Rasam Powder Recipe

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Here's one time-saving recipe that will let you prepare awesome curry (and other dishes) time and again without spending time to recreate the spice mix every time.

Not only that, if you are buying store-bought rasam powder, this recipe shows you the magic to create a better rasam powder for half the cost.

I have also included step-by-step pictures to create your own Homestyle Rasam Powder recipe easier than ever.

Rasam powder is a spice mix recipe from South Indian cuisine. Rasam is the ultimate comfort, Indians usually prefer. Although it is a great pair for brown rice, sona masoori rice, jasmine rice and it makes a great option as a soup too!

Once you prepare this spice mix, you could use it to prepare your own Rasam recipe. Rasam recipes come in several variations and this spice mix can be used for a handful of them.

For starters, there's rasam with or without legumes (toor dal, etc) and there are rasam recipes with tomatoes, garlic, or even black pepper.

Use this specific spice mix for tomato rasam, with or without legumes.

The main ingredients for Rasam powder include coriander seeds, fenugreek, cumin seeds, and red chilies.

As long as you do not skip on any of these, you are on your way to prepare a delectable rasam.

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Rasam Powder Uses
Ingredients
Instructions
Storage
Common questions
Top tip
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📖 Recipe

Rasam Powder Uses

Apart from Rasam, you could also prepare other dishes like sambar, south Indian vegetable stir fry recipes like beans playa, beetroot poriyal, and cauliflower sabzi with this spice mix.
Use it for multiple rasam/saaru recipes like horse gram rasam, tomato rasam, etc.
Use it for rice recipes like Tomato rice, and Instant pot vegetable rice. Just skip the garam masala powder and use the rasam powder instead.

If you're interested in making this delicious dish for your family or just want to see what all the fuss is about it you should give our recipe below a try 😉

Ingredients

Coriander seeds: One of the critical ingredients, coriander seeds need to be fresh and whole when you use them. Look for sealed packs in grocery stores or at Amazon.
Cumin seeds: A few cumin seeds have a cooling effect on the recipe apart from the awesome flavor. Cumin seeds are also commonly available in Amazon and grocery stores.
Dried chili: I used 'Byadgi' red dried chili to make rasam powder. You could also use Kashmiri red chili and any other dried red chili. You do not need any chili that's too spicy. Spice mix powders only need to pack in the flavor and aroma.
Hing: I used sticky hing/asafoetida mix. Saute and powder the sticky thing before use. If you are not able to find the sticky variety, it is okay to use asafoetida powder too.
Coconut oil: This forms the cooking medium for all spices, especially the chilies that need to be cooked well. You could also use vegetable oil, as an alternative, if you are not able to find coconut oil.

See the recipe card for quantities.

Instructions

A small kadai is with oil over the heat.

Place a Kadai or deep bottom pan over medium heat and add coconut oil.

A pan is with red chilies over the heat.

When the oil heats up, add dried red chili and saute them until they puff up and turn crisp. Place it aside.

A pan is with coriander seeds over the heat

Add coriander seeds to the pan and saute until you get a nice aroma. Saute on a low flame and transfer to a large plate and place aside.

A pan with cumin seeds over the heat for rasam powder

In the same pan, saute cumin seed and methi seeds on low flame until the spices release their aroma. Place it aside.

A pan is with curry leaves and spices over the medium heat

Saute the curry leaves, hing and cinnamon stick on low flame. Place it aside.

A big plate is with all the roasted spices for rasam powder

Let all the spices cool completely.

A blender is with spices on the counter top

Powdered rasam mix is inside the blender

Now blend all the roasted spices with a teaspoon of hing powder(if you are using powder instead of sticky hing) and blend into a fine powder consistency.

Rasam powder is ready and you are all set to prepare your favorite rasam or 'saaru'.

Storage

Store the spice mix in an airtight container, in a cool dry place, to keep the flavors intact.
For longer shelf life, refrigerate the spice mix. The spice mix has a long shelf life and can be preserved for months, if it is stored properly.

Common questions

What is rasam powder made from?

Rasam powder is a combination of basic Indian spices like coriander seeds, cumin seeds, and fenugreek seeds sauteed in the right proportions. Some versions also have lentils added for a thicker consistency.

Can rasam powder be used as sambar powder?

Rasam powder is used for watery soup-like rasam, but it is also common to use the same mix for sambar recipes as well. So there is nothing wrong with that.

How is Rasam beneficial in our diets?

In South India, Rasam is considered the simplest form of rice pairing and is believed to be easy on the digestive system. When you are counting calories, a simple rasam offers the goodness of a home-cooked meal with all the taste attributes intact.

Top tip

Be sure not to skip any of the key ingredients. There are not too many ingredients in this recipe but they all play a big role in the final taste. If any of the mentioned ingredients are not available, the rasam powder mix usually does not turn out very well.

While preparing the rasam, add the spice mix as the last step and boil the mix well to make sure it's evenly cooked.

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