Lemon rice (elumichai sadam in Tamil) is my most favourite among all the variety rice recipes for lunch. Its a very simple and a healthy rice recipe that can be prepared quickly for lunch box. I can have a plateful of lemon rice without any side dish like thogayal or pickle. But my mom makes a thick chutney with coconut and fried gram dal ( pottukadalai) as a side dish for lemon rice. My dad never eats lemon rice without this chutney and a pickle. Once I tried this combo for my husband and he too liked it. Recently we went to Meenakshi amman temple in Bannergatta. We had lemon rice as prasadam and it tasted out of the world. I would say it is the best lemon rice I have ever tasted. It was mild yellow in color & I found they had used raw rice & added some coriander leaves along with dals & chillies.. Usually I use steamed rice for making lemon rice. But after tasting that prasadam , I too started using raw rice and added some coriander leaves.
As aadi 18 festival is nearing , I thought of posting this lemon rice recipe. This is one among the 5 rice varieties ( lemon rice , puliyodharai , coconut rice , sakkarai pongal and curd rice) we offer to God on aadi perukku along with pepper vada and payasam.. Do try this chutney & lemon rice combo , u will love it..
INGREDIENTS 1 cup - 250ml
Raw rice – 1/2 cup (Good quality sona masoori) OR (steamed rice , basmati rice)
Big sized Lemon – 1 ( adjust based on the size & tanginess of lemon)
Salt – as needed
Hing / asafetida – 1/4 tsp
Turmeric powder – 1/4 tsp
To temper
Cooking oil – 1 tbsp
Mustard seeds – 1 tsp
Urad dal – 1 tbsp
Chana dal – 1/2 tbsp
Peanuts – 1 tbsp (optional)
Red chillies – 2 nos
Green chillies – 2 nos
Curry leaves – few
Coriander leaves – 1 tbsp ( to garnish)
Gingely oil – 1 tbsp ( to add while mixing)
METHOD
Pressure cook raw rice adding 1: 2.5 cups of rice and water ratio. Add a drop of oil before cooking. Cook it separate & fluffy. Spread them in a plate & let it cool down.
In a bowl, squeeze the lemon juice by removing the seeds. Add salt , turmeric powder & hing. set aside.
In a kadai , heat oil and temper the mustard seeds. After it splutters completely , add the dals & peanuts. Fry till they turn golden brown. Then add the pinched red chillies & slitted green chillies, curry leaves and a pinch of hing.
Saute well , add the lemon juice , switch off the flame immediately & transfer to a bowl. Add 2 tsp of water in the kadai, give a swirl and add to the lemon juice mixture..
Add this mixture & gingely oil to the rice , mix well. Check for salt. Garnish with coriander leaves..Initially it tastes more tangy..But all the taste blends well when its rested for 30 mins to 1 hour before serving.
NOTE
The water quantity may differ based on the quality of rice..If u use basmati rice, use 1:2 cups of water..
u can add also add the lemon juice directly in the rice instead of adding to the tadka..
Addition of peanuts is optional. I dint use here. I dint add coriander leaves as it was out of stock. But addition of coriander leaves gives a nice taste..
Add gingely oil while mixing the rice.
POTTUKADALAI CHUTNEY / FRIED GRAM DAL CHUTNEY - SIDE DISH FOR LEMON RICE
INGREDIENTS 1 cup - 250ml
Dalia/fried gram – 1/4 cup
Grated coconut – 1 tbsp
Green chillies – 2 nos
Salt – As needed
Garlic cloves – 2-3 nos
METHOD
Grind all the above ingredients to a thick paste adding less water..Serve !
Mint thogayal /Pudina thogayal recipe is one of the yummiest thogayal varieties / chutney recipe for rice. I usually pack this thogayal sadam for my husband’s lunch box. Mint thogayal can be prepared in advance and stored for weeks in refrigerator. My MIL makes this thogayal adding roasted urad dal just like coriander leaves thogayal. But addition of urad dal is completely optional. Add only if u want to increase the quantity / yield of thogayal. This thuvayal tastes great when mixed with plain rice adding sesame oil ( nalla ennai). Try it and enjoy !
