Thursday, February 16, 2012

Seeraa Rasam

Today is my first day of Valli's Blogging Marathon and i choose 7 days of Rasam or Saathamudhu! Its one of the most comforting dish and is pretty simple to make :)..Konjum saadham (rice), saathamudu & karamedu and you can see me happy for the rest of the day.. i guess food does that to me!!
This week has been lousy with respect to food!! We went to a Thai restaurant and Pad Thai was soggy & sad..the next day we tried a new indian restaurant..food was not great either..i hate it when dine-outs are a disaster and when we got back, i was more than happy to fix us with this simple rasam!
Rajiamma, my granny did the best version of this.. i guess some people have the kai man am (the skill of making the dish perfectly)! Something light, filling and perfect when you are sick too.. the light flavors just soothe you..so off to Seera ( nothing but Jeera) Saathamudu..






Ingredients
1. Tamarind paste - 1 tsp or small gooseberry size
2. Water - 4 cups +1/2 cup (for dal)
3. Cooked Toor dal/ Paruppu -2tbsp
3. Tomato - 1(chopped)
4. Hing - a pinch
5. Curry Leaves - a sprig or more
6. Turmeric powder - a pinch
7. Salt - to taste
8. Cilantro (finely choped) - 1-2 sprigs


To Roast & Dry Grind
1. Channa dal - 1tbsp
2. Toor dal - 1 tbsp
3. Red Chillies - 2
4. Jeera/ Cumin - 1tbsp
5. Ghee - 1tsp


To Temper
1. Mustard seeds - 1tsp
2. Ghee - 1tsp




Preparation Time!!
1a. Cook the lentil in a pressure cooker for upto 4 whistles. Alternatively, if you are cooking dal or sambhar, you could use the toor dal water along with 1-2tbsp of cooked toor dal!
1b. In a vessel, take the tamarind paste or juice, add the water, turmeric,tomato, hing, salt and curry leaves and boil
2. As this getting boiled, take a pan, add ghee and add the ingredients mentioned in 'To Roast & Dry grind' table, except jeera and sauté till light brown
3. Remove, cool and blend to a semi-coarse powder. Once done, add jeera and use the whip/pulse action in the mixer( Idea is not to powder jeera completely..just break a little). Keep aside
4. Once the raw smell of tamarind goes and tomato is cooked, add the ground powder and add the toor dal water(1/2cup) with 1-2 tbsp of mashed toor dal. Reduce flame to medium
5. Take 1-2 minutes, a light froth is formed. This is the time to remove the rasam
6. Temper with mustard seeds and then garish with cilantro


Serve hot with rice & ghee and enjoy with some curry :)..


Pointers
1. Dont roast the jeera/ cumin with other ingredients.. Roasting will give the rasam a medicinal taste like kashayam
2. You could use mortar & pestle, to pound jeera.. its not supposed to be finely ground!
3. Use ghee to roast ingredients & for tempering.. This is the key to enhance flavors..No oil for rasam please
4. Don't over-boil this rasam..After the addition of ground powder & dal, let it simmer for just a minute or so..remove as soon as the light froth is formed


Serving : 2 people
Duration : 20-25 minutes


Go ahead and see whats cooking in my fellow marathoners kitchen..Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM#13

Sending this to Gayatri's  'Walk through Memory Lane'

43 comments:

  1. Wow...so flavorful n yummy rasam,looks inviting!!
    Neat presentation !!

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  2. Rasi, this is a nice rasam with detailed steps for anyone new to south Indian cooking. I love your pics and the cutlery nd the use of muffin liners for ingredients...i'm going to copy it sometime :)

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  3. Rasi, this is a nice rasam with detailed steps for anyone new to south Indian cooking. I love your pics and the cutlery and the use of muffin liners for ingredients...i'm going to copy it sometime :)

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    Replies
    1. ha ha.. sure :)..happy am able to explain.. it wa psalmist a struggle..cooking seems far more easier :D

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  4. This seera rasam is new to me. looks awesome. happy to follow you!!! and do visit my space when you find time!!!

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  5. Seera rasam looks yum and best comfort food

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  6. Comfort at its best I should say!!

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  7. very nice and comforting recipe...

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    Replies
    1. @anu, harini & neha : thanks ppl.. my comfort food too :)

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  8. seera rasam new to me nice one and i am new to ur space..nice to follow u.

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    Replies
    1. thanks achu... gld u came by.. helped me to find urs :)

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  9. This is comfort food for me, with some potato curry, yumm..

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  10. Comforting and perfect for these cold nights. Wonderful recipe!

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  11. Rasi, this is awesome. beautiful pictures and very tempting!..glad to have you do this along..

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    Replies
    1. Thanks so much valli :) thats the sweetest thing to say.. am having a ball !

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  12. Very comforting rasam. You can link it to my event WTML...

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  13. New one to me Rasi. But this looks so flavorful n yum...

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  14. Nice comforting rasam !! wonderful flavors !!

    Ongoing event CC-Dish For Loved Ones

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  15. Awesome :)....do visit mine in ur free time.

    Preeti
    Preeti's Kitchen Life

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  16. rasam looks so yummy..awesome clicks dear!! :)

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  17. nice to find your blog....the rasam looks very delicious
    following you.....do visit my space when time permits

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  18. The rasam looks yummy...oh for a bowl of that rice and rasam right now. I am yet to try making it from scratch at home...little confession I always use the Gits packet (don't disown me for this please).
    Sad and soggy pad thai! Unpardonable....

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    Replies
    1. Try this and am sure you will love it :).. he he.. i would make rasam as sambhar before.. u could hardly make the difference out :D.. totally unpardonable! tell me about the pad thai..

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  19. super comforting rasam....very well done dear...thanx 4 sharing

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  20. Very delicious n flavorful rasam,yummy tangy combo!!
    you have an award at my space ,please collect it dear:)

    Erivum Puliyum

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  21. Favourful, tasty rasam. Love the clicks.

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  22. Love the recipe and the bowl in which rasam is served.

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Really look forward to your opinions, comments & suggestions :)...Glad you took time to say something on my dish..Its a yay! moment for me :)