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Vepampoo rasam

5 from 1 vote
A special, seasonal, medicinal rasam that’s a classic in the Tamil repertoire, made with neem flowers in April and May each year. This rasam is a clear or thelivu rasam, suitable for drinking as much as eating with rice and rich with liver-cleansing, digestive, anti-inflammatory and anti-carcinogenic properties.
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Ingredients Method Video Notes

Ingredients
  

  • A lime-sized ball of tamarind, deseeded
  • ½ teaspoon turmeric powder
  • Salt to taste
  • 1 tablespoon sesame oil
  • 1 handful toor dal
  • 3-4 dry red chillies
  • 1 piece katti perungayam or whole dry hing/asafoetida
  • 1 and ½ teaspoons rasam podi
  • 1 tablespoon jaggery
  • 1½ tablespoons ghee, or sesame oil
  • 3-4 tablespoons dried neem flowers
To temper (but see the notes--tempering neem flower rasam is optional)
  • A teaspoon of ghee or sesame oil
  • ½ teaspoon mustard seeds
  • ½ teaspoon jeera seeds
  • a sprig of fresh curry leaves

Method
 

To make the rasam:
  1. Extract tamarind water by soaking the dry tamarind in a cup or so of warm water, leaving it to soak, and then working it with your fingers to release the pulp. Remove the seeds/pulp/fibres and place the tamarind water in a pan to boil.
  2. Add turmeric powder and salt and enough water to make about ¾ to 1 liter
  3. While that’s going, roast the dal, chillies, and hing in 1 tablespoon sesame oil until the dal turns fragrant and golden-brown. Take care not to burn it.
  4. Tip this into the simmering tamarind water
  5. Add the rasam powder and jaggery
  6. Simmer this mixture until the dals have cooked, the raw tamarind smell has dissipated, and the rasam is deepening in color.
  7. In 2 tablespoons ghee (or sesame oil), fry the dried neem flowers gently until they darken several shades—a minute or so. Take care not to let them burn.
  8. Pour this into the simmering rasam.
To temper (see notes; tempering neem flower rasam is optional)
  1. Heat the ghee or sesame oil in a tempering pan until it is almost smoking. Add the mustard seeds and jeera—watch those crackle and splutter—and then follow with the curry leaves.
  2. Once these crisp just lightly, pour over the rasam.
  3. Serve hot with a nice soft table rice like thooyamalli, khichli samba, or jeeraga samba.

Notes

  • I prefer to temper my vepampoo rasam, but some don't, preferring to end with the fried neem flower addition. Leave out the tempering step if you like! It gives you a far more distinctive neem flower taste. 
  • If you have extra dried flowers, save these and have them with plain hot rice and a little salt!
  • The rasavandi or heavier dal-chilli-flowers that settle at the bottom are great as accompaniments to curd-rice.
  • The almost twin of this preparation is the pavazhamalli rasam of a season or two ago--both neem and coral jasmine flowers are medicinal bitters.