tspn
Turmeric                - 1/2 tspn
Coriander Powder - 1/2 tspn
Pepper powder      - 1 tspn
Marble size tamarind
Water - 5 cups
Salt - 1 1/2 tspn table salt (Please use your judgment when adding salt)
Oil - 1 Tbspn 

Method:
1. Crush the chopped tomatoes with your hand or a spoon. This can be coarse not a paste
2. Soak the tamarind in about a cup of water
3. Heat oil in a pan and add mustard and jeera
4. Once the mustard splutters add shallots, green chilies, red chilies and curry leaves and saute
5. When your onions are translucent add the garlic and saute
6. Follow up with all the powders and saute adding the tomato without burning the powders
7. Stir for a minute and add 4 cups of water
8. Mix the tamarind water with your hand making sure you have extracted the tamarind and its mixed in the water
9. Bring the whole mixture to a boil add about a handful of chopped coriander leaves.

Notes:
1. The taste as I have mentioned is when you just bring the rasam to a boil and not over do it.


Contributor: Sunitha