Munakkaya Rasam / Drumsticks soup

Drumstick - I call this as wonder stick. It’s health benefits are plenty and it is said to cure many an ailments. Here are some of its health benefits.

Juice of Drum stick when mixed in milk and offered to children greatly helps by strengthening their bones as it is said to be a great source of Calcium. Also drumstick is said to be a great blood purifier.

Pregnant women should often eat drumsticks as it helps ease any kind of pre and post delivery complication.

Drumstick soup helps ease any kind of chest congestions, coughs and sore throats.

Inhaling steam of water in which drumsticks have been boiled helps ease asthma and other lung problem.

This is another way of benefiting from this wonderful God's given gift.

Ingredients:

Toor daal - 1/4 cup
Drumsticks - 2 cut them into 2 inch size pieces

Ripe tomatoes - 3-4

Tamarind - 1/2 lemon size

Salt - as per taste

Rasam powder - 2 tsp

For seasoning - 

Oil - 1 tbsp

Curry leaves - 1 string

Coriander leaves chopped - 1 tbsp

Mustard - 1/2 tsp

Cumin seeds - 1/2 tsp

Garlic pods - 1 or 2 pounded

Dry chili - 1 or 2

Method:

Boil the tomatoes and drumsticks by adding 2 pinches of salt. Mash the tomatoes.
Boil the toor daal, mash it and keep it aside.
Soak tamarind in some hot water, squeeze the juice.
Heat a deep sauce pan, and add oil to it.

When the oil is warm enough, add crushed garlic pods, dry chili and then mustard, cumin and curry leaves. 

When the garlic gets slightly roasted, add the tomato mixture, boiled drumsticks, tamarind juice and the mashed toor daal. 

Add the required amount of salt, rasam powder and bring it to boil. Add chopped coriander at the end and remove from the fire.

Vulava chaaru / Horsegram rasam

Haaa.... the name itself brings the warm feeling. This is a fine delicacy of Andhra Pradesh, India. Though the preparation is bit labour intensive, it is worthy. This will be served as a special dish in parties and wedding ceremonies.

Horse gram has got lots of medicinal values. It will regulate phlegm and also urinary disorders. That is why we prepare this frequently during winter season. It also helps in lowering cholesterol levels.

The lovely multi coloured energy rich horse gram  

Ingredients:

Horse gram - 1 cup  

Tamarind  - lemon size. 

Garlic - 3 cloves

Red chili - 3-4

Cumin seeds - 1 tsp

Pepper -1 tsp

Salt

Oil - 1 tbsp

Curry leaves - 2 strings

Coriander chopped - 2 tbsp

Method:

Roast red chili, garlic, cumin and pepper until they change the colour and leaves nice aroma. 

Allow them to cool and grind it coarsely.

Soak the Horse gram over night and in the morning boil them.

Grind them into fine paste.

In the mean time, boil tomato and tamarind until soft. squeeze thoroughly and remove the unwanted stuff.

Heat a deep pan with 1 tbsp of oil. When it is warm, add mustard and curry leaves. Momentarily stir them and the coarsely ground garlic, cumin and pepper mixture. Stir every thing and add tomato & tamarind water along with horse gram paste. Add some salt and 3 cups of water.

Add chopped coriander and bring it to boil. Serve warm with rice.

Tip:

As boiling the Horse gram is very tedious job, you can boil them in large quantities at a time. Grind into paste and freeze them in multiple bags so that you can use them as and when required.

Tomato Rasam

Rasam is a cold weather favorite, tastes heavenly as well as warms the body and the taste buds. I always look forward to drinking rasam even though I prepare it almost every other day, well, at least 4 days a week. To me, its the best part of the meal. Yes, you read right. My meal would be incomplete without rasam. Even more so, today, since we had a cold, breezy and rainy morning. The aroma of tempered spices is enticing to say the least and as it sizzles its way into the boiling spiced broth, it gives a totally different flavor dimension to the rasam. Fresh coriander leaves improve and enhance the flavor.

Ingredients:

Ripe tomato - 3-4

Tamarind - 1/2 lemon size

Salt - as per taste

Rasam powder - 2 tsp

For seasoning - 

Oil - 1 tbsp

Curry leaves - 1 string

Coriander leaves chopped - 1 tbsp

Mustard - 1/2 tsp

Cumin seeds - 1/2 tsp

Garlic pods - 1 or 2 pounded

Dry chili - 1 or 2

Method:

Chop into big chunks and boil the tomatoes and tamrind by adding 1 cup of water. You can also steam them in microwave with out adding any water for about 4-5 minutes.

Allow it to cool down and squeeze the mixture and remove the unwanted tamarind pulp. It's up to you, if you want to keep the tomato skin,  you can keep it, if not you can remove it. Add about 2 cups of water and keep it aside.

