Tomato Rice

Tomato Rice is my favourite dish. I use my Rasam Powder for making Tomato rice instead of Masala powder (coriander powder + Chilly powder). This receipe is based upon my way of making Tomato rice. The ingredients are as follow.

Ingredients :-

1. Basmati Rice (or Regular Rice) - 1 cup (measuring cup)
   
2. Tomatoe - 4 (Chopped into cubes)
   
3. Onion - 1 (finely chopped)
4. Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
5. Rasam Powder - 1 tsp
   
6. Green chillies - 1 (add or reduce the number acc. to the quantity of Rasam powder cos it has chillies and pepper)
7. Ginger - a small piece
8. Salt to taste
9. Cashews - 5 (acc to taste)
10. Oil - 2 tsp
11. Unsalted butter - 1 tsp
12. Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
13. Urid Dal - 1/2 tsp
14. cumin seeds - 1/4 tsp
15. Asafoetida - one pinch
16. Coriander leaves - 1 tbsp
    

Soak the rice in water for 10 mts. Cook the rice in a pressure cooker upto 2 whistles. Do not over cook the rice. keep it and let it cool. In the mean time, take a wide pan, pre heat the oil and butter, add mustard seeds, when it splutters add urid dal, cumin seeds and cashews to it and saute for a minute. Now add green chillies, onion to to it and stir it for another one minute. Add the cut tomatoes to it and now add turmeric powder, rasam powder (can be replaced by coriander powder+chilli powder) and salt to it and let it cook in the medium heat. Now add the cooked rice to it and stir it carefully. Do not mash the rice. Garnish it with coriander leaves.

If you need the tomato rice, more spicy, can also add a cinnamon stick, 1 clove, 1 cardamom and 1 bay leaf in the seasoning mixture(mustard seeds, cumin seeds, etc..)

Tomato Rice 2

Most of us know how to make tomato rice. This post is for those who have small kids like me. My girls' like this rice and finish it most of the times. So I call this kids friendly tomato rice. Here is the recipe.

Ingredients:-

1. Tomato - 2
2. Basmati rice - 1 cup
3. Onion - 1/2
4. Green peas & Carrots - 1/4 cup ( I used frozen peas and carrot)
   
5. Green chillies - 1
6. Oil - 2 tsp
7. Mustard seeds - 1/4 tsp
8. Urad dhall - 1/2 tsp
9. Cashew - 5
   
10. Coriander leaves - 2 tbsp
11. Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
12. Salt to taste
13. Asafoetida powder - a pinch

Soak rice for 10 mts and drain it. Grind the tomatoes nicely and get the juice out of it. Filter the juice if necessary. Now take a pan, pre heat oil, splutter mustard seeds, add urad dhall, cashew and green chillies to golden brown. Add chopped onion, peas and carrots and fry it till it becomes soft. Now add the drained rice and saute' for another 2 mts. Transfer these ingredients to a pressure cooker. Add 1 1/2 cups of tomato juice (1: 11/2 ratio), turmeric powder, required amount of salt and cook it upto 2 whistles. Turn off the stove and let the pressure release. When the pressure is released, open and sprinkle the asafoetida powder and garnish it with coriander leaves. Serve it hot with onion raita. Sweetness from tomato, little bit spicyness from green chillies will make the kid finish the rice without any trouble. My girls like this very much.

** - We can also add a teaspoon of ghee while serving. While frying the onion and peas, we can also add a pinch of sugar which adds more flavor to this rice.