Chettinad Mutton Rasam | Spicy Tangy Indian Mutton Soup | South Indian Mutton Rasam

Mutton Rasam is such a super flavored, tangy and spicy watery, delicious South Indian soup. You can also serve it along with cooked rice, it will be a very delightful platter too. The spices added here makes the recipe super flavorful and taste excellent. I love the punchy flavors here and every mouth or sip of it just tickles your taste buds. Some use bony mutton pieces to get the best flavors, but I love to add small sized fleshy/chunky mutton pieces into the rasam so that I can enjoy every tit-bit of the rasam, and it will be more comfortable to munch on when you are having it as a soup. The mutton pieces remain succulent and every bite will burst out flavored juices. Have it as soup or pour a ladle of this into cooked rice mix it up to have the flavorful rasam rice ever. Should I explain even more? I have already started drooling here!! So lets move on, do check out the recipe and try this in your homes, this is definitely a gotta try recipe. I never knew that this is Chettinad style recipe until I tasted it in my neighbor's home, after taking a sip surprisingly I inquired about the recipe and she said that it was a pure Chettinad style. This is one recipe that we have been following for ages, it is my granny's special on every Sunday, never did we knew it was a Chettinad special, I wonder from where did granny fetch this recipe. But whatever the origin of the recipe is I just love it to the core.  

INGREDIENTS

Serves 1 person generously
Total Preparation Time - 20 minutes 

1. Mutton - 75 grams (fleshy or bony)
2. Tamarind - 12 grams (one gooseberry sized ball)
3. Small onions / Pearl onions - 5 (Peeled & Chopped)
4. Tomato - 1 (chopped into medium sized pieces)
5. Chopped coriander leaves - A handful 
6. Curry leaves - Few 
7. Dry red chillies - 1 
8. Ginger - 1½ inch long piece 
9. Garlic pods - 2 
10. Cinnamon stick - 1 small stick (1 inch long)
11. Cumin seeds / Jeeragam - 1 spoon 
12. Fennel seeds / Sombu - 1/2 spoon 
13. Peppercorns / Milagu - 1 spoon 
14. Red chilli powder - 1½ spoons 
15. Coriander powder - ½ spoon 
16. Salt - As per taste 
17. Oil - 2 spoons + 2 tsp 

PREPARATION METHOD

• Wash mutton pieces well in water and chop it into smaller cubes. Wash again and set aside. 
• Soak tamarind in water and set aside for 10 or 15 minutes. Then mash the soaked tamarind well using your fingers, remove the pulp and discard it, keep the tamarind water aside. 
• Peel and crush ginger and garlic and set aside. 
• Place a kadai on flame and pour 2 tsp oil, after it heats up add cinnamon stick, cumin seeds, fennel seeds, peppercorns and saute on low flame for a few seconds. The color should not change. Then remove from flame and set aside until it cools down. 
• Now crush the sauteed spices into a coarse mixture using a pestle and mortar or a stone grinder for better flavors. But you can still use a mixer grinder or blender. 
• Place a cooker on flame, add 2 spoons of oil. After it heats up add curry leaves, dry red chillies (torn into two pieces), chopped onions and saute on low flame until the onions turn translucent. 
• The add the crushed garlic and ginger pieces and saute.
• Now add turmeric powder, salt and give a stir. Now add the washed mutton pieces and saute on low flame for a minute. 
• Add the chopped tomato pieces and give a stir. 
• Then add red chilli powder, coriander powder, and saute again for a minute. Pour 200 ml of water and stir well. 
• Add the crushed spices, some fresh whole curry leaves, chopped coriander leaves and stir well. 
• Now check for salt and add if needed. 
• Close the cooker with its lid and place the regulator/whistle after the pressure oozes out of the nozzle. Then pressure cook for 15 minutes on low flame. 
• Remove from flame and set aside until pressure drops. Then open and check whether the mutton has got cooked. If not pressure cook again for another 5 or 7 minutes. 
• Then place on flame and pour the extracted tamarind water (150 ml) and stir well let it come to a boil then switch off and remove from flame. 
• Serve hot as soup or with plain rice!! 

TIP 1: You can reduce the flavors according to your wish. I have made it tangy and very spicy you can adjust these levels according to your tolerance levels. 

TIP 2: Certain tamarind varieties are too tangy, so always add only half of the prepared tamarind extract, then taste to check the level and add extra if needed.  

TIP 3: You can follow the same recipe and make chicken rasam. But reduce the pressure cooking time to 10 minutes. 

TIP 4: Adding bones or fleshy pieces is according to your wish, but adding bony mutton pieces will give you excellently flavored rasam. If you are using very hard bones pressure cook for atleast 20 minutes. I used fleshy pieces as I love it that way. 

TIP 5: You can also use lamb, but the cooking time will differ here. Pressure cook for 10 minutes initially then extend if needed. 

Super flavorful & delicious, comforting, Mutton Rasam Recipe is now ready!! Try it and am sure you will love it to the core!!