Kothamalli rasam

Kothamalli is coriander in Tamizh and rasam is soup




Ingredients:

A bunch of coriander with stem (chop the roots and clean the coriander under running water)
Garlic (optional) ---3 pods
Ginger ------------- ½ inch
Tomatoes --------- 1 big (add more if you want it tangier)
Juice extracted from marble sized tamarind
Pepper powder ---- 1 Table spoon (can add more if you want it spicier)
Roasted Cumin Powder ---- 1tea spoon

For seasoning

Ghee ----1 spoon
Cumin seeds ---1 teaspoon
Salt to taste
asafoetida


Grind fresh coriander, garlic,ginger and tomatoes together into a fine paste.

Transfer the paste along with tamarind water into a dish. Heat them till the raw smell of the ingredients fade.

Now add 2-3 cups of water to the rasam and bring them to boil till it froths up.

Add the pepper, cumin powder , Salt and asafoetida (hing) and boil them for just a minute or two.

Close the dish with a lid so that the vapours are not let out. The pepper and Cumin will infuse their flavor into the rasam

Season the rasam with jeera spluttered in ghee.

This is a healthy easy to make rasam for the rainy season, especially builds immunity for children and keeps away colds and coughs.

Tastes good with rice and ghee or it can be served like a soup.

You can variate by replacing tamarind with lemon. But in this case the lemon juice should be added in the end along with pepper and cumin powder, If you boil lemon juice it will leave behind its bitterness.

N.B: Photo shows kothamalli rasam in Iya chombu(an alloy of lead and silver). Traditionally tamizh households prepare rasam in an iya chombu since the vessel imparts traces of the metal silver.