What many people abroad do not realise is how diverse India is, not just in terms of geography, language, traditions but also food. Indian restaurants abroad sometimes mix and match various cuisines to come up with their menu.
Most basic spices to purchase: Mustard seeds (brown), Turmeric powder, curry leaves.
Most South Indian meals are incomplete without some form of rice; Rice is processed into dough to make tasty treats like Idlis (steamed rice cakes), Dosas (crispy pancakes) and Vadas (savoury doughnuts). But of course rice is also eaten boiled or steamed, with some spices and additions to give it a typical flavour. While travelling around Tamil Nadu, I found that many restaurants offer extremely affordable lunch meals involving various rice dishes served with Sambar (spicy lentil & vegetable gravy). But most can be eaten on their own as well. I would like to share a very simple yet tasty recipe of one of these popular dishes; lemon rice.
Lemon Rice
Ingredients:
3-4 cups Cooked rice – preferably prepared earlier and cooled in the fridge
1 tsp Mustard seeds (brown)
2 1/2 tbsp Peanuts – raw
1 tbsp Chana dal (split chickpeas; optional)
1 tsp finely chopped ginger
1 green chilli – finely sliced
1 tsp turmeric powder
4-5 Curry leaves
Lime juice
Salt to taste
2 tbsp Cooking oil
Heat the oil in a wok over medium heat. Add the Peanuts, mustard seeds and Chana dal. Fry until it crackles; then add the curry leaves. Fry until the peanuts are properly roasted; be careful not to burn them. Then add the ginger and green chilli. Stir fry for around 30 sec. Add the turmeric powder and mix properly in the oil. Then add the rice; mix well, season with Lime juice and salt; serve immediately.
I really love this dish because it is so quick, it can be done within 5 minutes; and it is a wonderful way of using up left over rice. In fact it comes out the best when using yesterday’s left over rice straight from the fridge; the grains seperate nicely then and the dish comes out fluffy and light. The fresher and warmer the rice when you put it in, the more sticky and soggy the end result will be.
Some other typically south indian rice dishes are: tomato rice, tamarind rice and curd rice. I particularly like the latter and will probably post that recipe soon as well.
