roasted beetroot soup with curry spices and coconut

beetroot rasam

In trying to overcome my childhood trauma of my father’s favourite sandwich (pickled beetroot and piccalilli), I have spent years trying to love beetroot. To my horrified taste buds, much maligned beetroot tasted of sweet mud. Yet I have hated feeling as if I have been missing out on something, so I decided to persist. It's been a very long time in coming!

I started off incorporating beetroot into a cake, very similar to carrot cake, since its natural sweetness might help to disguise (for me) it's robust earthiness. The beetroot with toasty cake spices and hazelnuts was rather nice. Well I didn't put the whole lot on the compost anyway.

I moved on to Nigel Slater's herb meatballs, packed with grated beetroot and had a bit of a hallelujah moment when I realised that not only did they taste delicious but that I really didn't actively hate beetroot any more.

But those recipes were ones where beetroot was part of the chorus, rather than the star. But making a southern Indian-style rasam soup, combining beetroot with warming curry spices, tamarind and coconut, I have learned to like if not love the stuff.

Serves 4
Skill level: Easy

ingredients:
600g raw beetroot, trimmed and scrubbed
vegetable oil
water
salt and freshly ground black pepper
rasam spice mix
1 tsp black pepper
1 tsp coriander seeds
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 dried red chilli
4 tsp urad dal (optional)
1 x onion, chopped
2 x garlic cloves, finely chopped
600ml water
1 tbsp tamarind paste
2 tsp palm sugar
coconut milk or coconut cream
1 tbsp mustard seeds
1 tbsp cumin seeds
1 x dried red chilli, finely chopped

directions:

1. Pre-heat the oven to 200C / Gas Mark 6.
2. Put the beetroot in a roasting tin and drizzle with 1 tablespoon of oil, 3 tablespoons of water and seasoning. Cover with foil and roast for about 1 hour until tender. Roughly chop when cool enough to handle.
3. Pre-heat a small frying pan. Dry fry all the spices and urad dal until lightly toasted. Grind until a powder.
4. Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a large saucepan. Add the garlic and gently cook for 10 minutes, before adding the garlic. Continue to cook for 2 minutes before adding 1 tablespoon of rasam spice mix. Cook for another minute before adding the chopped beetroot. Cook for another minute, making sure that the beetroot is well coated with spices.
5. Add the water, tamarind paste and palm sugar. Bring to a boil. Simmer for 10 minutes. Check the seasoning and set aside to cool slightly before blending. I also sieve my soup for extra smoothness.
6. Return the soup to a clean pan and reheat. Check the seasoning and add a splash of coconut milk or a dollop of coconut cream and warm through.
7. Temper the mustard and cumin seeds, and dried chilli by frying in hot oil for about 30 seconds. Drizzle over the soup and serve.