If sambar is the king of dishes in south India, rasam is the unparalleled queen! To make these two dishes without sacrificing authenticity, you’ll need the magic masala that’s unique to each. If you have Rasam Powder (Rasam Podi) in your pantry, making sublime rasam every time will be child’s play. Let’s get to grinding…
What is Rasam Podi
Rasam (literally “the essence”) is a popular tomato and lentil based semi-clear soup from South India. It is a spicy concoction with a tang that’s served with rice as the second course of a traditional South Indian meal. While tomatoes and tamarind provide the sour taste, you’ll get nowhere without the right Rasam Podi that’ll make you wanting for more.
Tasty rasam implies the chef has used an authentic spice blend. Although there are many brands in the market, my family loves rasam made with home-made rasam podi that has been passed along generations by word of mouth
What you will need to make Rasam Masala
Ingredients
Note: 1 cup = 235 ml
- 2.5 cups coriander seeds
- 1.25 cups pigeon peas (toor dal)
- ¼ cup black peppercorns
- ¼ cup cumin seeds
- ¼ cup curry leaves (washed & loosely packed)
- 1 Tbsp. turmeric
- ½ cup chili powder (Kashmiri or Byadgi)
Equipment
- Flat bottom pan or wok
- Flat ladle
- Plate
- Blender
- Air tight container
A note on key ingredients
Coriander seeds form the base ingredient for rasam powder. Ensure that you use a fresh batch of whole coriander seeds for longer shelf life
Cumin seeds & black peppercorns in this masala makes rasam a great digestive aid
Dry red chili in this recipe essentially contributes to the color and not heat to this spice blend. You can either use Byadgi or Kashmiri red chills – both will give you the same desired results
How to prepare Rasam Powder – An Overview
Dry roast each ingredient until well done, allow it to cool, blend and store. That’s how insanely simple it is to make this spice blend at home. There’s no need to pay for store bought masala going forward
Tips before you begin
📝 For best results, it is recommended to roast each ingredient separately starting from the one that takes the longest time to roast, followed by other ingredients. You’ll notice that the sequence of ingredients gradually requires less time to roast and finally the curry leaves can just be roasted on the hot pan with no additional heat. This tip ensures that all spices are roasted perfectly
How to make Rasam Podi – Instructions with step-by-step images
Dry Roast
Step 1 – Set a flat bottom pan or wok on medium heat for about a minute. When the pan is hot, dry roast 2.5 cups coriander seeds until the coriander starts to change color and the room is filled with its fresh aroma. Set aside on a plate to cool down
Step 2 – Now, roast 1 ¼ cups of pigeon peas (toor dal / tuvaram paruppu) for about 2 minutes until it starts to lightly brown and set aside along with the roasted coriander seeds
Step 3 – Continue dry roasting ¼ cup black peppercorns and ¼ cup cumin seeds separately for about a minute each or until you smell the roasted aroma in the air and set aside with other ingredients for cooling
Step 4 – Finally, turn off the heat and roast ¼ cup loosely packed curry leaves until it’s crispy and all the moisture on the leaves from washing has evaporated
Cool
Step 5 – Let the roasted ingredients cool down to room temperature. This will take about half an hour.
Blend and store
Step 6 – Once it has all cooled down, transfer to a blender jar and blend to a coarse powder
Step 7 – At this point add 1 Tbsp. turmeric powder and ½ cup Kashmiri red chili powder and give the whole mixture a good pulse until it’s well incorporated and ground to a fine powder
Step 8 – Transfer back to a bowl for cooling down to room temperature before you store it in an airtight container in your pantry
Step 9 – Use this rasam powder to make your sublime tomato rasam or dal for your next meal and enjoy 😋
My memories of this recipe
If you grew up in South India, you will know that it is a ritual of woman folk to make a big batch of spice blends around spring time soon after the arrival of the year’s harvest. Sambar podi, rasam podi, idli milagai podi, vathal kuzhambu podi, poricha kootu podi, paruppu podi, kanji podi, and so on. This yearly activity made everyday cooking a breeze. You must be wondering by now, what was my role in this activity as a young kid. Of course we kids were the ones who made multiple trips to that flour mill (I recall it as girni) to stay watch over our batch so that the miller did not steal a portion of our spices and grains and to ensure that he follows the right order in which grains had to be milled (so that the taste of the flour and spice blends were not accidentally adulterated). I remember we also had to sacrifice a kilo of wheat (tainted with remnants from the spices we ground earlier) so that the miller could clean out his equipment before the next customer’s turn. I’m sure even if the miller stole something from us, we could not catch him since he was perpetually coated in flour and had a ghostly appearance and there was no way to recognize him😆 My mom used to recall that Chennai had specific mills for spices and that we did not have to go through grinding a batch of wheat after each round of spice blend. Now with advanced technology blenders available at home and super markets selling fresh ingredients year around, making a small batch to last a month or two is just a pulse away!
