South Indian Tomato Soup ( Rasam)

I had some fresh turmeric roots that I wanted to experiment different dishes with.
Rasam or the South Indian Tomato Soup couldn't have been a perfect choice for using turmeric. I created this recipe to help with digestion and also flu.

(Turmeric is widely used in both North and South Indian dishes. It has been accepted by  MD s and naturopaths as a powerful antiseptic and anti-inflammatory spice.)

Below is the picture of fresh turmeric roots. They resemble ginger with color of yam.

Coming back to the soup:

2 tomatoes Coarsely chopped
1.75 cup water
1.5 tsp salt
1/2 tsp raw sugar or jaggery

To grind :

1/2 inch turmeric root peeled ( if you don't have the root, use 1/2 tsp powder)
2  tsp cumin
8-10 pepper corns or 1/2 tsp
2 dried red chillies
2-3 pressed garlic cloves
1/8 tsp oil
1/4 cup cilantro bunch
2 tsp coconut

Optional:
1/4 tsp yellow lentils
1/4 lemon sized tamarind ( if tomatoes not tangy enough)

For seasoning
1 tsp mustard seeds
A sprig of curry leaves
1 tsp coconut oil

In a pan, first  roast the cumin,pepper corns,lentils and pepper corns till they slightly brown.Transfer into a blender. Now roast the turmeric root, garlic and red chillies and blend them with the spices, cilantro and tamarind to make a smooth paste.

In a soup pot, boil the water. When the water is almost boiling, add the tomatoes. Stir in the salt and sugar. This will help cook tomatoes cook faster. When tomatoes are almost done, add the ground spice paste and simmer for 10 mins. add water if soup gets thick.
 ( Why I added the spice paste at a later stage was because of tamarind.  Veggies including tomatoes will take time to cook with tamarind)

In a pan, heat the coconut oil for few seconds and crackle the mustard seeds  When the seeds are crackled, roast the curry leaves with it for 10-15 seconds and pour this seasoning on the soup.

Serve hot with rice or as a soup by itself.