INSTANT PINEAPPLE RASAM (No dal, no garlic, no onion), is a mildly sweet, spicy and tangy lip smacking rasam or a soup like south Indian tomato broth with some fresh pineapples and simple aromatic spices to make for a comforting dish. This lip smacking tomato broth or sometimes also called “Saaru” is always enjoyed with rice or great as a comforting and warming soup too. It is best enjoyed with piping hot rice but is so tasty, has a feel good kind of experience that it is so good to sip on like a delicious winter soup. One sip will warm your insides (like a pleasant warm hug), especially in winters or monsoons not to mention good for you too with some immunity building spices! Jump to Recipe Print Recipe (This same basic recipe can be used to make Peach Rasam, Amla/Gooseberry Rasam or even just plain Tomato Rasam….recipes of those in the post below)
INSTANT RASAM/SAARU
Generally, when I need a comforting yet delicious and healthy meal, I always go for a simple south Indian meal (which I grew up on). It is almost always some hot cooked rice, a piping hot dal or watery rasam (could be a Konkani style Dalithoy made using tuvar dal or a simple and super quick Tomato Rasam or Saaru. My favorites are also this quick Amla/Gooseberry Rasam or Beetroot Rasam and of course there has to be a side of freshly stir fried veggies with minimal spices like Beans Upkari or Asparagus Talasani. But today, with half a chopped pineapple in the fridge which no one wants to eat, I decided to make an Instant Pineapple Rasam with of course tomatoes as the base as most rasams are. Turned out super delicious and was gone in no time in our house. As it needs no cooked dal or dal water (which needs to be preplanned and cooked ahead of making any dish), making this takes absolutely no time (ehhh, maybe about 15 minutes or so or even less than that if you plan properly). Almost instantly, when you crave for it, you can make it, if you have fresh or even tinned/canned pineapple chunks.
PINEAPPLE RASAM:
This delicious rasam has been on my to-do list for so long but never happened as adding any fruit to rasams (which almost always means tomato rasam) is actually nontraditional! Rasams in our cuisine means tomato rasam or saaru. But every time I get a fresh pineapple from the market, we end up enjoying it as a fruit rather than using it in cooking, except for this Pineapple Mensakai, another south Indian pineapple curry which we love and one you must try! This time, I used it up to make this mouthwatering south Indian style rasam. Instant Pineapple Rasam is super easy to make! I do not add any lentils to it (which needs to be precooked) and which most rasam recipes you will find online will have. So, you can say it is an “instant rasam” which takes only about 15 minutes from start to finish! Got you interested didn’t I? All you need to do is blend 1 cup fresh tomatoes and 1/2 cup chopped pineapple to a smooth puree. Once ready, dilute it in a saucepan to rasam/saaru (or soup) consistency you want which is generally dilute like a vegetable broth. The ingredients that give it that oomph and make it a “rasam” are warming spices and I have added 1/2 teaspoon coriander powder, 1/4 teaspoon turmeric powder, 1/4 teaspoon black pepper powder, 1/2 teaspoon Kashmiri red chili powder (more for color than heat!) and some sambar powder which is basically a blend of roasted lentils and spices (or you can use your favorite rasam powder; homemade or store bought); about 1/2-1 teaspoon depending upon the spice level of the spice powder you are using. If you do not have sambar powder or rasam powder, feel free to omit it or you can add curry powder or even garam masala powder you have. Of course you will need some salt and if the pineapple is not too sweet, some jaggery (unrefined cane sugar) or even brown sugar to sweeten things up a bit; not too much mind you; start with 1/2 to 1 tablespoon and then go from there. You need to come up with a balance of flavors – salty, sweet, spicy, tangy etc. If you like texture in this rasam and still like to bite into some fresh pineapple, just add some chopped pineapples to the boiling rasam. This step is totally optional. Finally, all rasams do need a final tadka or tempering to lift up the flavors and aroma of the whole dish. So, in some hot, melted oil/ghee if not vegan (about 1 tablespoon), add 1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds (wait for it to pop and crackle), a few curry leaves and 1/2 teaspoon jeera/cumin seeds. Once poured over the simmering rasam it elevates the dish to a whole new level! You just have to hear that sizzle when that tadka hits boiling/simmering hot rasam; that sound is what every south Indian looks for and you can say the process of craving for hot rasam and rice and which gets the digestive juices flowing starts right then! A final flourish of freshly chopped cilantro/coriander leaves (again, optional) and enjoy either pouring it piping hot over freshly cooked rice or just slurp on a bowl of this with a large soup spoon as an appetizer to any meal!
UPDATED USING FRESH HOMEGROWN PEACHES (June 2022):
We have a huge peach tree in our backyard and they fruit just once a year. Last year, all of them were falling off the tree like within a week to 15 days so I ended up doing a marathon of dishes to use them up like Peach Jam, Peach Chutney, Peach Juice, Peach Wine (by my son), Peach Leather, Peach Trifle etc. This season, I added one more to that, Peach Rasam using this Pineapple Rasam recipe but using peaches instead. When I was not in town, my daughter-in-law ended up using it to make peach rasam and when I came back, immediately made some too. It was delicious and so satisfying to sip on as well on rice. Same recipe…just blend a few chunks of peach along with tomatoes and your are good to go!
Do try if you can get hold of some fresh peaches when in season.
AMLA RASAM/SAARU (Updated April 2024):
With markets flooded with fresh big amla or gooseberries, which are so nutritous and good for you, I could not resist using a couple of them to make Instant Amla Rasam/Saaru.
Just chop a couple of amlas and blend along with tomatoes to a fine puree and then proceed with the same recipe!
SERVING SUGGESTIONS:
Traditionally and from time immemorial, rasams are always enjoyed with hot rice and pineapple rasam or any rasam is no different. But the taste of rasams are so comforting that it is also enjoyed like a soup in a bowl or cup/glass. Whichever way you like them, I am sure this no-dal Instant Pineapple Rasam as well as Peach Rasam or even Amla Rasam/Saaru when in season will be on repeat in your house, even if you have to go out and get a pineapple or peach/amla just to make this delicious rasam. (Well if you have only tomatoes at home, then just make Instant Tomato Rasam with that….tastes equally delicious)! My husband and I love to sip on small cups of this piping hot rasam along with our rice, dal/rasam veggie meal or even with a paratha and curry kinda dinner/lunch. So do try this easy, delicious, nutritious and quick Instant Rasam/Saaru to enjoy with rice or as a soup. I am sure it will be your favorite too. Enjoy and Happy Cooking! If you do happen to try this lip smacking rasam in your home, I would be thrilled to see and hear about it. Please leave your comments and thoughts (do not forget to rate it with a star rating) in the box below or share your version on Instagram (tagging @curryandvanilla16; #curryandvanilla16) and/or share it on my Facebook page.
Do check out these other rasams/dals you may like:
Amla/Gooseberry Rasam (without tomatoes) Beetroot Rasam/Soup Pressure Cooker Vegan Mixed Dal Curry Paruppu Keerai Masiyal
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