To begin making the Tomato Rasam Recipe, first cook the toor dal/ yellow split pea dal with 1 cup of water until it becomes very soft. See video recipe of how to cook lentils using pressure cooker.

When done, pour the dal into a bowl and whisk it, until it becomes nice and smooth. Set this aside.

Puree the raw cut tomatoes in a blender and keep aside.

Next, heat ghee in a pressure cooker on medium heat; add the mustard seeds, cumin seeds, garlic and curry leaves. 

When the mustard seeds begin to crackle, pour in the tomato puree, tamarind water, coriander powder, turmeric powder, cumin powder, asafoetida, pepper and chilli powder.

Stir all the masalas together and pressure cook for for one whistle and turn off the heat.

Once the pressure has released, open the cooker and add the toor dal. Adjust the consistency of the rasam, by adding 1-1/2 to 2 cups of water. Check the salt and spices and adjust according to taste.

Give the rasam a brisk boil. Once it comes to a brisk boil, simmer the Thakali Rasam for 10 minutes on low heat, until you see the Thakali Rasam frothing up.

Once you notice the Thakkali Rasam frothing up, turn off the heat. Finally, garnish the Tomato Rasam with freshly chopped coriander leaves. 

Serve the Thakali Rasam along with hot rice, topped with ghee and a Beetroot Curry or Chow-Chow Curry.