Udupi Saaru

Udupi Saaru

Udupi Saaru

Veg

Udupi thin pepper rasam — the Tulu coastal version of South India's foundational thin soup: toor dal water (the liquid from pressure-cooking toor dal) combined with tamarind extract, tomato, crushed black pepper, cumin, dried red chilli, asafoetida, and curry leaves, simmered briefly until fragrant and tempered with mustard seeds and ghee. The Udupi saaru is sweeter than Tamil rasam (a pinch of jaggery is added) and is typically made without garlic in the temple tradition. Its body comes entirely from the toor dal water rather than a ground lentil base; it is very thin, pourable, and meant to be drunk warm before the meal or poured liberally over the second serving of rice. The black pepper provides all the heat; the asafoetida provides the depth that garlic would in other regional versions.

Cuisines

Mangalorean Udupi Mysore

Best for

Lunch Dinner

Recipe

Prep: 20 min Cook: 40 min Total: 60 min 2-3 servings

Ingredients

1 cup toor dal (pigeon peas)
4 cups water
1 small tomato, chopped
1 small tamarind, lemon-sized ball
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp turmeric powder
1 pinch of asafoetida
2 tbsp grated coconut
2 tbsp coriander seeds
4 dried red chilies
2 green chilies, slit
1 sprig curry leaves
2 tbsp ghee or oil
— salt to taste
— fresh coriander leaves for garnish

Instructions

  1. 1 Wash the toor dal thoroughly and pressure cook it with 2 cups of water until soft.
  2. 2 Soak the tamarind in warm water and extract the juice, discarding the pulp.
  3. 3 In a pan, dry roast the coriander seeds and dried red chilies until fragrant. Grind them with grated coconut to a smooth paste using a little water.
  4. 4 In a pot, heat ghee or oil and add mustard seeds. Once they splutter, add cumin seeds, green chilies, curry leaves, and asafoetida.
  5. 5 Add the chopped tomato and sauté until soft.
  6. 6 Add the cooked dal, ground coconut paste, tamarind juice, turmeric powder, and salt. Mix well.
  7. 7 Add 2 cups of water to adjust the consistency and bring the mixture to a boil.
  8. 8 Simmer for 10-15 minutes to allow the flavors to meld.
  9. 9 Garnish with fresh coriander leaves before serving.

Tips

For a richer taste, use ghee instead of oil for tempering.