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Tomato rasam
Tamil Nadu's thin, peppery tomato and tamarind soup with garlic and a mustard-seed tempering
Rasam is the thin, sour, peppery broth that runs through every Tamil Nadu meal, poured over rice after sambar or sipped from a tumbler when you have a cold. This tomato version is the everyday kind: ripe tomatoes and tamarind simmered with crushed garlic, black pepper and cumin, then lifted with a tempering of mustard seeds, dried chilli and curry leaves. It's light, warming and ready in 25 minutes. Serve it with plain rice and a dry vegetable, or on its own in a cup. Chef's tip: once you add the spice mix, take the rasam off the heat as soon as it froths up; boiling it hard turns the flavour flat and the pepper harsh.
- Total time
- 25 min
- Difficulty
- easy
- Serves
- 4
Ingredients
For the rasam
For the tempering
Method
0/6 doneStep 1: Put 3 ripe tomatoes in a pan with 1 tbsp tamarind paste, 2 ½ cups water, ¼ tsp ground turmeric, 1 tsp salt, ½ tsp jaggery or brown sugar and half the chopped coriander stems from 3 tbsp fresh coriander. Squeeze the tomatoes with your hand as they go in to release their juice.
2 minStep 2: Bring to the boil, then simmer on a medium heat for 8–10 minutes until the tomatoes are soft and the raw tamarind smell has gone.
10 minStep 3: Meanwhile, pound 1 tsp black peppercorns and 1 tsp cumin seeds to a coarse powder in a mortar, then add 4 cloves garlic and crush it into the spices, skins and all; the skins add flavour and are strained out or left in, as you prefer.
Step 4: Add the pepper-garlic mix to the pan and lower the heat. Watch it closely: in 1–2 minutes a layer of froth will rise to the top. Take it off the heat at once.
2 minStep 5: For the tempering, heat 1 tbsp vegetable or sesame oil in a small pan over a medium heat, add ½ tsp black mustard seeds and let it pop, then add 1 dried red chilli, 10 fresh curry leaves and ¼ tsp gluten-free asafoetida (hing). Pour it sizzling into the rasam.
1 minStep 6: Scatter with the coriander leaves, cover for 2 minutes to let the flavours settle, and serve hot, poured over rice or in cups.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 60 kcal
- Protein
- 1 g
- Carbs
- 9 g
- Fat
- 3 g
- Fibre
- 2 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does tomato rasam take?
- About 25 minutes in total: 10 minutes to prepare and 15 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 4 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegan?
- Yes. It has no meat, fish, dairy or eggs.
- Is it gluten free?
- Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
- What can I use instead of ripe tomatoes?
- Tinned chopped tomatoes: a 400g tin for about 6 tomatoes (in cooked dishes, not salads).
- What can I use instead of ground turmeric?
- Leave it out (it mostly adds colour).
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