Blog post by Madhu of @hookorbycook
Contact email: madhusreekvn@gmail.com
Granny’s Detox Broth I remember the 15-year-old me, peeking into my grandmother’s kitchen trying to see how she gets those lip smacking flavors out of that tiny space of hers! Some of the best cooking and life advice that I have got was from her. She used to laugh and say things like
“Oh, if your grandfather’s mood is off, the anti-dote to it is the ‘Rasam’ that I prepare!”
It was not only an instant mood-lifter, it also went onto become my comfort food and the first thing I learnt to make for myself. This recipe uses a homemade South-Indian spice mix (Rasam powder), but you can also buy it in any of Indian grocery store! Here is what you will need to make Rasam: 1. Lemon-sized tamarind 2. 1/4th cup Split pigeon lentil or toor dal 3. 2 tbsp clarified butter or ghee 4. 1 tsp turmeric or haldi 5. 1 1/4th tsp Rasam powder 6. 1 tsp mustard seeds or rai 7. 1 tsp cumin seeds or jeera 8. 1 1/4th crushed black pepper 9. Salt to taste 10. Pinch of asafetida or hing 11. 1 medium sized tomato, roughly diced 12. 2-3 crushed garlic pods 13. Chopped mint and cilantro leaves for garnishing Method: 1. Begin with soaking the lentil in ½ cup warm water for 30 mins and cook it until mushy (without salt) in the lowest ‘steam’ function in the instant pot or for 3 whistles in a traditional pressure cooker 2. Add 1 cup water to the tamarind and bring it to boil, set it aside 3. To a heavy bottomed pan, add ghee on medium heat. After a minute, add the mustard seeds and wait for it to sputter. Add cumin seeds and asafetida 4. Now, add the crushed garlic along with black pepper. Sautee it for a minute in medium to low heat. 5. The soaked tamarind will need to be squeezed completely to get a diluted tamarind water. This would require you to rinse and squeeze the pulp 2-3 times with water 6. Add the tamarind water to the pan along with turmeric and salt 7. Bring to a rolling boil before you add the Rasam powder to it. This ensures that the raw smell of the tamarind water goes away. 8. Add the diced tomatoes and simmer this broth until tomatoes become mushy 9. Once the pressure is released, filter the lentil water in a cup, keep it aside. Beat the lentil with a whisk and take a 1 tbsp of it and add both in the broth. 10. Bring it to one final boil. You know its done when you see the Rasam froth. 11. Add the mint and cilantro in the end and close it with a lid to maintain the aroma! Hope you guys enjoy this recipe! It’s perfect for any weather and is often the go-to recipe if someone has fever, cough and cold! Recipe notes: 1. Rasam powder may not be available everywhere but do not worry. I have you covered. In a blender, add 3 tbsp black peppercorns and 3 tbsp cumin and blitz them into a powder and add it to the broth. This works great too. 2. In case you don’t have tamarind: Instead of boiling everything in tamarind water, follow the same instructions with hot water and top it off with ½ a lemon in the end. 3. Mint is completely optional, but I highly recommend adding cilantro. It only adds to the flavour and the moment it fall in the broth, it releases Vitamin A which is amazing for your immune system and cell growth 4. This is generally had with rice, but you can prepare this and drink it instead of your evening tea. Plus, it works wonders for your gut 5. If you don’t like tomato pieces in your broth, do a quick blitz in the blender and add the puree to the broth
We hope you enjoy. Please tag us if you end up making this yummy broth.
@unleeshd & @hookorbycook on Instagram
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