Tomato Soup Kolambu

In today’s blog, I am very happy and excited to share one of my mom’s best family recipes – Tomato Soup Kolambu! This dish is very versatile and goes well with idli (my favorite combination), dosa (my wife and son’s favorite combination), chapati, bread, white or biryani rice.

It is a very simple recipe where not much sauteing is involved and the ingredients are not overcooked, and that is why it is also called as “soup” kolambu. Few quality ingredients are must to make this awesome kolambu, and they are shallots (or small onions), sour Indian country tomatoes or nattu thakkali (I use cherry tomatoes in the US which are very close to the Indian country tomatoes in taste), fragrant coriander powder (preferably your own preparation ground from a spice mill) and fresh coconut paste!

This dish should be of a thin soup consistency so make sure you dilute it with some water if the kolambu becomes too thick. Because of the abundance of pungent spices like ginger, garlic, green chilies, chili powder and cloves, this dish is notorious for clearing up your sinuses, and it is recommended that you have a napkin at arm’s reach while enjoying this dish. Whenever I make this soup kolambu, our family will pretty much finish it up in one go (that is how much we love it – we make sure the idlis or the dosas are soaked and are swimming in this curry).

5 from 1 vote

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Tomato Soup Kolambu

A versatile tomato soup curry dish that is a match made in heaven with idli, dosas, chapati, bread toast, white rice or biryani.

Course Side Dish

Cuisine Indian

Keyword Curry, Kolambu, Soup, Tomato

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes

Servings 4 people

Author Senthil Sadasivam

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp Chili powder
• 3 tbsp Coriander powder
• 1 tsp Turmeric powder
• 1/2 cup Coconut paste
• 1/4 cup Coriander leaves garnish

Tadka ingredients

• 3 Cardamom
• 1 in Cinnamon stick
• 5 Cloves
• 1/2 tbsp Fennel powder
• 2 sprigs Curry leaves
• 1 cup Shallots or small onion sliced
• 3 Green chilies sliced
• 2 tbsp Ginger garlic paste
• 1 cup Sour country (or cherry) tomatoes big pieces or halved
• Oil

Instructions

1. In a pan, heat oil, and when it is hot, do the tadka with cardamom, cinnamon, cloves, fennel powder, curry leaves, followed by sliced shallots or small onions and green chilies and fry for 2 or 3 minutes. Add ginger garlic paste and saute till raw smell goes away, then add tomato pieces and fry till it sweats for about 2 minutes.

2. Add 4 cups water, chili/ coriander and turmeric powders and salt, mix well and let it cook covered for about 5 mins.

3. Add coconut paste and mix well and cover and cook for additional 5 mins.

4. The curry should not be too thick and should be of a slightly soup consistency. Add some water (and adjust salt) if the curry becomes too thick.

5. Garnish with coriander leaves and serve with steaming hot idlis (my favorite combon) or dosa or chapati, Also goes well with toasted bread, white or biryani rice.