Heat a deep sauce pan, and add oil to it.

When the oil is warm enough, add crushed garlic pods, dry chili and then mustard, cumin and curry leaves. 

When the garlic gets slightly roasted, pour the tomato mixture. 

Add salt, rasam powder and bring it to boil.

Just before removing from the fire add chopped coriander.

Serve it with rice.

Rasam annam with omlette

Rasam Powder - 1

Rasam is an integral part of traditional south Indian meal. The meal would be incomplete with out the rasam. Each home has its own version of rasam. Rasam comprises of few to many spices. Each spice has got its own flavour and the concoction of spices, tamarind and tomato, will give the unique taste.

This rasam powder should last for about 2 months, if you prepare rasam at least 2-3 times a week for 4 people. Ensure you use fresh spices since the key to a good rasam is in its fresh spices.

There are lots of variations of rasam powders. I will be posting them in the near future.

Ingredients:

Coriander seeds - 1 cup

Cumin seeds - 1/4 cup
Fenugreek seeds / Menthulu - 1 tbsp

Black pepper - 1/4 cup

Raathi puvvu / Dagar na phool / Parmela Kamtschadalis - 1 fist full

Cloves - 6

Cinnamon - 2 inches stick
Dry chilli - about 20 or depending on your taste. 

Method:


Dry roast them separately until they spread the nice aroma and change their colour.


You can also roast them combining every thing except cumin due to their small size. When every thing is almost done, you can add cumin and roast for few minutes and remove them from fire.

Grind them into fine powder in a coffee blender or in any food processor.

Store the powder in a glass jar. 

Majjiga chaaru / Butter milk stew

There are numerous ways to prepare Majjiga chaaru. This is pretty much similar to North Indian Khadi. In Khadi, basin / gram flour is used, where as in majjiga chaaru, roasted chickpea flour is used. Very easy to prepare. A nice substitute for Rasam.

Ingredients:
Youghurt - 1 cup
Cumin seeds - 1/2 tsp
Roasted chickpea - 2 tbsp
Salt
Oinion - 1 small, chopped into small pieces

For seasoning:
Oil - 2 tsp
Turmeric - 1 pinch
Curry leaves - 1 string
Mustard+Cumin - 1/2 tsp
Red chili - 1 or 2

Method:

Grind the roasted chick pea along with cumin and salt.

Beat the yoghurt to smooth consistency.

Mix the roasted chickpea flour to the beaten yoghurt and mix it thoroughly with out any lumps. Now slowly add 1 cup of water and mix thoroughly.

For seasoning heat a small pan with oil. When it is warm enough add mustard + Cumin, red chili and then curry leaves. Now add chopped onion and turmeric. Fry the onion for less than a minute and immediately add the seasoning to the yoghurt mixture.

Serve it with rice

Note:

Those who like the raw onion taste can add the chopped onion directly to the yoghurt mixture with out frying. Bombay onion is the best for this recipe.

vankaaya Pachipulusu / Roasted Egg plant stew

This is a special variety of rasam / stew prepared especially in Andhra pradesh. Roasted and mashed brinjals are combined with raw tamarind, jaggery, chopped onions, green chillis and seasoned with aromatic spices which intensifies the flavor. This is best served with rice.

Ingredients:

Tender eggplants - 4

Oil – 2 tbsp

Onion - 1 chopped

Green chili - 2

Tamarind - 2 lemon sizes (soak it in hot water and remove the pulp)

Jagerry / sugar - 1 tsp

Salt

For seasoning -

Curry leaves - 2 strings

Mustard + Cumin - 1 tsp

Red chili - 1 or 2

Hing / Asafoetida - 1 pinch

Turmeric - 1 pinch

Method:

Smear the eggplants with oil, then place them on the fire and roast them till they are charred. If you don't have gas stove then you can roast them in a preheated oven.

Remove the eggplants from the fire and allow them to cool a little bit.

Take the pulp into a bowl and mash thoroughly.

Roasted and mashed eggplant

Now to the mashed egg plant add chopped onion, chopped green chili, jaggery / sugar and the tamarind pulp. Add salt and 2 cups of water to this and stir every thing.

For the seasoning, heat a small pan with 1 tbsp of oil. When the oil is hot enough add mustard , cumin and stir for a second. Add curry leaves and the red chili along with hing / asafoetida and turmeric which gives the nice aroma to the stew. Turn off the heat and quickly add the seasoning to the rasam / stew.

Note: Those who can't eat the raw onion, can stirr the chopped onion along with the seasoning, which will reduce the rawness.

Drumstick leaves / Munagaaku Rasam

There are lots of nutritional values in drumstick leaves. Drumstick leaves have Seven times more vitamin C than oranges to fight against many illnesses including cold and flu as it helps in congestion. and four times more vitamin A than in carrots to protect against our eye diseases, skin diseases, and heart diseases. It has four times more calcium than present in milk to build strong bones and teeth. It is three times more rich in potassium than bananas,which is essential for the functioning of the brain and nerves.