Mint thogayal/Pudina thogayal
Delicious mint thogayal recipe for rice,idli,dosa,upma
Cuisine:Indian
Category:Thogayal
Serves:Serves 2
Prep time:10 Minutes
Cook time:10 Minutes
Total time:20 Minutes
INGREDIENTS 1cup = 240ml
To roast n grind
Mint leaves/pudina leaves – 1 cup (tightly packed)
Red chillies - 3 nos ( use 5 for spicy taste)
Urad dal - 1 tbsp
Jaggery – 1/4 tsp
Tamarind - Small gooseberry size
Salt - as needed
METHOD
Wash mint leaves. Heat a kadai with a tbsp of oil and fry the red chillies & urad dal.Remove in a plate. In the same oil, fry the mint leaves for a minute so that it will be shrinked and get reduced in quantity. This gives a special flavour to the thogayal . Soak tamarind in little water.
Now grind the red chillies, urad dal, soaked tamarind with salt to a coarse mixture.Then add the mint leaves and grind to a smooth, thick paste adding the required water. Remove and serve with plain rice topped with gingely oil . If u want to grind in large quantities and store , u have to follow the next step. Else stop with this step & enjoy.
Heat a kadai with little gingely oil / nalla ennai ( 1 tbsp )and put the thogayal into it. The water content in it will be absorbed and becomes thick , heat it for a while. Cool down. It can be stored in a box, refrigerated and kept for 10 days. But this step is purely optional if you are consuming immediately. U can enjoy this thogayal without sauting in oil. But shelf life will be reduced.
For variations u can skip urad dal and add a tbsp of grated coconut while grinding.
YUMMY MINT THOGAYAL is ready to be served with hot rice & tiffin. Enjoy adding sesame oil..
Tomato rice is my favourite variety rice recipe but Sendhil don’t like this as it has more spices.Even then I wanted to make him eat my tomato rice and praise me .. I tried many combinations and at last i settled with this recipe.. He liked it a lot and i got credits as i wished . In the beginning I used to add fennel seeds along with spices but he hate the taste of fennel seeds while eating. So i omitted fennel seeds & other spices and i used garam masala powder , coriander & mint leaves which gave a nice flavour & taste to the rice..I have made this so many times for his lunch box and this has become a routine lunch box dish for me .. Check out my tomato pulao recipe if interested..
INGREDIENTS 1 cup - 200ml
Basmati rice – 1/2 cup
Water - 1 cup
Ripe tomatoes – 4 nos (small sized, I used bangalore tomato)
Big onion – 1 no
Garlic cloves – 8 nos
Green chillies – 1- 2 nos
Red chilli powder – 1 tsp
Turmeric powder – 1/8 tsp
Garam masala powder – 1/2 tsp
Mint leaves & coriander leaves – few (chopped)
To temper
Cooking oil – 2 tbsp
Mustard seeds – 1/2 tsp
urad dal – 1 tsp
Channa dal – 1 tsp
Coriander leaves – to garnish
Ghee or gingely oil – to add while mixing with rice
METHOD
Cook the basmati rice adding 1:2 cups of water..Here i used 1 cup of water.. Add a drop of oil and little salt while rice is cooking. Pressure cook it and spread the rice in a plate to cool down..
Slice cut the onions , slit the green chillies , chop the mint & coriander leaves , peel the garlic cloves and roughly chop the tomatoes and set aside..
In a kadai , heat oil and splutter mustard , urad & channa dal.Then add the onions , green chillies and saute well. Now add the garlic cloves and mix well..
Then add the mint & coriander leaves and saute well.Finally add tomatoes and all the spice powders along with salt.
Mix well till tomato turns to a paste.Add little water if necessary..Make sure tomato paste has some moisture content ..The paste should not be dry..Garnish with coriander leaves , paste is ready..
