Rasam

This spicy, tangy southern Indian soup is a great start to any meal served with some crisp papadums; it’s also fun in shot glasses for a cocktail party. It’s traditionally served as a light meal over steamed rice, especially to people who are feeling poorly. Rasam means ‘juice’ or ‘essence’ in Tamil and the essential element of this sour pepper soup is that it is light and thin. Yellow lentils are sometimes added and I often include a tablespoon with the water and then simmer it for about 20 minutes until they’re tender. This version has a bit of punch from the pepper, try it first then add more or less pepper or tamarind to suit your preference. Chef Ajoy Joshi of Nilgiri’s Indian Restaurant finishes his off with a dollop of ghee!

Serves 4 as a starter

Ingredients

1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 clove garlic, crushed
½ teaspoon brown mustard seeds
4 curry leaves
½ teaspoon ground cumin seeds
1½ teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
Pinch ground turmeric
2 ripe Roma tomatoes, chopped
2 cups water
3 teaspoons tamarind liquid (see note)
1 tablespoon chopped coriander
Salt flakes, to taste
Pinch castor sugar
Papadums, for serving

Method

Heat oil in a saucepan, add garlic, mustard, curry leaves, cumin, pepper and turmeric and fry for 30-60 seconds over medium heat, until aromatic
Add tomato, reduce heat to low and cook for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally and crushing the tomatoes with the spoon, until they’ve broken down.
Stir in water and tamarind, bring to the boil, reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes.
Remove from heat, stir in coriander, taste and add salt and sugar.
Serve with papadums on the side.

To make tamarind liquid, mash a small piece of tamarind paste (about 15g) well with about 2 tablespoons of hot water, working the pulp with your fingers to soften it, set aside for 10 minutes or so, then push through a sieve, discarding the solids. See video below.