How to Cook Tamarind Rice
Serves: 3-4
Preparation time: 10 mins
Cooking time: 15 mins
Ingredients needed to make Tamarind Rice:
- 4 cups basmati rice
- ¼ tsp turmeric powder
For the masala powder:
- 1 tsp fenugreek seeds
- ½ tsp whole black peppercorns
- 1 tsp mustard seeds
- Half a peanut size of asafoetida
- 1 tsp cumin seeds
- 5 dried red chillies
- 1 tbsp ground coriander
- 2-3 curry leaves
- 2 tbsp white sesame seeds
For the paste:
- 1 heaping tsp tamarind concentrate diluted in 3-4 tbsp water or 2 large tamarind
- 1 lemon-sized ball of jaggery or raw cane sugar
- ½ cup water
- Prepared powdered spices
- Salt to taste
For the tempering:
- 4-5 fresh curry leaves
- 2 red chillies, dried
- ¼ tsp mustard seeds
- 2 tbsp canola oil
- ¼ cup raw peanuts
For garnishing:
- Chopped fresh cilantro
Cooking instructions for Tamarind Rice:
- Add the rice in a stockpot full of water and stir in a dash of turmeric powder.
- Cook the rice until they are cooked through; drain and set aside.
- Add all the ingredients, listed under masala powder, except the white sesame seeds, into a spice grinder and pulse the into a fine powder; set aside
- Add the white sesame seeds to a hot skillet and roast it, while stirring often, until they give out a nutty aroma.
- Transfer them to the spice grinder and pulse them to a fine powder; store them in a separate container.
- If you are using whole tamarind, pour hot water over it and squeeze out the pulp to make thick paste.
- Add the tamarind paste to a saucepan, along with ½ cup of water and give it a nice stir to mix.
- Heat it until it begins to boil and continue to do so until it thickens.
- Stir in the jaggery or raw cane sugar until it dissolves completely and stir in the ground spices.
- Season with a dash of salt and simmer the mixture, while stirring frequently, until it thickens considerably.
- Drizzle 2 tsp oil over it and stir well until properly blended into the paste.
- Remove from heat and set aside to cool completely.
- Add this cooked tamarind paste to the rice and toss them well together until the latter is coated properly with the blend.
- Sprinkle the ground sesame over the rice and stir it again to mix.
- Drizzle more oil in a wok to heat it over slow flame and throw in the peanuts as well as mustard seeds.
- Once the peanuts brown and the mustard seeds begins to splutter, stir in the curry leaves, followed by the red chillies.
- Add the tamarind-rice mixture to this blend of tempered spices and give it a nice stir.
- Cook the rice for a couple of minutes and spoon it into a serving bowl.
- Top it up with chopped cilantro and serve right away with spiced yogurt.
Image credit: Wikimedia Commons
