Kollu Rasam – Horse Gram Rasam

Rasam is always a comfort food, especially when somebody at home is down with cold. This Kollu Rasam is a healthy and easy rasam variety. It is a wonderful way to include Kollu in our diet. Nobody at home knew that it is included in this rasam, especially Chotu. So good for me, nobody complains 🙂 This Kollu Rasam was so flavourful and unique as Kollu has a very good flavour of its own.

Now to the recipe…

I used a little portion of the cooked kollu for making Kollu Rasam and the rest for making Kollu Sundal (recipe coming soon).

[Preparation Time-10 mins : Soaking Time – overnight : Cooking Time- 10 mins]

Ingredients:

• Kollu / Horse Gram – 1 cup
• Tamarind – a small gooseberry size
• Oil – 1 tsp
• Mustard – 1/2 tsp
• Urad Dal – 1 tsp
• Asafoetida – a pinch
• Curry leaves – a sprig
• Garlic – 2 cloves (crushed)
• Dry chilli – 1
• Coriander leaves – few
• Salt – as needed
• Turmeric Powder – a pinch
• Pepper – 1.5 tsp
• Coriander – 1 tsp
• Jeera – 1 tsp

Method:

• Wash and soak kollu overnight. Add fresh water and pressure cook for 3-4 whistles. Once the pressure releases strain the water and keep it aside. Take a handful of cooked kollu in a bowl.

• Mash the kollu with a fork. Add hot water to it and extract the juice. Combine this along with the strained water. Soak tamarind and extract juice. Add this to the kollu water too.

• Heat a pan with oil and temper with mustard, urad dal, curry leaves, crushed garlic, dry chilli and asafoetida. Add the kollu water along with required salt and turmeric powder. While it comes to a boil, take a mixer and add pepper, coriander & jeera.

• Make a coarse powder. Add it to the above when it comes to a boil and the raw smell of tamarind goes off. Bring it to a boil. Finally add coriander leaves and switch off the flame.

Thats it!! Flavourful Kollu Rasam is ready!!

Serve hot with steamed rice!! Can be had a soup too!!

Tips:

1. Soaking the kollu overnight will help to cook it easily. Else u need to cook for a longer time.
2. I mashed and extracted the juice from the cooked kollu as we do not like chunky bits in our rasam. U can mash and add it as is too.
3. U can use tomato and reduce/skip tamarind to make the Kollu Rasam.