DISH NAME : RASAM POWDER

Preparation Time : 10 minutes

Cooking Time : 10 minutes

Description

For most of Tamilians, rasam is comfort food. This tangy and spicy dish is supposed to get rid of colds. Some drink it plain as a soup, some have it with rice and it is also drunk as a palate cleanser in between a meal. Rasam can be made with or without pigeon pea (tur dal). Though rasam powder is available commercially, nothing to beat the home made version. There are numerous types of rasam like tomato rasam, pineapple rasam, pepper rasam etc.
The fruit, known as a peppercorn is, dark red when fully mature, and, contains a single seed. Peppercorns, and the ground pepper derived from them, may be described simply as pepper, or more precisely as black pepper (cooked and dried unripe fruit), green pepper (dried unripe fruit) and white pepper (unripe fruit seeds).Black pepper is native to south India,specially kerala. It was referred to as black gold by Portugese and British who invaded India. Freshly ground black pepper is the most popular form of pepper consumption. Spice mills filled with pepper graces many a dining table. Home made pepper powder has a better flavour and aroma compared to readymade pepper powders. Crushed pepper is great for sprinkling over salads, soups, sandwiches or even a cup of tea. It helps kindle appetite, and helps soothe disturbed respiratory tract and colds.
The word coriander in ingredients refer solely to these seeds (as a spice), rather than to the leaves. It has an aromatic scent that is soothingly warm, nutty, slightly fruity. Coriander seeds hold a prominent position in the Indian kitchen. Apart from being used whole, coriander seeds can also be powdered. They are generally toasted before being ground to bring out their full flavour.
Cumin seeds belong to the parsley and dill family and resemble caraway seeds. The flavour of cumin does not match that of dill or parsley. cumin is oblong & brown-coloured. It can be used raw, but is generally roasted to enhance the flavour and aroma, and sometimes powdered before use. Cumin seeds are a part of the Bengali spice mixture Panch Phoron. In Sanskrit, Cumin is known as Jira. Jira means “that which helps digestion". In Ayurvedic system of medicine, dried Cumin seeds are used for medicinal purposes. Jeera is added to water & boiled & this water is cosumed war. Helps in digestion. However not recommended during summer months as Cumin is warm. It is an indispensable ingredient in the famous Jeera Rice. Roasted cumin seeds powder is added to buttermilk to aid digestion and enhance flavour.
Pigeon peas are always available in deskinned and split form and not as hole. A rich source of protein and is used almost daily in India, specially by vegetarians.

Note

1) The quantity of peppercorns can be increased according to your spice tolerance level.
2) To increase spiciness, it is better to increase peppercorns rather than red chillies , as pepper has medicinal value.
3) Dry roast ingredients without oil.
4) Grinding coarsely gives much more flavor.

Method

1) Dry roast all the ingredients .
2) Powder and use immediately or store in an airtight bottle to be used later.

Serving Suggestions

Used to make rasam.