Lemon rice and a friendly feud !

Lemon rice was not made at home frequently so it was kind of a rare treat for me. Until now, I was not that into creating variety in the preparation of rice at home. But one of my friends prepares a wide variety of food whenever I go over to her place. She has introduced me to a lot of authentic dishes of Tamilians. She inspired me to try out the wide variety of recipes especially the ones for the rice! When I saw this recipe in a cookbook, I just couldnt stop myself from giving it a try, with such appealing ingredients like lemon juice and nuts and the mellow yellow color. I also like the occasional crunch from the split peas and cashews, I added a bit of peanuts to heighten the pleasure! Hey hey, I am still talking about lemon rice! This was my first time with lemon rice, and I am happy that I tried it, because I looooved it!! I would definitely make this again.

Picture 2:

JM and I had a little disagreement on the presentation of the lemon rice. So I thought it would be fun to conduct a poll here. I am keeping the poll un-biased, so I am not revealing our individual preferences. Please vote for your favourite set of photos (upper left corner of the blog). Set 1 (photos 1 & 3) are the pictures of lemon rice in the bowls, and set 2 (pics 2 & 4) includes the ones in the platter. It would be great if you all would let me know of your choice! Its a win-win situation anyways, its either me or him! Not a great battle, just a healthy polling feud :-). Have a great weekend!!

Picture 3:

Recipe:

Basmati rice - 1 1/2 cups, uncooked
Water - 3 cups
Bengal gram or split yellow peas - 1 tsp
Split raw cashews - 1 tbsp
Peanuts - 1 tbsp
Oil - 1 tbsp
Black mustard seeds - 1 tsp
Asafoetida - a pinch
Curry leaves - 10 ( I didnt have any)
Ginger - minced, 1/2 tsp
Green chilli - minced, 1/2 tsp
Dried red chillies - 2-3, broken into pieces
White lentils (urad dal) - 1 tsp
Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
Lemon juice - 3 tbsp
Salt - as needed
Water - 1 tbsp
Fresh coriander leaves - for garnish

Method:

Boil the washed rice in water until the grains are just tender.

Drain thoroughly and set aside.

Dry roast the bengal gram, cashewnuts and peanuts in a skillet for 2-3 minutes until lightly toasted.

Set aside.

Heat the oil in the skillet, and stir-fry the mustard seeds until it begins to pop.

Add the ginger, chillies, asafoetida, curry leaves, bengal gram, cashews, peanuts, lentils and turmeric.

Continue to stir-fry and then add the lemon juice, salt and water ( 1 tbsp).

Allow it to simmer for a few minutes.

Toss in the rice and heat through.

Garnish with coriander leaves.

Serve with pappadums, pickle and raita.

Source: Authentic Recipes from India by Brinder Narula.

Picture 4:

Tips:

1. Since I like the lentils in them so much, I added 1 tbsp of bengal gram, 1 tbsp cashews and 1 tbsp of peanuts. Adjust to your taste.
2. I usually put salt while cooking the rice, so I didnt add any extra salt in the end. Test the saltiness before adding extra.
3. I used 3 cups of cooked basmati rice (dont know if it is equivalent to 1 1/2 cups of uncooked rice).

Dont forget to vote for the pictures. You have until midnight on Monday-June 2 to vote. Thanks!

I am sending this medley to the "Mixed Rice Varieties" event at Easy Craft's Simple Indian Food. EC is always coming up with interesting events, I just wouldnt miss participating in them!

UPDATE: I am sending this to "Rice Mela" hosted by Srivalli of Cooking 4 all seasons.