GARLIC RASAM

Ingredients Garlic 15-20 cloves Pigeon pea split (toovar dal), soaked 3 tablespoons Pure ghee 2 tablespoons Tamarind ½ a lemon sized ball Salt to taste Asafoetida a pinch For rasam powder Cumin seeds ¾ teaspoon Peppercorns 6-8 Whole dry red chillies 4 Coriander seeds 1 tablespoon Bengal gram split (chana dal) 1 teaspoon Coconut, scraped 1 teaspoon Tempering Mustard seeds ½ teaspoon Whole dry red chillies 2 Curry leaves 10-12 Method 1. Peel garlic and sauté in about half tablespoon of ghee for a minute. Remove and keep aside. 2. Boil dal with one cup of water till soft. Mash and reserve along with the water. 3. Soak tamarind in one cup of warm water, remove the pulp, strain and reserve. This is tamarind water. 4. Heat one tablespoon ghee and fry the rasam powder ingredients to a light brown, cool and pound to a powder. 5. Add three more cups of water to tamarind water and boil it with salt, asafoetida and the masala powder for five minutes or till the tamarind smell goes. Add the garlic and continue to simmer. 6. Add mashed dal to the rasam. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for five minutes. 7. Heat the remaining ghee and add mustard seeds. When they begin to crackle add red chillies and curry leaves. Add the tempering to the rasam and cover immediately to trap the flavors. 8. Serve piping hot. Chef’s tip: You can pound the garlic very lightly before adding to give a better and stronger flavor. You can pressure cook the garlic separately and then add to the rasam. Increase or decrease the garlic as per personal preference