Udupi Rasam Recipe

Amongst all the variations of rasam available across South India, this version is easily one of my favourites. The perfect mix of spice, sweet and tangy is what I consider the ideal comfort food.

Traditional udupi rasam

Preparation time : 5 minutes

Total Time of Cooking : 25 minutes

Serves 4–5.

Ingredients :

100g Toor Dal

2 cups water for pressure cooking (500ml) + 2 additional cups of water

1 medium sized tomato

2 green chillies

A pinch of asafoetida

A pinch of turmeric powder

15 gms tamarind (1 small lemon sized ball)

10 gms organic jaggery powder (optional but recommended)

Salt to taste (Preferably rock salt)

2–3 springs of curry leaves

2 Tbsp chopped coriander leaves

2 and a half Tbsp Udupi Rasam Powder

1 Tbsp Ghee

Cooking Steps :

1. Pressure cook toor dal, tomato & green chillies with 2 cups of water for 2 whistles on high flame. After 2 whistles, reduce the flame and cook for 10 minutes.
2. While the ingredients are being pressure cooked, soak the ball of tamarind in hot water.
3. After the pressure has released, whisk/mash the ingredients on a low flame.
4. Add salt, jaggery, soaked tamarind, asafoetida, turmeric, curry leaves and 2 additional cups of water. Let the mixture slowly come to a boil for about 5–6 minutes in medium flame until there is no raw smell of tamarind and jaggery.
5. Mix in the rasam powder and ensure there are no lumps. Let it boil for 5 minutes on a low flame.
6. Switch off the flame and add coriander leaves and ghee.
7. Serve it hot with rice, ghee and papad with a side of Potato Fry/ Chicken Sukka or Prawn Ghee Roast.

Additional Tips :

1. Do not substitute organic jaggery powder with sugar or any other sweetener.
2. Do not season or add tadka to the rasam. The ghee and coriander leaves act as seasoning.
3. Ensure toor dal is completely cooked and mashed.
4. The rasam can be savoured as soup by adding more water to the recipe.
5. Feel free to tweak the amount of rasam powder and chilly according to your taste.