Few other benefits of Drumstick:

- The leaves have twice the amount of the protein than in milk and almost equal amounts of protein present in eggs.

- Medicinal uses

- The seeds are generally used to clean and purify dirty or hazy drinking water. It is pounded and wrapped in a muslin cloth, and dipped in jars or containers that has water in it.

-The bark of the drumstick plant contains a gum that is used for the treatment of various stomach ailments such as :---

- Seeds are found to be highly beneficial as they helps a person when there is loss of appetite, colic pain and flatulence ,it removes gas from our stomatch.

- A hot infusion of the leaves provides relief in the case of skin diseases.The same kind of infusion can be bought to use in fevers to reduce temperature.

Ingredients:

Toor Daal – ½ cup
Drumstick leaves – 1 cup
Tomato – 2 large
Rasam powder (any variety)
Turmeric
Salt
Tamarind – ½ lemon size
For Seasoning
Oil – 1 tbsp
Garlic pods – 2 to 3
Mustard + Cumin – 1 tsp
Curry leaves
Coriander
Red Chili – 1 or 2

Drumstick leaves and toor daal

Method:

Wash and pressure cook / boil toor dall, drumstick leaves and tomatoes by adding pinch of turmeric. When the daal mixture is still hot add tamarind and salt and pulse it slightly or mash it with wooden masher. Heat a sauce pan with oil and do the seasonings by adding red chilli, pounded garlic pods, curry leaves, mustard and cumin. Add the daal mixture to the seasoning and add rasam powder and chopped coriander and bring the rasam to boil.

Munagaaku rasam

Serve warm with rice or can be served on its own as soup.

Pachi pulusu (Tamarind Rasam) – 2

This is a Hyderabad's variety with a tangy taste added with coconut and roasted chickpea flower .

Ingredients:
1 Chopped onion
2 green chillies chopped
Cumin seeds / jeera – 1 tsp
Mustard – 1 tsp
Curry leaves
Turmeric – ¼ tsp
Tamarind – a big lemon size
Chopped coriander

Method:
Soak the tamarind in hot water for about 30 minutes and extract the juice

Heat a sauce pan with 1 tblsp of oil. When it is hot enough, add curry leaves, mustard, cumin seeds and turmeric. When they start splattering, add green chilli, onion and fry until they become transparent. Pour the tamarind water into the pan. Add salt and bring it to boil. Finally add chopped corriander and remove from the fire.

Tangy pachipulusu  / Tamarind rasam ready to serve

Serve with hot rice.

Pachi pulusu (Tamarind Rasam)-1

This is my favourite recipe. We call this as pachi pulusu, means raw stew. This is the recipe prepared with out cooking. I usually prepare this stew when our taste buds loose the senses. The unique tangyness will revive our taste buds.

Ingredients:
Shallots –Hand full
Green chilli –2- 3
Tamarind – about  big lemon size
Salt – 3/4th – 1 tsp

Soak the tamarind in water until soft.

Remove the shallots skin and trim the green chilli stalks and pound them together in a stone mortar using rock salt. Again, if you chop them the taste will differ. So try to avoid chopping.

 

Shallots, green chilli pounded along with rock salt

Squeeze the tamarind pulp and remove the strings and pulp. Now combine the onion and chilli to the tamarind pulp and add required water to get rasam consistency. Adjust salt.

Raw tamarind stew with shallots and green chilli

You can substitute shallots with Bombay onion. I don’t want to recommend white onion for this recipe.

Miriyala Rasam / Pepper rasam

I call this as fever rasam as this is the first thing to be served during those sick days. A very good treat for the taste buds. A Simple, tangy recipe which goes well with hot rice.

Ingredients:
Tamarind – 2 lemons size
Water – 2 cups
Garlic – 3-4 cloves
Black Pepper – 1 tsp
Cumin / Jeera – 1 tsp
Dry chilli – 2
Curry leaves – Hand full
Coriander leaves chopped – Hand full
Salt – 1 tsp
Oil – 1 tbsp

Method:
Dry roast the red chilli, black pepper and cumin.

Roasted Red chilli, pepper, cumin, garlic

Allow them to cool and grind them into coarse paste along with garlic.

Grounded roasted spices

Soak the tamarind in hot water. When it becomes soft squeeze it, remove the pulp and keep it aside.

Tamarind water

Heat a sauce pan with 1 tblsp of oil. When it is hot enough, add curry leaves, mustard, and cumin seeds. When they start splattering, add the chilli + pepper paste and fry for few seconds.

Pour the tamarind water into the pan. Add salt, and bring it to boil. Sprinkle chopped coriander and remove from fire.

Spicy Miriyala Rasam