Charu Annam (Rasam Rice)
Charu Annam is the kind of meal that asks nothing of you and gives everything back. Hot annam with a generous ladleful of thin, tangy rasam poured over — the usiri (amla) in our Amla Rasam Podi gives this charu a sharper, brighter tang than any regular rasam podi can manage. One bowl, one pot, done.
Prep: 10 min | Cook: 15 min | Serves: 2 | Difficulty: Easy
Ingredients
- 2 tsp Amla Rasam Podi
- 1 cup cooked rice (annam), hot
- 1 small lemon-sized ball tamarind (chintapandu)
- 3 tbsp cooked toor dal (pappu), mashed
- 1 medium tomato, roughly chopped
- 1 tsp ghee (neyyi)
- 1/2 tsp mustard seeds (aavalu)
- a few curry leaves (karivepaku)
- 1 dried red chilli
- Salt to taste
Method
- Soak the tamarind in one and a half cups of warm water for 10 minutes, then squeeze and strain to get the tamarind water. Discard the pulp.
- Bring the tamarind water to a boil in a kadai with the chopped tomato. Cook on medium flame for 4 to 5 minutes until the tomato softens and the raw tamarind smell fades — the liquid will deepen slightly in colour.
- Add the Amla Rasam Podi and the mashed pappu. Stir well, bring back to a full rolling boil, then lower the flame and simmer for 3 to 4 minutes. The rasam will turn fragrant and frothy at the edges — that is when it is ready. Add salt to taste.
- In a small pan, heat ghee until it shimmers. Add the mustard seeds and let them splutter, then add the dried red chilli and curry leaves. The leaves will crisp in seconds and the ghee will smell nutty and sharp. Pour this tadka straight into the rasam.
- Spoon hot annam into a wide bowl. Pour a generous ladle of charu directly over the rice — enough to soak through but not make it soupy. Mix lightly from the bottom up and eat immediately while the rasam is still steaming.
✓ High Protein | ✓ High Fibre | ✓ Rich in Iron | ✓ Rich in Calcium | ✓ Rich in Potassium