Risotto n Rasam

You read it right!! Risotto is an Italian dish cooked by slowly adding hot water/stock to uncooked rice until you get the creamy texture. Adding rasam instead of the usual 'veg stock' gives risotto very nice taste.

       Rasam recipe came form a dear friend of mine. I did change it a bit because once the risotto is cooked , the flavour gets concentrated and if you use the usual ratio of rasam masala to water, you will end up with very spicy risotto.This may not be my everyday rice dish but its a pure comfort food!

       

Ingredients :
1 cup arborio rice
1 tb spoon chopped onion
1 tea spoon minced garlic (optional)
1 tb spoon oil

For the Rasam:
4 cups water
1 chopped tomato
1/4 tea spoon turmeric powder
1 tb spoon rasam masala (use as per taste)
1/2 tb spoon tamarind paste
1/4 cup cooked toor dal
salt to taste
1/2 tea spoon oil
1 tea spoon mustard seeds
1 spoon cumin seeds (optional)

chopped cilantro (as per taste)

Method:

To make rasam, bring 4 cups water to boil with chopped tomato,turmeric and tamarind. Let the mixture boil for 5 minutes, then add rasam masala,cooked dal and salt and let it boil for another 5 minutes. Make the tadka (tempering) by heating oil, add mustard seeds and cumin seeds and let them pop. Add tadka to the rasam and let the rasam stay warm on a very low heat. Add oil to a different pan (for cooking risotto) and add chopped onion and garlic and sauté until tender. Add the arborio rice and stir everything together and toast the rice on medium heat for about 2 minutes. Add 1/2 cup of rasam at a time and stir occasionally until the rasam gets absorbed into the rice. Keep adding the rasam in 1/2 cup intervals stirring almost every other minute to cook the rice. It will take about 20-25 minutes for risotto to cook. Add chopped cilantro at the end. Serve hot with a spoonful of desi ghee!

Note: The ingredients for the rasam are just a guideline. Adjust rasam to suit your taste.
Strain rasam and then add to the rice if you don't want tomato in your risotto.