Easy Rasam Powder Recipe to Make at Home - 24 Mantra Organic

Rasam powder, or rasam podi, is a flavourful, aromatic blend of spices that add depth and personality to various South Indian lentil preparations. However, it is the hero ingredient in the lentil soup – rasam (meaning essence or juice). While the rasam powder ingredients are nothing extraordinary and are readily available in your everyday kitchen pantry, the combined effect leaves behind a flavour complexity like none other. Here, we have a rasam powder recipe that guides you to make this amazing condiment at home!

Typically, rasam powder recipes, ingredients, and ratio vary from region to region. Its origin can be traced back to Udupi, a small town in Karnataka, where rasam is locally known as saaru or saar.

This rasam powder recipe allows you to adjust the flavours and the spiciness according to your tastes. And for all its effort’s worth, it is extremely versatile, allowing you to add a dash of it to thicken or season most South Indian foods.

Rasam Powder Recipe

Here is a list of the rasam powder ingredients that you would need:

• A cup of coriander seeds (dhaniyalu)
• A quarter cup of toor/arhar dal (kandhi pappu)
• A quarter cup of chana dal (senaga pappu)
• Two tablespoons of jeera
• Two teaspoons of black peppercorn
• 4 to 6 Byadgi red chillies
• Half a tablespoon of fenugreek seeds (menthulu)
• 10-12 curry leaves
• Half a teaspoon of asafoetida (hing)
• Half a teaspoon of turmeric powder
• A teaspoon of coconut oil

Once you have all the rasam powder ingredients ready, you can prepare the podi in the following way:

1. Start by washing all the curry leaves and drying them thoroughly. Additionally, sift through the other ingredients as well and pick out any stones or impurities.
2. Spread out all the ingredients (except the hing and the turmeric) in a plate and let it sit in the sun for a couple of hours. This step is completely optional, but it enhances the flavours and the shelf-life of the rasam powder.
3. Turn on the stove on a medium-low flame and heat the coconut oil in a pan. Add the curry leaves and let them fry in the oil until they turn crisp. Depending on the moisture present in the leaves, this should take about 30 to 60 seconds. Take it off the heat and keep aside.
4. In the same pan, add the Byadgi red chillies and roast them for about 60 seconds, until they turn aromatic. Remove the red chillies from the pan and set it aside to cool.
5. Add the fenugreek seeds to the heated pan and roast them for about 10 seconds. Now, add the coriander seeds, black peppercorn, and the jeera. Saute everything until it turns aromatic. Transfer these to a plate.
6. Dry roast the toor dal and chana dal together until they turn light brown and release a nutty fragrance. Once done, spread them out in a plate.
7. Let all the rasam powder ingredients cool for about 15 to 20 minutes.
8. Finally, transfer all the roasted rasam powder ingredients, turmeric, and asafoetida into a dry chutney jar to blend them into a fine powder.
9. Your at-home rasam powder is ready.

Storing Rasam Powder

If the rasam powder is hot after grinding, spread it on a plate and let it cool for some time. Once it is cool, transfer it into an air-tight container and store it in a cool, dry corner of your kitchen. The rasam powder will last you for a good three months.

Alternatively, you may also store it in ziplock bags and stash them in your refrigerator. Through this technique, you can increase the shelf-life of the rasam powder to 12 months.

Additional Tips and Variations of the Rasam Powder Recipe

The above rasam powder recipe is a version of the Kerala rasam powder. Here are a few adjustments that you can make for different region-specific rasam powder variations:

• Eliminate the dals for authentic Andhra-style rasam powder recipe.
• To replicate the rasam powder recipe from Mysore, roast two tablespoons of mustard seeds along with the coriander seeds, jeera, and peppercorn.
• For Chettinad-style rasam powder, increase the number of red chillies, double the toor dal to half a cup, and omit the chana dal.

Further, here are a few tips to keep in mind:

• Byadgi chillies impart the deep red colour that is characteristic to rasam powder. If Byadgi chillies are not available, you can use Kashmiri red chillies.
• The colour of the rasam powder could vary from ochre and orange to scarlet red. However, aim for the flavour rather than the colour of your rasam powder as it may otherwise make the podi too spicy.
• Two teaspoons of the above rasam powder are sufficient while preparing rasam for two people.
• Be mindful while dry roasting the rasam powder ingredients lest you burn them as it will leave behind a charred taste in the rasam.
• Wherever possible, make use of organic ingredients as they will reproduce the perfectly authentic flavour of traditional rasam powder. Organic products offer the unadulterated taste of nature.

Now go ahead and get making your rasam powder now!

Try 24 Mantra Organic’s Rasam Powder and savour the taste of organic goodness.