This is a typical Karnataka style recipe, which is served with rice. Made as a special kind of rasam in Tamilnadu during festivals or during functions at home.

Ingredients:
Tamrind Paste - 2 tbsp
Tomato - 1 medium sized
Coriander seeds - 1 tbsp
Bengal gram - 1 tbsp
Pepper corns - 8 to 10 no.
Red Chillies - 3 to 5 nos.
Turmeric powder - pinch
Grated coconut - 2 tbsp
Asafodeita - 2 pinches
Coriander leaves - 1/4 cup
Curry leaves - 1/2 cup
Salt to taste
Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp
Ghee - 2 tbsp
Cumin seeds - 1 tsp
Thuvar Dal - 1/2 cup

Method:
Pressure cook Thuvar Dal and mash well. Make tamrind water out of tamrind paste (which should be equal to 1 cup).

In a pan add 1 tbsp of ghee and fry coriander seeds, pepper corns, red chillies, Bengal gram till they turn golden colour. Add the grated coconut and fry it till it turns golden brown. Cool and grind it to a fine powder.

In a shallow vessel add tamrind juice and a cup of water, salt, turmeric powder and asafodeita. Grind tomato, curry leaves and coriander leaves to a paste and add it to the boiling liquid. Boil the liquid till the raw smell of tamarind is gone. Add the cooked and mashed thoor dal to the boiling liquid and when it starts bubbling add the ground powder, chopped curry leaves and coriander leaves and leave for 1/2 a minute. Remove from fire. Add 1 tbsp of finely chopped mint leaves.

In a seasoning laddle add 1 tbsp of ghee and mustard seeds, when it splutters add cumin seeds and a pinch of asafodeita and add it to the rasam.

Serve hot with steamed rice and fried appalam(south Indian Pappad)