Poondu (Garlic) Rasam

Ingredients:

1. Garlic pods ( crushed ) - 10-12
2. Tomatoes (finely chopped) - 1
3. Tamarind pulp - 1 cup
4. Rasam powder - 1 tsp.
5. Asafoetida - 1/4 tsp.
6. Mustard - 1/4 tsp.
7. Curry leaves (chopped) - 5-6
8. Coriander leaves ( finely chopped) - 1/2 tbsp.
9. Jeera & pepper powder - 1 tsp. (optional, in case rasam powder needs enhancement)
10. Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp.
11. Salt - to taste
12. Ghee - 1 tbsp.

Procedure:

1. In a thick bottomed vessel, heat ghee. Season with mustard seeds, asafoetida, curry leaves and turmeric powder.
2. Add garlic and cook till the raw smell of garlic is gone.
3. Add chopped tomatoes and cook till tomatoes are tender.
4. Add the tamarind pulp, rasam powder and salt. Add the jeera-pepper powder.
5. Boil for 3-5 minutes on medium flame till the raw smell of tamarind is gone.
6. Switch off and garnish with coriander leaves.

Milagu (Pepper) Rasam

Ingredients:

1. Toor Dal - 2 tsp.
2. Coriander seeds - 1 tsp.
3. Pepper - 1 tsp.
4. Red chilly - 1
5. Jeera - 1 tsp.
6. Curry leaves - 1 sprig
7. Thick tamarind extract - 1/2 cup
8. Turmeric - a pinch
9. Tomato - 1 finely chopped
10. Salt - to taste
11. Ghee - 2-3 tsp.
12. Mustard seeds - 1 tsp.
13. Asafoetida powder - 1/4 tsp.
14. Coriander leaves - for garnishing.

Procedure:

1. Lightly roast pepper, red chilli, toor dal, coriander seeds, jeera and curry leaves in a tsp. of ghee and grind them to a powder. Do not roast them till they change colour. They should be very lightly roasted.
2. In a vessel, heat the tamarind pulp with tomatoes and a pinch of turmeric powder and allow to cook till the raw smell of tamarind is gone. 
3. Add the ground powder, salt and cook on medium flame for 5 minutes or till  the rasam starts boiling.
4. Add more water (around 250 ml) to dilute the rasam and bring to a boil.
5. In a small kadai, heat a tsp. of ghee, splutter mustard seeds. Add Hing powder to it and season the rasam with it.
6. Garnish with coriander leaves.
7. Serve with hot rice.

Milagu rasam is supposedly good for you when you catch a cold.

Rasam (Obbattu Saaru)

Many people I have met often ask me the recipe for rasam. Rasam does not have a single standard recipe and each person makes it differently. In fact the way a person makes rasam becomes her signature. Most cooks are judged solely by the quality of rasam they make. Apart from this, one more thing we need to understand is that there are at least around 20 varieties of rasam. I make a few of them at home, most of them improvised versions of the existing recipes.
This one is called obbattu saaru. My m-i-l makes it whenever she makes obattu (holige/poli). Obattu filling is made by boiling dal and grinding it with jaggery and coconut. The water drained after boiling dal is used to make this rasam. I really love this rasam and cannot wait for the day obattu is made for having it. So here's my version.

Ingredients:

1. Toor Dal - 1/2 cup
2. Garlic - 6-7 pods
3. Red chilles - 3-4
4. Pepper - 1 tsp.
5. Jeera - 1 tsp.
6. Tamarind - the size of a small lemon.
7. Oil/Ghee - 2 tsp.
8. Mustard - 1/2 tsp.
9. Salt - to taste

Procedure :

1. Boil the dal along with water in a cooker (can be cooked along with rice). If the dal can be completely mashed into a paste, mash it. If the dal is whole even after cooking, drain the water and use for rasam and use the dal for some other dish. This depends on the quality of dal.
2. Extract the tamarind pulp using warm water.
3. Roast pepper, jeera and red chilles in oil ( or dry roast them). grind them along with garlic pods. Add this masala to the above and boil until the raw smell of tamarind is gone.
4. Add dal/ dal-water to the above and add salt.
5. When the rasam boils, season with mustard/jeera in oil/ghee.
6. If this rasam is made along with obattu, we can add a lemon-sized amount of the obattu filling to the rasam. It will give it a sweetish taste. On other days, if you like the sweetish taste, you can add a small piece of jaggery.