Radish and Tomato Rasam....My Style

After those scrumptous tarts, today I present my comfort food Rasam. I am no expert on rasam, rasam was hardly made in my house. I know it sounds way too off but coming from a gujarati family, the only south indian dishes familiar to me were idlis and dosas. My dad is a very big fan of rasam, there is a small Udipi restuarant near my dad's office where he is a frequent visitor. He often used to tell how he enjoyed sambhar and rasam there, though i think once my mom did try her hands on rasam but as a kid i seriously wasnt drawn into having it and now how i regret this! There can be nothing more satisfying than rasam with steaming rice ah....grrrrr I have learnt the hard way!!! Rasam now has become regular in my house, though i havent experimented much with it, until yesterday when i saw a big bunch of radish which i had bought to make some parathas and ended up making some delicious radish rasam. This rasam is quite easy and simple to make as i have used the ready made rasam powder here, you can also use the homemade one. The recipe below serves 4 but if you love it as i did it will serve only 2 :) Ingredients: 1 bunch of red radish, sliced, without greens 3 medium tomatoes finely chopped 1 lemon size taramind soaked in water 2 tsp oil 1 tsp cummin seeds 1 tsp mustard seeds 1 tsp cumin powder 1 tbsp rasam powder (I used MTR) 1 tsp sugar 8-10 curry leaves Salt to taste 2 1/2 cups of water 1 tsp lemon juice (optional) 2 tbsp chopped coriander

Procedure:

• Heat oil in a pan, add in cumin seeds, mustard seeds and curry leaves.
• As the seeds start to splutter add in sliced radish and tomatoes and saute for 2 mins.
• Now add in the water, sugar, salt, rasam powder, tamarind and cumin powder.
• Cook this mixture for 15 to 20 mins on slow medium heat.
• The flavors need to be absorbed by radish and the masalas need to get cooked properly.
• If you dont get desired tangyness than add a tsp of lemon juice but this is purely optional.
• Garnish with chopped coriander and serve immediately with rice.