Kollu rasam

There is an old saying in tamil, "illaithavanukku ellu kozhuthavanukku kollu" which means , "feed the thin person with sesame and stout person with horse gram".
That is a fantastic proverb on diet for various body structures:)
Horsegram (kollu in Tamil), is a much neglected gram / lentil with a lot of medicinal value. The rich fiber content and the body heat generating property of horse gram helps in reducing the body fat in a fast mode.
Here comes a rasam / Indian soup with Horse gram.

Kollu rasam:




Ingredients:
Horsegram - 4 tbsp
Tomato - 1 (big and juicy)
garlic - 3 pearls
Tamarind - a strawberry size
Black pepper - 1 tbsp
coriander seed - 2 tsp
cumin seed - 1/2 tsp
garlic - 3 pearls.
oil - 1 tbsp
mustard - 1/2 tsp
fenugreek - 1/2 tsp
Turmeric powder - a pinch
Asafoetida - a pinch
salt - to taste

Method:
First carefully examine the horsegram and remove any stones present.
(Actually wherever you buy , few stones with the kollu is unavoidable because of its similarity with pebbles).
Dry roast the horse gram till you hear a popping sound with a nice aroma and powder it.

Extract juice from tamarind.

Dry roast pepper, coriander, cumin and powder them together with fresh garlic. This is the fresh home made rasam powder.

Heat oil in a wok. Add mustard, fenugreek and asafoetida. After the mustard crackles , add the curry leaf and chopped tomato and fry till oil oozes out.

Pour two cups of water and add the powdered horse gram, turmeric powder and let it come to a boil.

Now add the tamarind extract and once again boil it.

Then add the prepared rasam powder.

As soon as the rasam starts to boil, immediately switch off and add salt. Garnish with finely choppoed cilantro.

Kollu rasam is ready!


Serving suggestions:
Serve hot over plain cooked rice.
Goes well with a simple thovaiyal (thick chutney) and appalam.

Note:
Some people pressure cook the horsegram to make dhal. While doing so , we can save the left over water from the cooked horse gram and use it to make rasam instead of powdering it.

Ok guys! Have You started shopping for Horse gram:)