Author Notes
This has been handed down to me by my mother in law and one I learnt when I learning to cook. I follow her recipe to the T and it has never let me down. Best eaten with hot rice and a dollop of clarified butter or ghee with a side of roasted potatoes this is what I would call "comfort food" in my home. —Malini Ratnam
Ingredients
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5
Large garlic pods
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1/2 cup
Chopped cilantro leaves
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3/4 teaspoon
Whole black pepper
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1 1/2 teaspoons
Cumin seeds
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2 tablespoons
tamarind paste, or soak a lime sized ball of tamarind in hot water and squeeze the pulp
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1 teaspoon
Mustard seeds
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1
Dry red arbol Chile
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2 teaspoons
Ghee or clarified butter
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1 teaspoon
store bought rasam powder (available in most Indian stores).This is optional and you can skip if you don't have this ingredient.
Directions
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Mix the tamarind paste in about 1 1/2 cups water. If using fresh tamarind, add about 1 1/4 cups water to the tamarind and let it soften to squeeze out about 11/2 cups of tamarind water.
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Take 3 garlic pods, 1/4 cup cilantro, black pepper and 1 tsp cumin seeds in a blender, with a tbsp of water and grind to a fine paste.
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Now take the tamarind water in a heavy saucepan, add the rasam powder, the remaining cilantro and let the mixture come to a slow boil on a medium flame. This will take about 5-7 minutes, till the raw smell of the tamarind and the rasam powder goes away.
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Let the mixture boil for about 5-7 minutes till you no longer smell the raw garlic. Add chopped cilantro, and let simmer for another 2-3 minutes.
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Now temper the soup. Heat about 2 tsp ghee (clarified butter or brown butter) in a small pan. Add the mustard seeds when ghee is hot. After they splutter add the cumin seeds, red chili and curry leaves. Add the chopped garlic. Saute for a minute, and then add the tempering to the rasam. Cover the rasam with a lid until you are ready to serve, This keeps the flavors of the tempering intact and lets them infuse in the rasam.
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