Now add the tomato paste to the rice adding gingely oil and mix well with a fork like ladle..Add a tsp of ghee before serving if u wish..Add more paste while mixing because the rice may absorb all the paste and it will taste bland after the rice cools down. So i have given more tomatoes to make the paste. Add the required paste , mix , give some setting time and then serve !
NOTE
For variations u can try adding fennel seeds while tempering which gives an additional flavour.
U can also try adding 1/2 tsp of ginger garlic paste instead of whole garlic cloves ..
Thengai sadam/Coconut rice is Sendhil's favourite rice variety.I am not a big fan of this rice . So I make this only for my husband..Its very easy to make and very flavourful too..My Mom & MIL makes it very well.They make in a slightly different way.My MIL adds lot of soaked & roasted urad dal. But my mom adds roasted urad and channa dal without soaking them.I combine both their methods and it comes out very tasty.When u make this rice , ur house will be filled with nice aroma of coconut oil. The roasted smell of coconut , crunchy urad and channa dal, nice flavour of ginger and coconut oil are the highlights of this rice. .Over to the recipe,
INGREDIENTS
Cooked rice – 1/2 cup ( Boiled rice or raw rice would be fine)
Grated coconut – 1/2 cup
Salt – As needed
To temper
Coconut oil – 2 tbsp
Mustard seeds – 1 tsp
Urad dal – 2 tbsp (soak for 30 minutes – optional)
Channa dal – 1 tbsp
Jeera / Cumin seeds – 1/2 tsp
Red chillies – 1 no
Green chillies – 1 no
Finely chopped Ginger – 1 – 2 tsp
Curry leaves – few
Ghee – 1 tsp
Cashews – 5 nos
METHOD
Cook the rice adding 1:2 rice n water till fluffy .Add a tsp of oil or ghee while u cook the rice to get it separate and fluffy.Spread the cooked rice in a plate..
In a kadai , heat coconut oil and temper all the items given under “ To temper” in the same order..Then add the grated coconut ,salt and mix well.. Roast everything in a low flame till u get a nice aroma of dals and coconut.But roast the coconut without changing its color.
Finally add the mixture to the cooked rice ,check for salt ..
Roast the cashews in a tsp of ghee and add to the rice.Mix well.
Serve !!
Note My MIL makes it in a slightly different method by soaking the urad dal for 1 hour and roast them till golden brown and proceed in the above mentioned way. I too follow this method sometime. But when i forget to soak the dal , i use the above method. Both of them tastes ‘very nice.Do try any based on ur liking and the preparation time .. Please don’t skip adding ginger . It adds a nice flavour to the rice and it helps for digestion as well..
I wanted to try this pepper puliodharai recipe for long time. I usually follow my MIL’s method for making tamarind rice / puliyodharai . It comes out very well. This time I tried the same recipe with pepper.
As I mentioned in my pepper idli post, my hubby is very much fond of pepper dishes.. So I tried this pepper puliogare on my own.. It came out very well. It had a nice flavour of pepper in it. I packed it for my hubby’s lunch box. He liked it very much. There is no much difference in the method and the ingredients.
U can prepare the paste the previous night and make the rice the next day. Adjust the amount of pepper powder based on your taste. This paste stays well for 1 week even without refrigeration. I also feel for making puliyodharai, mixing the paste in raw rice or boiled rice tastes well more than basmati. Add few tsps of sesame oil / gingely oil while mixing the rice & paste to get the additional flavour and taste. As we all know, this rice is apt for travel too.
Pressure cook the rice and spread in a plate adding a tbsp of gingely oil. Let the rice cools down and becomes fluffy.
Soak tamarind in warm water for 20 minutes and take the extract adding 2 cups of water.
Heat gingely oil in a pan and temper mustard, urad dal, chana dal, red chillies, curry leaves, hing. Saute well. Now add the tamarind extract, salt, turmeric powder, little hing and curry leaves. Allow to boil well. In the middle add the jaggery.
