Tomato Rasam Recipe (Thakkali Rasam)

4.86 from 81 votes

Tomato Rasam Recipe (Thakkali Rasam)

Tomato rasam is a tangy and spicy South Indian soup-like dish made with fresh tomatoes, spices, herbs, and water. It can be served with rice or enjoyed on its own as an appetizer drink. This recipe is naturally vegan and does not use rasam powder, lentils, or tamarind. The sourness comes mainly from tomatoes, giving it a fresh and clean flavor.

Prep Time15

Cook Time15

Total Time30

Course: Appetizer, Drinks, Side Dish

Cuisine: South Indian

Diet: Vegan

Difficulty Level: Moderate

Servings:

Calories: 69kcal

Author: Dassana Amit

Ingredients

For the spice-herb mixture

⅓ cup coriander stems – with or without leaves
7 to 8 garlic cloves – medium-sized, peeled
1 inch ginger – roughly chopped
2 teaspoons cumin seeds
¼ teaspoon black peppercorns

For tomato puree

1½ to 1¾ cups or (275 grams or 3 large-sized) tomatoes – chopped

For making tomato rasam

1 tablespoon oil – gingelly oil (sesame oil made from raw sesame seeds) or sunflower oil or peanut oil
½ teaspoon mustard seeds – black
½ teaspoon urad dal – husked, split or husked, whole black gram
1 or 2 dry red chillies – broken and seeds removed
1 pinch asafoetida (hing)
10 to 12 curry leaves or 1 sprig of curry leaves
¼ teaspoon turmeric powder (ground turmeric)
salt as needed
1.5 cups water or add as required
2 to 3 tablespoons coriander leaves – chopped, (cilantro)

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Instructions

Making ground spice & herbs mixture

Take roughly chopped coriander stems with or without leaves (about a handful of coriander stems) in a blender or mixer jar. Also add the peeled garlic cloves and roughly chopped ginger.
Add cumin seeds and black peppercorns.
Grind to a coarse paste or a semi-fine paste. Remove in a separate bowl or plate.

Making tomato puree

In the same blender add the tomatoes (rinsed and chopped).
Grind or blend to a smooth puree. If you want, you can blanch tomatoes and then puree them – for a bright red color in the rasam.

Making tomato rasam

In a heavy pan or pot, heat the oil. Keep the flame to its lowest.
Add the mustard seed and let them begin to crackle.
When the mustard seeds start to crackle, then add urad dal.
Stirring often fry urad dal until they turn golden.
Now add the dry red chilies (halved and seeds removed) and 1 pinch asafoetida. In case the pan becomes hot, then switch off the heat.
Stir and fry for a few seconds till the red chilies change color.
Add the coarsely ground coriander stems+ginger+garlic mixture and curry leaves. If the pan becomes too hot, then you can turn off the heat.
Sauté for a minute on lowest heat taking care the mixture does not burn. You will get a nice aroma while sautéing this mixture.
Add turmeric powder and mix it with the rest of the mixture.
Now add the tomato puree and mix it very well. Take care as the mixture splutters when you add the tomato puree.
Sauté for a minute. Season with salt as per taste.
Next add 1.5 cups water. If you like a slightly thinner tomato rasam, then you can add some more water. But do not add too much water as the flavors get diluted.
Mix well, and let the tomato rasam simmer gently on low or medium-low heat for about 9 to 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the raw tomato aroma disappears and the rasam smells aromatic.
Turn off the heat and add the chopped coriander leaves. Check the taste of tomato rasam and add more salt if needed.

Serving suggestions

Serve tomato rasam hot, either like a curry over steamed white rice or enjoy as a soup. Both ways are great with a side of pappadums or a simple toasted bread.

Storage

Refrigerate any leftovers for a day. Reheat the rasam in a small pot or pan until warm or hot.
If you plan to make ahead the rasam then do not add coriander leaves. After you reheat rasam, add the coriander leaves.

Video

Notes

Tomatoes: Tomato rasam is best made with fresh, red, ripe tomatoes. Any variety of red tomatoes work, provided they are ripe.
Spices: To make the rasam more spicy and robust, increase the amount of black pepper. Add a total of ½ teaspoon whole black peppercorns.
Oil: Traditionally Tamil nadu style rasam is made with gingelly oil. Gingelly oil is wood pressed oil extracted from raw sesame seeds. In a pinch sunflower oil, peanut oil or any neutral oil also works well.
Urad dal: If you do not have urad dal, then omit adding them.
Asafoetida: For a gluten-free rasam do not add asafoetida or use gluten-free asafoetida.

Nutrition