An interesting article on a traditional South Indian meal comes to my mind as I worked on this recipe
Related Recipes
Recipe Card – Rasam Powder
Rasam Powder
Course: Spice BlendCuisine: South IndianDifficulty: Easy275
gms approx.5
minutes7
minutes1
hourRasam Powder is the magic masala that’s unique with flavors from basic pantry ingredients that makes sublime rasam every time in your kitchen
What You Will Need for Rasam Powder
- Ingredients
2.5 cups coriander seeds
1.25 cups pigeon peas (toor dal)
¼ cup black peppercorns
¼ cup cumin seeds
¼ cup curry leaves (washed & loosely packed)
1 Tbsp. turmeric
½ cup chili powder (Kashmiri or Byadgi)
- Equipment
Flat bottom pan or wok
Flat ladle
Plate / bowl
Blender
Air tight container
Instructions for making Rasam Podi
- Dry Roast
- Set a flat bottom pan or wok on medium heat for about a minute. When the pan is hot, dry roast 2.5 cups coriander seeds until the coriander starts to change color and the room is filled with its fresh aroma. Set aside on a plate to cool down
- Now, roast 1 ¼ cups of pigeon peas (toor dal / tuvaram paruppu) for about 2 minutes until it starts to lightly brown and set aside along with the roasted coriander seeds
- Continue dry roasting ¼ cup black peppercorns and ¼ cup cumin seeds separately for about a minute each or until you smell the roasted aroma in the air and set aside with other ingredients for cooling
- Finally, turn off the heat and roast ¼ cup loosely packed curry leaves until it’s crispy and all the moisture on the leaves from washing has evaporated
- Cool
- Let the roasted ingredients cool down to room temperature. This will take about half an hour.
- Blend and store
- Once it has all cooled down, transfer to a blender jar and blend to a coarse powder
- At this point add 1 Tbsp. turmeric powder and ½ cup Kashmiri red chili powder and give the whole mixture a good pulse until it’s well incorporated and ground to a fine powder
- Transfer back to a bowl for cooling down to room temperature before you store it in an airtight container in your pantry
- Use this rasam powder to make your sublime tomato rasam or dal for your next meal and enjoy 😋
Rasam Powder Variations
- Each south Indian State and regions within make rasam masala customized to their cooking styles. While Chettinad and Andhra cuisines include garlic, in Karnataka you will notice inclusion of mustard, fenugreek and sometimes coconut. So, don’t be shy to give it your own individual twist and enjoy the essence which is a sublime Rasam
Nutrition Facts
Nutrition Facts
25 servings per container
Serving Size1g
Calories80
- Amount Per Serving% Daily Value *
- Total Fat
3g
5%
- Saturated Fat 1g 5%
- Sodium 4mg 1%
- Amount Per Serving% Daily Value *
- Potassium 6mg 1%
- Total Carbohydrate
5g
2%
- Dietary Fiber 16g 64%
- Protein 6g 12%
- Vitamin A 15%
- Vitamin C 1%
- Calcium 2%
- Iron 7%
* The % Daily Value tells you how much a nutrient in a serving of food contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
FAQs
Use 1 Tbsp. each of sambar and rasam powder to make a delicious vathal kuzhambu / kaara kuzhambu. Also you can add this masala to you dals along with a hint of garam masala
It stays fresh for up to 3 months in your pantry and up to a year in the freezer
Thankyou!
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