Tomato Rasam / Tomato Chaaru

Needed

1. Tomatoes - 2
2. Green chillies - 3
3. Onion - 1/2
4. Curry leaves - 1 strand
5. Coriander - 1/4 bunch
6. Toor dal/ Red lenthils - 1 cup
7. Water - 1 1/2 cup
8. Rasam Powder - 2 table spoons ( heap)
9. Asofaetida - a pinch
10. Mustard seeds - 1 tea spoon
11. Cumin Seeds - 1 tea spoon
12. Ghee- 1 tablespoon
13. Jaggery - 2 tablespoons
14. Salt as needed
15. Turmeric Powder - 1 tea spoon
16. Tamarind paste - 1 tablespoon

Method

1. Wash and chop tomatoes into quarter pieces.
2. Cut the half onion vertically into thin slices.
3. Chop the green chillies into tiny bits.
4. Wash the toor dal and place it with tomatoes, onion, green chillies and curry leaves in a pressure cooker.
5. Add 1 1/2 cup water for 1 cup of toor dal.
6. Heat the mixture and let the cooker whistle for 3 times.
7. Instead of pressure cooker, you can also directly boil the ingredients in 1 1/2 cup of water in a vessel on medium flame.
8. Once the tomatoes and dal are cooked, place the mixture again on low flame.
9. Add rasam powder, salt, tamarind paste, turmeric, jaggery and let it boil for about 10 minutes.
10. Now add coriander and boil for another 10 minutes.
11. Switch off the burner.
12. Place a small sauce pan on another burner on low flame, add the ghee.
13. Once the oil gets heated up, add mustard and cumin seeds.
14. As they splutter, add asofaetida and as the aroma spreads, put the mixture into the rasam prepared.
15. Close the lid of the rasam mixture immediately so that the aroma sinks in.
16. Serve this rasam after half an hour to enjoy the mouth-watering flavors.

Rasam Powder

Needed

1. Coriander seeds - 1 cup
2. Guntur Red chillies - 1 fistful
3. Byadige Red chillies - 1 fistful
4. Cumin Seeds - 1/4 cup
5. Fenugreek seeds - 1/8 cup
6. Pepper - 1/8 cup
7. Mustard seeds - 2 tablespoon
8. Curry Leaves - 4 strands

Method

1. Fry each of the above ingredients in a sauce pan independently without oil.
2. Ensure that the items are fried only till the raw smell vanishes.
3. The chillies should not turn black and none of the ingredients should get charred.
4. Combine all the fried ingredients in a grinder and grind to a coarse powder.
5. Place the Rasam powder in an air tight container to preserve the aroma.

Tomato Chutney

I should say this is a chutney which works just fine for the last minute cravings. Takes extremely small amount of time and hardly any chopping of vegetables.

(Serves 4)
Needed

1. Tomatoes - 3
2. Greeen chillies - 4
3. Red chillies - 2
4. Turmeric - a pinch
5. Salt - 1 tablespoon or as needed.
6. Sugar - 1 tablespoon
7. Coriander - 1/2 bunch
8. Oil - 1 tea spoon
9. Urad Dal - 1 tea spoon
10. Chana dal - 1 tea spoon
11. Lemon juice - 1/2 lemon squeezed

Method 

1. Heat the oil in a sauce pan.
2. Add chana dal and urad dal, let them fry for half a minute.
3. Add green chillies, tomatoes and fry them till the tomatoes get half cooked.
4. Add turmeric and fry for a minute.
5. Once cooked add the mixture to the grinder.
6. Put coriander, salt, sugar to the mixture and grind to a coarse paste.
7. Add lemon juice to the mixture and serve.

This has been one of my favorite chutneys. Apart from satiating your taste buds with the tangy taste, it provides an antioxidant called "Lycopene". When tomatoes are heat processed, the bioavailability of Lycopene actually increases rather than the anticipated decrease. Two bucks and one arrow , isn't it !!

Brinjal Tomato chutney

(Serves two)

Ingredients

1. Smal round brinjal - 3
2. Tomato -1
3. Tamarind Paste - 1 tablespoon
4. Salt as needed
5. Coriander - 1/4 bunch
6. Turmeric - 1 teaspoon
7. Oil - 2 tablespoons
8. Mustard seeds - 1 teaspoon
9. Cumin seeds - 1 teaspoon
10. Green Chillies - 1
11. Asofaetida - a pinch

Method

• Heat the oil in a sauce pan.
• Add mustard,jeera and asofaetida and fry till they splutter.
• Fry the green chillies in the same oil.
• Add tomato pieces and fry till the tomato gets half cooked.
• Add brinjal pieces and cook till they get soft.
• Tamarind paste has to be added and mixed with the veggies.
• Transfer the entire content into a grinder.
• Add salt, coriander and grind into coarse paste.

Tomato Spring Onion Gojju

No ample time to cook ? Here is a shortcut recipe for a 15 minute delicacy.

Ingredients :
Diced Tomatoes - 2 cans
Spring onions - 1 set
Cumin seeds - 1 table spoon
Coriander power - 1/2 tea spoon
Cumin powder - 1/2 tea spoon
Rasam powder - 11/2 tablespoon
Chilli powder - 1 tea spoon
Turmeric powder - 1 tea spoon
Asofaetida - pinch
Oil - 2 table spoons
Salt as required

1. Add the oil to a pan and heat on medium flame
2. As it gets hot, sprinkle the cumin seeds and wait for them to splutter
3. Add asofaetida and fry till a tasty aroma spreads.
4. Add the cut spring onions and fry them till they get a little cooked
5. Add 2 cans of diced tomatoes, mix well and heat with a closed lid on medium flame for 10 minutes
6. Add cumin powder, coriander powder, turmeric, chilli powder,Rasam powder and salt.
7. Mix well and heat again with closed lid for 5 minutes.

Serve this gojju with chapathi or rice and enjoy the tangy taste

Tomato Bisi uppinakayi

Needed

1. Ripe Tomatoes - 6
2. Red Chillies - 5
3. Sesame seeds -2 teaspoons
4. Fenugreek Seeds - 1 teaspoon
5. Oil - 2 tespoons
6. Asoefatida - a pinch
7. Turmeric powder - 1/2 teaspoon
8. Chili powder - 1/2 teaspoon
9. Salt as desired

Method

1. Add 1 teaspoon of oil in a pan.
2. As the oil gets heated up, add the tomatoes and boil on medium flame,with a close lid.
3. Keep stirring in between to avoid the puree getting burnt.
4. Boil the tomatoes till the raw smell vanishes resulting in a thick puree. 
5. Meanwhile fry the sesame and fenugreek seeds in a pan on medium flame.
6. Grind them into soft powder.
7. Heat a teaspoon of oil in another pan, add few sesame seeds, a pinch of asoefatida and red chillies.
8. Fry till the red chillies turn light brown.
9. Add the boiled tomato puree to this mixture.
10. While stirring add the sesame and fenugreek powder,turmeric, chili powder and salt.
11. Heat the mixture on low flame with close lid for 3 minutes.
12. Serve with rotis to enjoy the tangy uppinakayi.