Pacha Pulusu ( no cooking rasam)

This hot summer, try this light and cool rasam.

Serves 4

Ingredients :

1 cup finely chopped Onions

2 cup tamrind juice

1/2 cup water

2 tbps chopped Cilantro

2 tsp Jaggery

8 green chillies finely chopped

salt to taste

Method:

1.In a 1 quart bowl crush greenchill , onions with salt .

2.Add cilantro and tamrind juice.

3.Add water and Jaggery to adjust tanginess to your taste.

4.Serve cool with hot rice and ghee.

Note :

You can sever this rasam as a soup as well.

For more flavour you can add tempering.

Lemon Rasam

If eating too much of tamarind does not appeal to you, think of lemon rasam. There is something appealing about this clear, light, tangy lemon rasam that I prepare it often. If you have Toor Dal water with you, this Rasam will not take more than 15 mts of cooking.

Ingredients

1 inch ginger - 2 pieces

Slit green chillies - 2

Tomatoes - 2

1/2 tsp Turmeric powder

1/2 tsp hing / asofetida

Salt to taste

1 tsp Sambar/ Rasam powder

2 cups Toor dal water

1 cup plain water

1 tbsp lemon juice or 2 lemons ( quantity varies according to your taste)

Method

1) Remove the outer skin of ginger. Now smash the ginger (place ginger on a flat surface and gently slam it)

2) Place 1 cup of water in a pan and keep it on low flame. Add smashed ginger, chopped tomatoes, green chillies, turmeric powder, Rasam powder, hing and a bit of salt to the water.

3) Bring it to a boil and let it keep boiling until the quantity reduces by 50% (take care that you do not burn it)

4) Once the quantity reduces by 50%, add dal water and keep it in low flame. Once you see lather forming, it is time to switch off the flame.

5) Add lemon juice and season with chopped coriander leaves. Serve with hot, plain rice.

~Note

Add lemon only after switching off the stove , otherwise it would turn  bitter.

Goddu Rasam

Rasam - the South Indian soup often made with tamarind water is one of the comfort food which can be eaten along with plain rice or enjoyed as soup.You will find many varieties of Rasam. Goddu Rasam is one of the easiest recipes to make. This also does not require dal water. For this you need

Ingredients

1/2 tsp Mustard seeds

Small Lemon Size Tamarind

Hing/ asafoetida

Salt to taste

3 green chillies cut lengthwise

2 red chillies broken

1 tbsp oil for frying

6-8 Curry leaves

Chopped coriander leaves

Method

1) Soak tamarind it hot water. Let it cool a bit. Squeeze the pulp and drain all the juice in a container. Add some more water to the pulp and extract some more tamarind juice. Keep it aside.

2) Take a frying pan with 1 tbsp oil.

3) Add mustard seeds and let it crackle. Then add green chillies sliced lengthwise, red chillies broken into halves, curry leaves and hing.

4) Add the tamarind juice to it. Add some salt.

5) Keep it for boil. Let it boil for 5 minutes. Once it is boiling, add 1/3 cup water and simmer it. Heat it up well.

6) Once it heats up but not boiling, remove from the stove and season it with chopped coriander leaves.