Rasam recipe – Simple, easy & quick recipe to make delicious rasam at home. This South Indian rasam recipe needs no rasam powder & no dal. Rasam means “juice” in tamil and telugu. It can mean any juice, but in south Indian cuisine Rasam is a thin soup made with tamarind, tomatoes and other spices like mustard, cumin and pepper.
Also known as saaru in kannada and chaaru in telugu, rasam is a most basic and essential dish in an south Indian meal. Rasam is commonly served with plain rice and a veg side dish. But it can also be had as a soup.
I make this when I have no rasam powder in hand or in a hurry. It tastes almost like the one we get with a south Indian meal in any restaurant. Slightly tangy and flavorful from cumin, pepper powder and garlic.
This is so simple that even bachelors can make it. This rasam is also suitable to babies & toddlers if spices are adjusted.
Rasam is good to have when one has cold or stomach problems. Stick on to the ingredients mentioned in the recipe and use red ripe tomatoes. It can be refrigerated and consumed within 2 days.
It can be accompanied with rice and any simple vegetable stir fry like potato fry, sweet potato fry, brinjal fry, yam fry or carrot fry.
There are so many ways a rasam can be made. For more varieties check
Tomato rasam
Tamarind rasam – without tomato
Lemon rasam
You may also like to check this Rasam powder recipe.
South Indian rasam recipe
Rasam recipe
Ingredients (1 cup = 240ml )
for tempering or seasoning rasam
- 1 ½ tablespoon oil or ghee
- ½ teaspoon mustard or rai
- ½ teaspoon cumin or jeera
- 1 dried red chili (broken) (less spicy kind)
- 1 sprig curry leaves
- 1 pinch hing or asafoetida
- 3 to 4 cloves garlic crushed (optional)
To roast & powder ( or use 1 tsp cumin powder & half tsp pepper powder)
- ¼ teaspoon fenugreek seeds or methi seeds
- ¼ to ½ teaspoon pepper corn
- 1½ teaspoon cumin or jeera
- 1 small dried red chili optional (use less spicy kind)
How to make the recipe
- Dry roast cumin, pepper, methi seeds & red chilli on a low to medium heat until aromatic.
- Cool & add this to a blender jar. Make a fine powder of the spices.
Tempering
- Heat oil or ghee in a pot.
- Add mustard, cumin & red chili. Soon they begin to crackle.
- Then add garlic, curry leaves and hing.
- Saute well for a minute till the leaves turn crisp.
How to make rasam recipe
- Add tomatoes with salt and turmeric. Saute until mushy & soft.
- When the tomatoes turn completely soft, then add the ground spice powder.
- Saute for 2 to 3 minutes. The spice powder must begin to smell good.
- Next pour water, tamarind, jaggery and salt if needed.
- Stir well and check the salt. If needed add more.
- I make it sweet, sour & hot adding more of jaggery and tamarind if needed.
- Simmer for 5 minutes after it comes to a boil. Soon It thickens slightly.
- Add coriander leaves. Simmer for a minute. Cover and turn off the stove.
- Serve rasam hot with rice or as a soup
Video
Video of rasam recipe
NUTRITION (estimation only)
Notes
- Feel free to use more jaggery & tamarind as needed. I usually make rasam that tastes sour, sweet & spicy.
- If you have rasam powder ready then skip roasting and powdering the ingredients mentioned under “To roast and powder. Use rasam powder as desired.
- You can also make this rasam recipe just with 1 tsp cumin powder and half tsp pepper powder.
If you are a beginner or new to Indian cooking, I highly suggest you to check the supporting step by step photos for best results. Step by step photos with description available below after the recipe card.
Preparation
1. Dry roast ¼ tsp methi seeds & one red chilli until methi turns slightly aromatic. Then add 1.5 tsp cumin and ¼ to ½ tsp pepper corn.
Roast all of them until methi seeds turn slightly dark in color and aromatic. If making for baby skip red chili and use less pepper. Cool and add to a blender jar.
2. You can also coarsely crush it in a hand pestle. Set aside. You can also skip this roasting part & just powder the spices directly but the aroma is great when roasted.
3. Add oil to a hot pot. Add red chili, cumin and mustard.
4. When they begin to splutter, add 3 to 4 crushed garlic, 1 sprig curry leaves and then hing. Saute well until the leaves turn crisp.
How to make rasam recipe
5. Add 1 to 1.5 cups chopped or mashed tomatoes or pureed. Sprinkle salt and turmeric.
6. Cover and cook or saute until the tomatoes turn mushy.
7. Add spice powder or rasam powder from step 1.
8. Mix and saute for 2 to 3 minutes. The spice powder must smell good.
9. Pour 2.5 to 3 cups water. Add tamarind.
10. Add little jaggery or sugar if needed and bring it to a boil. Add more salt and jaggery as needed.
11. Allow to simmer for 5 minutes. Stir and check salt and sour. Rasam that is done on a low flame tastes good.
12. Add chopped coriander leaves with stalks. Cover and switch off.
Serve rasam with rice and some papad, stir fry veggies.
Abhi says
Love love love it
swasthi says
Thank you!
Jodie says
I have just been staying at an Ayurvedic Health retreat in Kerala. I want to continue eating this way when I return home to Australia. I love your recipes! Thank you!
swasthi says
Hi Jodie,
You are welcome! Thank you! Yes do try it.
Enjoy your stay!
🙂
Himanshu Gandhi says
Easy to understand. Thanks
swasthi says
Welcome!
Senthil says
Excellent rasam… proper tamilnadu taste
swasthi says
Thank you!
Subramanian says
Awesome recipe
swasthi says
Thank you!
Barbara Karge says
How much rasam powder do I put into the recipe for the soup? I bought rasam powder in a spice shop in India last March.
swasthi says
Hi Barbara,
It depends on the brand of rasam powder. Some are too spicy. Try with 1 tsp. If you feel the spice and flavor is low then add another half tsp.
Vidya says
Thanks for sharing
Krishnan Srinivasan says
This so called rasam receipe is very very old method. We are doing it more than 60 years with the same method. The readymade rasam powder has been introduced very recently only. So it is not an invention but conversation.
sunita patil says
Tried it!! Excellent recipe 90% close to hotel rasam
swasthi says
Thank you!
Saritha SHETTY says
Very nice.. Simple but still tasty..
Thnx for the rasam pwd recipe too..
swasthi says
Welcome Saritha
Deepna T says
I have never made rasam from scratch, i have always used powder. I was excited to try this & It turned out very good. I made a puree of the tomato instead of cutting them. Thank you for the recipe. It feels good to eat it when you know what has exactly gone into your dish 🙂
swasthi says
Hi Deepna
You are welcome. So glad to know you liked the rasam. Thank you so much for the comment.
Sandhya says
Rasam was awesome
swasthi says
Thank you
Leone Evrenos says
Made this soup today Boxing day but I didn’t have curry leaves or tamarind to hand so used lemon juice instead. We have head colds and this soup helped to clear the sinuses and was very tasty! Will definately make again and make sure I have the leaves and tamarind block and may also add some fresh ginger although that wasn’t in this recipe.
swasthi says
Hi Leone
Thank you so much for the comment. So glad to know you liked the rasam. Yes ginger will be a good addition.
🙂
Charanjeet Singh says
I never knew rasam could be so delicious till I followed Swasthi,s recipe. Thanks a million for such
detailed instructions.
swasthi says
Hi Charanjeet,
You are most welcome. Glad you like it! Thank you!
Charu says
This was so good that I sipped off half of the entire pot. ☺️
swasthi says
Thanks Charu