Thakkali Paruppu Rasam, Tomatoes And Lentil Rasam/ Soup

         When I cook lunch, the South Indian way with rice, sambar and curry, rasam is a must, at least for my husband. He, being a big fan of tomatoes, this rasam which is loaded with tomatoes is one of his favorites. I don't use the regular rasam powder for this, instead I use freshly ground pepper and cumin and also some chopped ginger which gives a wonderful flavor to it. It's very easy to make, tastes great with rice and can be had as a soup too..

Need To Have

• Ripe Tomatoes - 3 large chopped
• Cooked Tuvar Dal/ Pigeon Peas - 3 tablespoons
• Dried Red Chilly - 1 broken into two
• Green Chilly - 1 slit
• Chopped Ginger - 1 tablespoon
• Black Pepper Powder - 1/2 teaspoon
• Cumin/ Jeera Powder - 1/2 teaspoon
• Mustard Seeds - 1/2 teaspoon
• Cumin Seeds - 1/2 teaspoon
• Asafoetida - 1/4 teaspoon
• Turmeric Powder - 1/4 teaspoon
• Chopped Coriander Leaves - 1 tablespoon
• Curry Leaves - 6

Method

          Heat some oil, add the mustard and cumin seeds, when it starts spluttering, first add the dried red chilly and asafoetida. Then add the green chilly, ginger, pepper and cumin powders and curry leaves and saute for half a minute.

          Now add the chopped tomatoes and saute for another minute, then add about 1/2 cup of water, turmeric powder and salt, cover and cook till the tomatoes are cooked.

         Once the tomatoes are done, add the cooked dal/ lentils and another cup of water and let boil once. Finally add the chopped coriander and remove. Serve it warm with rice or have it as a soup.

Note
Use ripe tomatoes, if at the end you need a little more sourness, add some lemon juice.
Since this rasam gets its flavor from the pepper and cumin, use freshly ground powders to get nice flavor.
Also, you can use a little ghee along with the oil for more flavor.

reade more... Résuméabuiyad

Pineapple Rasam/ Clear Soup

          Rasam is a must in the lunch menu when my husband is around. Most of the times, I use the ready made rasam powder and it'll usually be a tomato, lemon or garlic rasam. I had this small tin of pineapples, when thinking about how to finish it, this Pineapple Rasam popped up. Though I've had it many times and made it at home a couple of times, I was not really satisfied with the taste. This time, I used freshly ground powder and I don't know what, everything fell into place and the rasam was very flavorful and tasted awesome, this one's a keeper..

Need To Have

• Pineapple - 2 rings - tinned
• Tomatoes - 2
• Cooked Tuvar Dal - 2 tablespoons
• Mustard Seeds - 1/4 teaspoon
• Cumin Seeds - 1/4 teaspoon
• Asafoetida - 1/4 teaspoon
• Dried Red Chilly - 1
• Curry Leaves - 5
• Coriander Leaves - 1 tablespoon chopped

To Powder

• Dried Red Chilly - 1
• Coriander Seeds - 2 teaspoons
• Cumin Seeds - 1/2 teaspoon
• Black Peppercorns - 1/2 teaspoon

Method

          Grind together all the ingredients given under 'to powder'. Chop the tomatoes and the pineapple slices.

          Heat some oil, add the tomatoes and pineapple pieces, saute till the tomatoes start turning mushy, add the ground powder, cooked tuvar dal, 2 cups water and salt. Cook for about 5 minutes.

          Add the chopped curry leaves and coriander and switch off. Heat a teaspoon of oil, add the mustard and cumin seeds, when it starts spluttering add the dried red chilly and asafoetida and switch off. Add this to the rasam and serve hot with rice.

Note
If using fresh pineapple and if it's not really sweet, add a teaspoon of jaggery, mine was sweet since it's preserved in sugar syrup.
Before switching off, if you feel the rasam is too thick, then add a little water.
The tuvar dal is cooked with a pinch of turmeric powder.
The quantity is enough for 3 to 4 servings.         

reade more... Résuméabuiyad

Moong Dal Soup/Split Green Gram Soup

          The weather here has become a little colder or should I say, a lot pleasanter, it's this time of the year when you feel like having hot appetizers or soups. I prefer clear soups to creamy ones and I also like these filling soups made with some dal or beans. They are rich in protein and when had with a slice of bread make a complete meal. Today's moong dal (split green gram) soup is a very simple and refreshing one, flavored with some ginger, lemon and lots of coriander, perfect for those lazy days when you don't feel like cooking much..

