Last week was a rain filled week. On one such rainy day, I prepared spinach soup. I sat in the veranda relishing a bowl of vibrant green spinach soup, watching the rain and waiting for Nehal to come home from school.

Rasam or Charu is an essential part of a traditional Andhra bhojanam (meal). Comforting, earthy, warm with health supporting properties, pepper flavored charu is seasoned with ghee and asafoetida, garnished with fresh coriander. Works as a perfect antidote for a runny nose.

When I eat rice for lunch, rasam is a must and the meal is never complete without it. And more so during the monsoon as this piping hot comfort soup soothes the soul. There are numerous versions of this simple soup and one of my favorite is an exotic South Indian delicacy, Pineapple Rasam.

A vibrant, hearty, soothing, chunky tomato soup to brighten up the rainy season! The key to a delicious tomato soup is in roasting the tomatoes. Use herbs of your choice. My favorite herb is fresh coriander leaves and I like a chunky tomato soup.

There are numerous versions of carrot soup. I enjoy carrot soup when combined with thick coconut milk. This orange shaded warm pot of goodness is light, nourishing and comforting for a rain filled wet day.

My foray into rasam making wasn’t very impressive during the many trial and error sessions of my early kitchen days. I would try numerous versions to replicate a flavor that I tasted at my Tamilian friend’s home or at a restaurant in Coimbatore or elsewhere during my travels to Tamil Nadu. Each home has its [...]

Though this lemony soup lacks in looks, it more than makes up taste-wise. Light, subtle, earthy and flavorful with a whiff of asafoetida. Best to sip as a soup or over white rice.

Mysore Rasam At least 4 days a week, our lunch is a typical South Indian meal. And an integral part of every such meal is ‘chaaru’, the Andhra version of Tamil Nadu’s ‘rasam’. The other day I made Mysore Rasam, a tamarind based Indian soup and served it along with bitter gourd stir fry and [...]

What would make a warm, hearty, filling, perfectly satisfying comforting meal when one is not feeling too well, you know, the kind that really slows us down? Spinach soup! There is something about the aroma of this nutmeg-scented simmering soup that is addictive and gives me a feeling of warmth. This iron-packed, emerald green, liquid [...]

Do you know of the most nutrient rich tree in the world that grows really fast,its root,bark,leaves,flowers and pods can cure more than 300 diseases (according to Ayurveda),whose leaves,flowers and pods are edibles and are used to conjure up culinary delicacies, and can even purify water–but has been overlooked by modern medicine?Yes,we are talking about [...]