Tomato Rasam

Hindi: tamatar
Relish a salad platter of thinly sliced tomatoes, with chunks of mozzarella, a drizzle of olive oil, sliced black olives and basil leaves. Arrange in concentric circles on a nice white plate. The word relish is just perfect here. And not just salads, for all those rich and good-looking Indian preps, the very famous onion-tomato masala is a must! Then, there are soups, beverages (call for the Bloody Mary!), snacks and even desserts made of these plump red things. Even the green ones are in use today. Must say, terrific tomatoes!

Ingredients 
Prep Time : 6-10 minutes

Cook time : 16-20 minutes

Serve : 4

Level Of Cooking : Easy

Taste : Spicy

Tomatoes chopped 2 large
Toor dal cooked 1/2 cup
Ghee 1 tablespoon
Tamarind water 3 tablespoons
Asafoetida a pinch
Turmeric powder a pinch
Rasam powder 2 tablespoons
Cumin seeds 1/2 teaspoon
Salt to taste
Fresh coriander leaves 2 tablespoons
Steamed rice to serve
Tempering

Ghee 1 1/2 tablespoons
Mstard seeds 1 teaspoon
Cumin seeds 1/2 teaspoon
Dried red chilli 1
Asafoetida 1/4 teaspoon
Curry leaves 7-8
Method

Step 1
Heat a non-stick pan, add tomatoes and ghee, mix and sauté for 1-2 minutes.
Step 2
Add tamarind pulp, 2 cups water, asafoetida, turmeric powder, rasam powder and cumin seeds, and mix well. Let the mixture boil for 10 minutes.
Step 3
Take cooked pigeon pea in a bowl and add 1 cup water and mix well. Add this to the boiling mixture, and add another cup of water and mix well. Let it come to a boil and switch the flame off.
Step 4
Add salt and coriander leaves, mix well and take it off the heat.
Step 5
For the tempering, heat ghee in a tempering pan, add mustard seeds, cumin seeds, broken red chilli, asafoetida and curry leaves and let the seeds splutter. Add the tempering to the prepared rasam and switch off the heat.
Step 6
Transfer the rasam into a serving bowl and serve hot with steamed rice.