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

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Recipe

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

Ingredients

Toor Dal 1 cup Toor Dal
water 4 cups Water
Tomato 1 small Tomato , chopped
Tamarind 1 small Tamarind , lemon-sized ball
Mustard Seed 1 tsp Mustard Seed
Cumin 1 tsp Cumin , seeds
turmeric powder 1 tsp Turmeric powder
asafoetida 1 Asafoetida , pinch
Coconut 2 tbsp Coconut , grated
Coriander Seed 2 tbsp Coriander Seed
Red Chili 4 Red Chili , dried
Green Chili 2 Green Chili , slit
Curry Leaf 1 sprig Curry Leaf
ghee or oil 2 tbsp Ghee or oil
salt — Salt , to taste
Cilantro — Cilantro , fresh, 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.