I’m here staying back at home for the third day with a bad cold. As always, thought about this staple go-to at the last moment. There is nothing like a fiery Rasam with generous dose of pepper to make you feel better when you are under the weather.

Rasam is a tangy spicy soup used to serve as part of South Indian lunch/dinner. Many variations of Rasam can be prepared by slightly changing the ingredients and methods. Tomato pepper Rasam with lots of garlic gives good relief for cough and cold.

Ingredients:

Oil : 2 tablespoons

Cumin Seed : 1 teaspoon

Fenugreek : one pinch

Kayam (Asafoetida) : 1/4 teaspoon

Curry Leaves: 5-6 leaves

Corriander Leaves : 2-3 small plants

Tomato: 2 Medium

Garlic : 15 cloves

Pepper : 1 teaspoon

Chilli powder: 1/4 teaspoon

Turmeric : 1/4 teaspoon

Curry Leaves: 5-6 leaves

Corriander Leaves : 2-3 plants

Salt : 1/2 teaspoon (for taste)

Tamarind : half of amla size

Water : 2 cups

Preparation:

Step1:
Keep tamarind in a cup of warm water to dissolve. Cut tomatos to small pieces.

Step2:
Keep a pan on heat and add oil. Once it is hot add cumin seed, fenugreek, curry leaves and stir well. Add crushed garlic and stir for few seconds. Add coriander leaves (make it small) and tomatoes. Fry till it becomes a paste. This step is important, as tomatoes has to be fully cooked to get better taste for Rasam. If you get organic small tomatoes (Natti tomatoes), that would be the best choice.

Step3:
Add chilli powder, turmeric powder, pepper powder and salt into the pan. Fry for few more minutes.

Step4:
Add tamarind paste and remaining water. Allow it to boil. Check the salt and add if needed. Add asafoetida powder and mix well.

Step5 (Optional):
Pour into a sieve and press hard. Collect the Rasam. This is an optional step if you want to filter out just the soup.

Serve hot tomato pepper rasam with white rice!!