Ingredients

• Ingredients for rasam:
• Three extracts of coconut milk from 2 cups of freshly grated coconut
• Freshly ground rasam powder
• 1/2 cup - tur dal (red gram dal)
• 1 pinch - turmeric powder
• 1 small lime sized ball - tamarind
• 1.5 tsp - salt
• Curry leaves, a few
• 1 big - tomato
• Coriander leaves, a few
• 1 tsp - ghee
• 1/4 tsp - mustard seeds
• Ingredients for rasam powder:
• 1/4 tsp - cooking oil
• 2 tsp - coriander seeds
• 2 tsp - Bengal gram dal
• 6 - red chillies
• 1 tsp - pepper
• 1 tsp - cumin seeds
• 1 pinch - asafoetida

How to Make Tengapal Rasam

• Method to extract coconut milk:
• Grind 2 cups of freshly grated coconut into a smooth consistency, with as little water as possible.
• Use a strainer and squeeze the mixture to extract the milk.
• This is the first milk and thickest extract.
• Add more water and grind the coconut again and extract milk the second time. Keep this more dilute second extract separately.
• Follow the same process and extract milk the third time. This will be really diluted with hardly any coconut milk left. Keep it separate.
• Method for rasam powder:
• Dry roast, pepper and cumin seeds.
• Roast the rest of the ingredients in a drop of oil.
• Make a fine powder with all the roasted ingredients.
• Method for rasam:
• Soak tamarind in water and leave it aside.
• Pressure cook tur dal with a pinch of turmeric powder and water.
• Extract the juice of tamarind.
• Add the most dilute or the third extract of coconut milk to the tamarind juice.
• Add salt and the rasam powder and boil until the raw smell disappears.
• Add cooked dal, curry leaves and the second extract of coconut milk and boil vigorously.
• Add chopped tomatoes (optional).
• Finally, add the thickest or the first extract of coconut milk and decrease heat.
• Add finely chopped coriander leaves and wait till the rasam foams.
• Switch off flame before it starts boiling.
• Season with mustard seeds spluttered in a spoon of ghee.
• Serve with hot rice.
• Recipe courtesy: Chitra Amma's Kitchen
• http://chitra-ammas-kitchen.blogspot.in/