Allergens in Nandu Rasam: crustacean shellfish, sesame, mustard.
Ingredients
Quantities for 4.
- 3 small, cleaned and quartered Crabshells cracked; the shell carries the flavour
- small lime-sized ball, soaked in 400ml warm water Tamarind
- 2, crushed by hand Tomato
- 10 cloves, lightly crushed with skin on Garlic
- 2 tsp Black Pepperhalf ground with cumin, half crushed at the end
- 1.5 tsp Cumin Seeds
- 3 Dried Red Chilli
- 3 sprigs Curry Leaves
- 1/2 tsp Turmeric
- 1/4 tsp Asafoetidause compounded-free hing to keep this gluten-free
- 1 tsp Mustard Seedsfor the tempering
- 1/4 tsp Fenugreek Seedsoptional
- 2 tbsp Sesame Oilgingelly oil
- 3 tbsp, chopped Coriander Leavesoptional
- 600ml Water
- to taste Salt
Cookware
stovetop, blender
Checked against the ingredient list for ten allergens: milk, egg, fish, crustaceans, tree nuts, peanuts, sesame, mustard, soy and gluten. Brands vary, so read the label on anything new to you.
Before you start
- Ask the fishmonger to clean the crabs but keep the shells cracked and the claws on. Almost all the flavour of nandu rasam comes out of the shell.
- Soak the tamarind in warm water 20 minutes and squeeze it out well; the rasam should be sour enough to make you blink.
- Rasam must never boil hard once the tamarind water is in. It goes cloudy and bitter.
Method
- Pound the pepper, cumin, dried chillies and 4 of the garlic cloves coarsely in a blender. Pulse it, do not powder it.Coarse pepper floats and perfumes the broth. Fine powder sinks and makes it muddy.
- Boil the crab pieces in 600ml water with turmeric and salt for 10 minutes. Skim the grey foam off the top.Skimming is what keeps the finished rasam clear.
- Lift the crab out and set aside; keep the cooking liquor.
- Add the tamarind water, crushed tomatoes, remaining garlic, one sprig of curry leaves and half the pounded masala to the crab liquor.
- Simmer uncovered 12 minutes, until the raw sourness of the tamarind has gone and the liquid smells sweet at the edges.
- Return the crab, add the rest of the pounded masala and bring just to the point of frothing. Bubbles at the rim, no rolling boil. Turn it off.The moment a rasam boils it loses its top note. Catch it at the froth.
- In a small pan heat the gingelly oil, crackle the mustard seeds, add the fenugreek, asafoetida and remaining curry leaves, and pour it over.
- Cover and rest 5 minutes, then stir through the coriander leaves and serve hot with rice, or on its own in small steel tumblers.
Safe temperatures: Prawns, crab and squid are done when the flesh is opaque and pearly right through. Reheat leftovers to 74°C / 165°F. FoodSafety.gov
Storage
Keeps 2 days refrigerated. Reheat only to steaming, never to a boil. The crab is best eaten the first day; the broth alone reheats fine.
Nutrition Medium estimate
One serving of Nandu Rasam (224 g) is about 124 calories, or 56 calories per 100 g.
Low protein: 5 g a serving, 16% of the calories
| Per serving224 g | Per 100 g | |
|---|---|---|
| Calories | 124 kcal | 56 kcal |
| Protein | 5.0 g | 2 g |
| Carbohydrate | 8.4 g | 4 g |
| of which sugars | 1.9 g | 1 g |
| Fibre | 2.3 g | 1 g |
| Fat | 8.6 g | 4 g |
| of which saturated | 1.2 g | 0 g |
| of which unsaturated | 6.9 g | 3 g |
Ingredients given to taste count as zero, so the real figures run a little higher. Nearest database match used for asafoetida, curry leaves. Estimated from raw ingredients using USDA FoodData Central.
More like this: Healthy Indian recipes · Gluten-free Indian recipes · Dairy-free Indian recipes · Indian soup recipes · Tamil Nadu recipes
Times, yields, allergens and nutrition are guidance. Use your own judgement on doneness and on storing. More in About.