Need to Have

• Moong Dal - 1 cup 
• Tomato - 1 medium
• Chopped Ginger - 1 tablespoon
• Cumin Seeds - 1 teaspoon
• Black Pepper Corns - 1 tablespoon
• Mustard Seeds - 1/2 teaspoon
• Chopped Coriander - 1/4 cup
• Lemon Juice - from 1/2 a lemon
• Turmeric Powder - 1/4 teaspoon
• Salt - to taste

Method
          Pressure cook the moong dal with the turmeric powder and the whole tomato for about 7 to 8 minutes. Coarsely pound the cumin seeds and pepper corns along with the ginger.

          Once you take the dal out of the pressure cooker, remove the split skin from the tomato and mash the dal and the tomato. Heat some oil, add the mustard seeds, once it starts spluttering, add the crushed cumin-pepper-ginger mixture and saute for a minute or two.

          Then add the mashed dal, salt and water (1 to 2 cups, depending on how thick you want the soup), bring it to a boil. Simmer for about 2 minutes and add the lemon juice, mix and garnish with the chopped coriander. Serve it warm with some salt, pepper and lemon wedges on the side.

Note
 Can cook the moong dal in a regular pot instead of the pressure cooker, it takes a little more time, to make it faster, soak the moong dal for 1/2 an hour before cooking.

reade more... Résuméabuiyad

Mixed Bean Soup

          

          When it comes to soup, I prefer the lighter versions than the creamier ones, even while ordering in restaurants, I go for the light soups, and of course I save up the calories for the dessert. Well, today's soup is a very filling one with lots of protein, if you add some pasta to it, it makes a complete meal, otherwise just have it with some nice bread and a salad. It calls for very few ingredients, gets all the flavor from the Italian seasoning and the chopped fresh basil..

Need To Have

• Mixed Beans - 1 cup
• Tomato Puree - 3/4 cup
• Onion - 1 big chopped
• Chilli Powder - 1/2 teaspoon
• Italian Seasoning - 1 teaspoon
• Chopped Basil - 1 tablespoon
• Salt & Pepper To Taste

Method

          Soak the mixed beans (you get the mixed beans packet or you can mix your own choice of beans like red kidney beans, split peas, whole moong beans and others) overnight and pressure cook them. Heat oil, add the chopped onions, saute till they turn transparent, add the chilli powder and the tomato puree, saute for like about 5 mins, add the cooked beans, water, salt and seasoning, cook for another 5mins, finally add 1/4 teaspoon or more of pepper and serve it hot.

Sending this to Spicy Treats for the Show Me The Hits - Fiber Rich Foods event,
                   to Vegetarian Food And Me for I'm The Star event,
                   to Shama's Easy2cook Recipes for Sara's Cooking With Love - Granddad Series event,
                   to Srav's Cooking Concepts for Vegan Diets - Only Plant Based event,
                   to Food Corner for the Midweek Fiesta event,
                   to Zesty Palette for Vidhya's Love Lock Series - Legumes event,
                   to Sara's Corner for the Women's Day Celebration event and to
                   to Zesty South Indian Kitchen for the Hearth And Soul Blog Hop event.

Note

If you have a crockpot or slow cooker, you can add the cooked beans and the other ingredients and slow cook it, the soup will be even more flavorful. 

You can also add vegetables to the soup and if you don't have basil, use chopped coriander leaves.

reade more... Résuméabuiyad

Beetroot Soup

          The cold weather here makes one crave for some kind of soup, either the creamier version or the lighter soups. Personally I like the clear soups, spiced up with lots of pepper, sometimes even the hot rasam is more than welcome. As a kid I used to like beets just for the color, loved the tongue turning pink after eating them, liked to have them with curd rice, just to see the white rice become pink. Usually it's the beetroot poriyal and on occasions the beetroot halwa, especially when my amma made it and gave me hot, hot. Today's soup is the husband's favorite, it's one simple and easy soup with literally very few ingredients..
Need To Have

• Grated Beetroot - 2 cups
• Chopped Tomatoes - 2 cups
• Salt & Pepper - to taste
• Lemon Juice - to taste

Method
          Take the beetroot and the tomatoes in a big pan, add 7 to 8 cups of water and bring it to boil with some salt. Simmer it for about 10 mins, mashing down the tomatoes, to bring out all the juice. Remove and strain, add some pepper, and serve it with a squeeze of lemon and some bread croutons.

Sending it to Priya's Easy N Tasty Recipes to take part in the Healthy Diet-Warm Soups event.

Also sending to Taste Of Pearl City for the Any One Can Cook event.

Note
The tomatoes that we get here are never sour enough, adjust the amount of tomatoes accordingly.
Don't avoid the lemon juice, that gives an extra punch.

reade more... Résuméabuiyad