Ginger & Curry Leaf Rasam(Spiced Soup)

With the temperature dropping down to below freezing and with snow all around, it is very much common to find signs of cold and cough in the house hold. Apart from a healthy diet, exercise and optimum levels of Vitamin D, certain spices like ginger which is a warming herb can help knock out a fever. The warming effects make it a natural decongestant as well as an antihistamine, making it the perfect remedy for colds.

This rasam(a spiced soup) can be had with warm rice or warm quinoa. It not only tastes excellent, stimulating your taste buds but really helps out when you have a cold, fever or any kind of digestive disorder. There is no reason for not trying this easy, healthy and tasty one. Do let me know how you like it.

Preparation Time - 5 Minutes

Cooking Time - 15 Minutes

Serves - 4

Ingredients

Tamarind - 1 small lemon sized ball

Red Chili - 4 or to taste

Black Pepper - 1 Tsp

Ginger - 1 inch piece

Thoor Dal - 1 Tsp

Curry leaves - handful

Salt - 1 1/2 Tsp or to taste

Water - 4 Cups

Rasam Powder - 1/2 Tsp (This is optional and you can add it or skip it, but adding it gives little bit more flavor)

Tempering



Ghee (Clarified Butter) - 1 Tsp

Mustard Seeds - 1/2 Tsp

Cumin Seeds - 1/2 Tsp



Method



1) Soak the tamarind in 1/2 cup of warm water and let this sit down for few minutes. You can even presoak in the night for making an instant rasam in the morning.



2) Heat a pan and dry roast black pepper, red chili, thoor dal till the raw smell is gone and they slightly brown. Switch of the stove and to this add the curry leaves and the peeled chopped ginger piece and set it aside.



3) Squeeze out the pulp from the soaked tamarind, by adding 3 cups of water little by little. Make sure it is thoroughly squeezed and the pulp is all extracted. Boil this tamarind juice by adding salt and rasam powder.



4) Now grind all the roasted ingredients into a fine powder and i use this left out 1/2 cup of water to rinse the blender with any of the powder sticking to it.



5) Once the tamarind juice boils for 10 minutes and the raw tamarind smell is gone, add the ground spices along with the 1/2 cup of water and let this simmer for another 2 minutes and switch off the stove.



6) Now heat a pan and add the ghee, once it is warm add the mustard seeds. After they stop spluttering add the cumin seeds and after they turn golden transfer it to the hot rasam. Serve this with steaming hot brown rice, or quinoa.

Posted in: diabetic-sidedish, glutenfree-sidedish, rasam, side dish, soup