Add 1/2 tsp of oil and roast the ingredients given under “To roast&grind”. Roast till the pepper corns splutter. Powder them and set aside.
When the tamarind extract reduces to half in quantity, add the roasted & ground powder. After you add the powder, give a boil. The mixture thickens. Let it roll boil well for few seconds. After you get salangai satham ( gala gala sound), switch off the flame.
Finally add the crushed pepper powder in the paste, mix well. Set aside. Tamarind paste is ready. Mix the required paste in the rice adding gingely oil.
Note
If you want more spicy, add more pepper powder at the end.
In this post lets see how to make Instant Rava idli / Sooji idli /Semolina idli at home with ENO fruit salt and curd/yogurt with step by step photos and Video.
Rava idli ( Suji idli in Hindi/Semolina idli in English) is a popular breakfast recipe in South India. As we all know Rava idli was invented by MTR( Mavalli Tiffin Room) hotel, Karnataka. You can find rava idli in all the hotels. Its so easy to make with simple ingredients. Its an instant South Indian breakfast recipe that helps me when I run short of idli dosa batter. Very recently I started making this suji idli at home and I have made this several times so far. Sendhil loves this soft and spongy rava idli a lot and I too started loving it because its so easy to prepare, comes out very soft and spongy and above all it can be made instantly ;)
I got this recipe from Aval vikatan’s restaurant style recipes supplementary book. Its cooking procedure is very simple.The softness of this idli lies in the consistency of batter, proportion of curd & addition of ENO fruit salt or cooking soda. Please do not attempt this recipe without curd or Eno/Soda. To make this a healthy breakfast recipe, my MIL adds vegetables like grated carrots, cabbage and cooked peas. So I too make this way sometimes.
Rava idli tastes the best when served hot withcoconut chutney. In some hotels, it is served with kurma. In Karnataka, rava idli is served with sagu or potato masala. Try this simple, easy, Instant rava idli recipe and let me know how you liked it. Lets see how to prepare this easy, instant rava idli recipe at home !
Rava Idli recipe - How to make rava idli at home
How to make soft,spongy Rava idli at home - Easy, Instant breakfast recipe
Sooji / Rava – 1 cup ( use upma rava, not the fine chiroti rava)
Fresh curd – 1 cup
Plain ENO fruit salt – 1 tsp OR Baking soda – 1/2 tsp
Salt & water – As needed
To temper
Oil – 1.5 tsp
Ghee – 1.5 tsp
Mustard seeds – 1/2 tsp
Urad dal – 1 tsp
Chana dal – 2 tsp
Crushed Pepper corns – 1/2 tsp ( optional)
Jeera/Cumin seeds – 1 tsp
Finely chopped ginger – 1 tsp
Finely chopped green chilli – 1 - 2 nos
Cashew nuts – 5 nos
Coriander leaves – few (chopped)
Lemon juice – Few drops (optional)
HOW TO MAKE INSTANT RAVA IDLI - METHOD
Set aside.In a wide kadai or cooker base , add oil and ghee. Temper mustard seeds , urad dal, chana dal, Cashews, pepper corns, jeera, finely chopped ginger, green chillies and curry leaves. Saute well till pepper corns starts to splutter. Add the roasted rava , mix well. If using unroasted rava, roast it for 3-4 minutes in the kadai in medium flame without burning the rava.
Switch off the flame and allow it to cool completely. After the mixture cools down completely , add the curd, salt, coriander leaves, lemon juice and the required water. Mix well. The consistency of the batter should not be too thick or too thin. It should be pourable like idli batter. The mixture takes 1/2 cup – 3/4 cup of water to get the right consistency. Please adjust it as per your need. But do not make runny batter.
Before making idli, add the eno fruit salt. Eno should be active such that as soon as u add ENO, you should see bubbles as shown in the video. Mix well and make idli immediately.Grease the idli plate and pour the batter. Steam it for 8-10 minutes. Check with the back of a spoon. Remove and enjoy eating hot with coconut chutney or kurma !
