COCONUT MILK RASAM / THENGA PAAL RASAM

    Rasam is a southindian soup served as an accompaniment of rice for lunch. It's main purpose is to help in digestion. It is prepared by blending spices n herbs like pepper, cumin seeds, red chillies, coriander leaves, garlic and curry leaves in tomato and tamarind juice.

People have a lot of variations of the same. This is one such recipe wherein addition of coconut milk is needed. Fried fish, chicken fry, mutton fry, egg roast, plantain fry, yam fry just serve as the right side dish.

INGREDIENTS
Tamarind juice (extracted from a small lemon sized tamarind) - 1 cup
Tomato (medium sized) - 2 nos
Coconut milk - 1/4 cup
Pepper corns - 2 teaspoon
Cumin seeds - 1&1/2 + 1/2 teaspoon
Red chilli - 1 no
Curry leaves - a sprig
Coriander leaves - 4 to 5 stalks
Garlic pods - 6 to 7 nos
Turmeric powder - 1/4 teaspoon
Green chilly (slit lengthwise) - 1 no
Mustard - 1 teaspoon
Asafoetida - a pinch
Salt - as required
Oil - for tempering

METHOD
1. Extract coconut milk and keep aside.
2. Grind pepper, a teaspoon of cumin seeds, red chilli, curry leaves and coriander leaves coarsely. Then add the garlic and give it a whip. Don't make a fine paste. It would lend a syrupy smell.
3. Add the coarsely grounded paste into the tamarind extract. To it add turmeric powder, salt.

4.  Run the tomatoes in a mixture jar to a puree and mix with the tamarind mixture. 

5. Check for salt and tanginess and add salt or tamarind extract accordingly. It has to be slightly more salty and tangy so that the taste is balanced when we add coconut milk.
6. Add a cup of water and bring the tamarind mixture to rolling boil and switch off immediately.
7. Heat oil in another pan and crackle the remaining cumin seeds, mustard, green chilly and asafoetida.
6. Pour the tempering over the rasam. Add the coconut milk over it.
7. Garnish with coriander leaves or serve as such with steaming hot rice with fry of your choice.