Chinna Chaaru

Chaaru is the translation for Rasam in Telugu. I don't know how the name came about, but we've always known it this way. Chinna means 'Small'. My paternal grandmother often made this Rasam when we visited my Dad’s native which is on the border of Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. This is basically a Tamarind based rasam, simple yet flavourful and very aromatic.

You will need:

2 tbsp Tamarind paste

3 Cups Water

Salt to taste

1 tbsp Jaggery, powdered

To be ground:

3 cloves of Garlic, minced

3 Guntur chillies

4 Byadige chillies

4 Whole peppercorns

1 tsp Cumin seeds

Seasoning:

1 tsp Oil

½ tsp Mustard seeds

¼ tsp Asafoetida

Dissolve the tamarind paste in the water. Add the ground paste to this and bring to a boil. Season with salt and add the powdered jaggery. Taste and if the rasam is too tart, add more jaggery. Heat oil in a small pan, add mustard seeds and when they begin to splutter add the asafoetida. Add this seasoning to the boiling rasam. Garnish with fresh chopped coriander.

Serve hot with white rice.

Note: For some reason, when I publish a post, in Reader it shows up with a lot of error messages, please do stop by the blog and check the post if you are unable to see it in your Reader. Thanks!