My simple Tomato Saar is nothing but a tomato soup flavored with Indian spices. There are different ways of making a ‘saar’. This is a recipe for a cold yogurt based saar. Not as complicated as a gazpacho, but no less yummy. There is no cooking involved here, just an optional Tadka or tempering with oil or ghee for added flavor.
This recipe is very flexible. It tastes best with fresh plum tomatoes, but you can also use crushed tomatoes or canned diced tomatoes (puree) in a bind. The star flavoring ingredient is raw garlic. If you don’t like garlic, this recipe is not for you. But I suggest you start out small using just a little bit and you will soon come to love the pungent, slightly spicy garlic flavor.
Raw garlic is good for heart health and helps control blood pressure and cholesterol. That’s some motivation for you to start enjoying it in the raw form.
This soup is served cold or at room temperature. Make large batches of this tomato saar and eat with meals or even as a snack.
This is a much better and tastier alternative to canned V8 juice, for example. Hey, I love my V8 but have you seen the sodium content in it? Yes, even in the ‘low sodium’ one!
The recipe for this simple tomato saar is as follows –
Simple Tomato Saar is nothing but a cold tomato soup flavored with Indian spices. There are different ways of making a ‘saar’ and this one will take minutes.
Ingredients
- 8-10 plum tomatoes
- 2 cups yogurt
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1-2 tsp sugar
- Dash of pepper
- Salt to taste
- 1-2 Tbsp Oil or Ghee
- ½ tsp Cumin seeds
- Pinch of hing or Asfoetida
Method
- Chop tomatoes and blend to create a puree. Place in large bowl or pot. If you are using canned tomatos, use crushed tomatoes or stewed tomatoes for this recipe instead of puree or sauce.
- Add plain yogurt of choice – full fat, low fat or fat free - and whisk together until smooth.
- Add 2-3 cups of water to get desired thickness. You can actually make this as thin as you like. Seasonings will vary if you make it too thin. I go for a consistency slightly thicker than canned tomato juice.
- Add salt and sugar. Sugar needed will depend on your taste for the sour, and the yogurt you used. Fat free plain yogurt is generally more sour as compared to the low fat or full fat one. A slightly sour taste is desirable here for some punch.
- Grate 2-3 cloves of raw garlic. This must be fresh garlic. At least 1 Tbsp of garlic is needed for 5-6 cups worth saar to get some sharp flavor.
- If you want to give the optional tadka or tempering with oil/ghee, heat the oil until it is smoky. Use light oil like vegetable or canola, or use ghee. Add cumin seeds. They will immediately pop and become aromatic. Switch off heat. Add a pinch of optional hing or Asfoetida to the oil/ghee. Pour this over the saar.
- Mix well and refrigerate. The soup or saar gets more flavorful after a few hours in the fridge.
- Serve with hot steaming rice, or just drink as a healthy snack. Enjoy.
Hope you like this super simple healthy and refreshing soup. If you love tomatoes, you might want to try out my Madras Tomato Chutney recipe.
