What is Rasam?
Rasam is a soup, normally made out of juicy fruits and vegetables, with tamarind and rasam powder as its base. This south Indian style soup is delicious, comforting, and filled with warm spices. You can make this soup using lemon, orange, tomatoes, beetroot, pineapple, cranberries, basil, mint, cilantro, etc. You can use anything on your hand to make the rasam. This dish is so versatile and easy to make. I love to pair my rasam with piping hot rice and simple potato roast with papadums.
What is Tomato Rasam?
Tomato rasam is a spicy, tangy, and very flavorful rasam. This recipe honestly is my go-to on my sick days. A hearty bowl of this soup with lots of black pepper, ginger, and herbs is my favorite. The tomatoes are pureed and then cooked in sesame oil, whole spices, aromatics, and tamarind, with a special spice blend. Once the tomatoes are cooked well, just a spoonful of cooked lentils are added along with water. Finish it off with lots of cilantro and black pepper.
Is this Recipe Vegan?
Yes, this recipe is 100 percent vegan. You can also make this recipe gluten-free by skipping asafetida or adding gluten-free asafetida.
Tips to Make This Recipe
Adding pureed tomatoes help you extract the maximum flavor from the fruit. So lightly pulse them in a mixer grinder or a food processor. If you live somewhere, where tomatoes are not easily available, you can use a 14 oz can of fire-roasted tomatoes for this recipe. I love how they give a beautiful tangy and smoky flavor to the rasam.
You can use store-bought rasam powder, or use the rasam powder recipe that is in the recipe card below. I always use store-bought tamarind paste, but you can also soak 1 inch of the dried tamarind in hot water. Squeeze and extract all the flavor from the tamarind and add the extracted tamarind water to the rasam. Don’t let the rasam boil too much. It has a lot of sour flavors, so they might start to get bitter or react with the pot you are cooking the rasam in.
Is Rasam Healthy?
Yes, it absolutely is. It is made with whole and ground spices along with aromatics, that help with keeping your body warm and help fight cold and cough. It also serves as a detox drink too.
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