Rasam sits at the centre of a Tamil meal, served after sambar and before curd rice. Tomato rasam is the everyday version made in most Tamil homes several times a week, and every family has its own balance of tamarind, tomato and pepper. It needs no rasam powder; freshly crushed pepper, cumin and garlic do the work.
The texture should be thin and clear, almost like a broth, with the solids settled at the bottom. It tastes sour, peppery and warm, with the fragrance of coriander and curry leaves. Many people drink it from a tumbler when they have a cold, and it is often the first food given to someone recovering from fever.
At a glance
| Region | Tamil Nadu |
|---|---|
| Cuisine | Tamil |
| Diet | Vegetarian |
| Course | Soup |
| Prep time | 10 minutes |
| Cook time | 20 minutes |
| Total time | 30 minutes |
| Serves | 4 |
| Spice level | Medium |
| Difficulty | Easy |
| Gluten-free | Yes |
| Key ingredients | tomato / tamarind / black pepper / cumin / garlic |
Ingredients
For the rasam
- 3 ripe tomatoes
- small lemon-sized ball of tamarind, soaked in 1 cup warm water
- 1 tsp black peppercorns
- 1 tsp cumin seeds
- 5 garlic cloves, unpeeled
- 1/4 tsp turmeric powder
- 1/4 tsp asafoetida
- 1 tsp salt, or to taste
- 2.5 cups water
- 1 sprig curry leaves
- 3 tbsp chopped coriander leaves with stems
For the tadka
- 1 tbsp ghee
- 1 tsp mustard seeds
- 1 dry red chilli, broken
- 1/4 tsp cumin seeds
- a few curry leaves
Method
- Squeeze the soaked tamarind well and strain to get about 1 cup of thin tamarind water. Discard the pulp.
- Coarsely crush the peppercorns and cumin in a mortar, then add the garlic and pound a few times until bruised but not pasty.
- Chop one tomato finely. Crush the other two by hand straight into a pot, skins and all.
- Add the tamarind water, chopped tomato, turmeric, salt, asafoetida and curry leaves to the pot. Boil on medium heat for 8-10 minutes until the raw tamarind smell is gone and the tomatoes are soft.
- Add the crushed pepper-cumin-garlic and 2.5 cups water. Bring it up slowly on medium-low heat.
- Watch closely: when a layer of froth rises to the top and the rasam is just about to boil, switch off the heat. Do not let it boil hard, or it turns flat and bitter.
- Heat ghee in a small pan, splutter mustard seeds, then add red chilli, cumin and curry leaves for a few seconds. Pour over the rasam.
- Add the coriander, cover with a lid and leave for 5 minutes for the aroma to infuse before serving.
Tips
- The froth stage is the most important cue in rasam making; boiling past it dulls the flavour.
- If your tomatoes are very sour, reduce the tamarind by half.
- A teaspoon of cooked toor dal water added with the plain water gives a slightly fuller body without making it a dal.
Serve with
Hot rice with ghee and a potato or raw banana fry, or simply in a tumbler as a soup.