Mysore rasam

Pressure cook 1/2 cup of dhal in 1 and half cup of water for 4 whistles and set aside.
1. Roast the below in few drops of ghee on low flame until slighlty brown:
1 tsp of coriander seeds
1 tsp of toor dhal
1/2 tsp of cumin seeds (optional)
1 or 2 long red chilly
1/2 tsp of pepper
2. After roasting, add 1 and a half tsp of grated coconut or a 1 inch coconut piece to the above spices and grind to a fine paste.
3. Soak about a big gooseberry size tamarind in water for few minutes and squeeze out the tamarind juice.
4. In a pan, add the tamarind juice, 1 large tomato finely chopped, salt, 1 tsp of turmeric and a spring of curry leaves and bring the mixture to a boil or until the tamarind is void of its raw flavor.
5. Add the ground paste, cooked toor dhal (must be about 1 and a half cup after cooking) to the boiling tamarind water. You may add about 2 more cups of water depending on the consistency you want.
6. Lower the flame and let it simmer until froth collects on the sides of the pan. Do not let it to a rolling boil.
7. When froths form, remove the pan from heat. In another pan, heat 1 tsp of oil.
8. When the oil is hot enough, temper it with 1 tsp of mustard seeds, 1 spring of curry leaves, 1 red chilly (optional), 1 coarsely crushed garlic pod and toss the seasoning into the rasam.
9. Garnish with few cilantro leaves. It is not only for garnishing but cilantro is a good source of iron. So include it wherever you can in your diet.
Your Mysore Rasam is ready to serve. Serve hot as a soup or with plain hot rice. It is a sure comfort food for common cold and digestion.
Alternatively, you may use 1 tbsp of coconut milk instead of the grated coconut. If doing so, add the coconut less paste first and let it cook on low flame for couple of mins. Then add the milk and let it froth. That way, you won't be cooking the milk for long time than is required and also get the masala/spices cooked enough. This rasam is usually little thicker than other rasams.

This time, I did 'thalicha paruppu' (season the dhal with sauteed onions, green chilly, red chilly) and added a cup of it to the rasam instead of plain dhal. That added some extra flavor and Tamil loved it. Try it if you have any left over seasoned toor dhal. You may love it too.