Enjoy !
Note
Adjust the quantity of water to reach the consistency.
If using roasted rava, just mix well with tempered items. No need to roast it again.
Please do not attempt this recipe without curd or ENO/Cooking soda. As this is an instant recipe, you should add ENO or soda to achieve softness.
You can add grated carrots and cooked peas.
Enjoy Soft, spongy rava idli for breakfast with sambar or chutney !
Ven pongal also known as ghee pongal / khara pongal is one of the most popular South Indian breakfast recipes especially in Tamil nadu. My Mom and MIL makes it very well. Though they follow different methods, I like both the versions. I usually follow my MIL’s method as my husband Sendhil is fond of it. She makes it directly using a pressure cooker. Sometimes we make this using leftover cooked rice too. To me, its a very easy one pot meal for breakfast and dinner. So I usually make this pongal in busy mornings & mostly for my guests adding more ghee ;).
The taste and softness of pongal depends not only in the quantity of ghee but also on the quality of rice and quantity of water, rice ratio. In Tamilnadu,we get pongal rice (Raw rice/Pacharisi). We use it for making sakkarai pongal and ven pongal. Here in Bangalore, I buy the costliest, good quality Sona masoori raw rice also known as kolam rice.
In this post, I have shared my MIL’s method. It’s a very easy and quick method using pressure cooker. I have used moderate quantity of ghee in this recipe. If you are planning to try for your guests , add more ghee before serving otherwise just follow this recipe for the first time and adjust the amount of ghee if u wish. Check out my mom's ven pongal recipe too. Do try any method based on your liking. Remember pongal should be served hot to enjoy its best taste. As you all know the best side dish for pongal are coconut chutney, Tiffin Sambar and brinjal gosthu! Ok, Lets see how to make ven pongal / ghee pongal with step by step pictures and a video.
Ven pongal recipe video
Ven pongal recipe
How to make Ven pongal/Ghee pongal recipe easily using pressure cooker - One pot method
Take raw rice & moong dal in a bowl and wash it twice. Set aside. Chop the ginger and take it along with pepper, cumin seeds & curry leaves.
Heat 1 tbsp of ghee in a pressure cooker base. When the ghee starts to heat,add the pepper corns and saute well till it starts to splutter. Keep the flame medium to avoid burning of ghee. As soon as the pepper splutters, add the cumin seeds, curry leaves, cashews and ginger bits. Mix well quickly without changing the color of cumin seeds. Add 4.5-5 cups of water and required salt.
When the water starts to roll boil, add the washed rice+dal mixture. Close the cooker. When the steam comes from the nozzle, put the whistle and simmer the flame. Cook till one whistle. It takes 12-15 minutes. Switch off the flame and let the steam release.
Open the cooker and mash everything well with a ladle. Lastly add 1 to 2 tbsp of ghee, mix well and serve immediately. Enjoy with coconut chutney or gosthu !
Add more ghee if making for guests :))
Note
If you are making for guests, add one more tbsp of ghee at the end before serving.
Usually vanaspati / Dalda is added in restaurants. But we all know its bad for health.. So its better to use ghee or cooking oil & ghee combination as it is low in calories too.
The quantity of water completely depends on the quality of rice.
My mom adds roasted pepper powder on top of pongal along with jeera and other things to get more spicy taste. As we don’t eat whole pepper corns, she follows this way to include pepper in our food.
Adding hing and ginger gives a restaurant touch. U can replace ginger bits with ginger paste or grated ginger too.
Enjoy this easy and yummy South Indian breakfast recipe with your favorite side dish !
.. I tried many combinations and at last i settled with this recipe.. He liked it a lot and i got credits as i wished 
. In the beginning I used to add fennel seeds along with spices but he hate the taste of fennel seeds while eating. So i omitted fennel seeds & other spices and i used garam masala powder , coriander & mint leaves which gave a nice flavour & taste to the rice..I have made this so many times for his lunch box and this has become a routine lunch box dish for me 
.Over to the recipe,
