Lite Bite > Rice Made Easy - Four Spicy & Flavorful Quick Rice Recipes

Home
About
- Contact
Health Bites
- Foods That Heal
- Eating Right
Recipe Bites
Media
- Guest Posts-AFBHLS
- Links
Portfolio

Rice Made Easy – Four Spicy & Flavorful Quick Rice Recipes

6 July 2011 46 Comments

I like how versatile this humble grain Rice could be in various forms of cuisines world over. From more exotic Sushi to Risotto to the simple curd rice from South India, this ancient grain has come a long way. Though I am not a rice loving person, having married in a place where every day starts with rice and ends with it made me reinvent some of the very famous rice recipes here. Now my menu boasts of many easy to make and scrumptious rice recipes I learned from my MIL and friends here.

And yes if you are already bored with the time consuming & tedious cooking methods of your Risottos and the Shahi Pulav these quickies will win you over hands down

I love the simplicity of these recipes with which these can be easily included in the lunch, dinner and can be packed comfortably in the lunchbox too. Each recipe has a distinct color, aroma and taste which makes them unique. Red rice, green rice, yellow rice…no these are not the varieties of rice but the names given to the rice dishes I pack for my children to school. So the tomato rice becomes red rice, coriander rice as green rice and lemon rice takes the name of yellow rice.

The few changes I often make in my MIL’s recipe is to add more nutritious brown rice, black sesame seeds, and whole black gram in place of polished white rice, skinned sesame seeds and de husked black gram.

1. Tangy Tomato Rice

Ingredients;

(serves 2)

2 cups pre cooked rice*
1 cup fresh tomato juice/puree
1 green chilly
2 tsp. vegetable oil
1 small onion
1/2 tsp. mustard seeds
1 tsp. de-husked black gram
1/4 tsp. cumin seeds
A pinch of asafoetida powder
Salt as desired
A few sprigs of curry leaves

Method; Wash and cook the rice and keep it aside. For making a cup of tomato juice you may need 3-4 medium tomatoes. Wash the tomatoes and blend in mixer to make a puree. Filter the puree if you want a clear tomato rice.Peel and slice the onion finely. Chop the green chilly.

Heat oil in a wok and crackle mustard and add de husked black gram (dhuli urad dal) & cumin seeds in it. Add the diced onion, curry leaves, asafoetida and green chilly to the oil and fry it for about a minute. Pour the tomato puree in the wok and keep frying for another 3-4 minutes. Take the wok off the flame.

Add salt the the pre cooked rice and mix well. Pour the above tempering in the rice and mix it thoroughly. Serve this Tangy Tomato rice with plain yogurt or a yogurt Raita with vegetables.

2. Fresh Coriander Leaves Rice

Ingredients:

1 cup fresh coriander leaves
1 cup cooked rice*
1/4 tsp asafoetida(hing)
salt as desired
1/2 tsp.mustard seeds
1 tbsp.oil
1 tbsp. Magic powder(given below)

Magic powder:

1 cup de-skinned black gram(urad)
1/2 cup sesame seeds(Til)
4-5 dry red chillies

Method: Dry roast the gram & sesame (til) till light brown in colour. Grind all the ingredients in a mixer to a coarse powder. Store in an air tight container for future use. Stays fresh for a month if kept in refrigerator.

Method: Wash and shred the coriander leaves finely. Grind the coriander leaves along with the magic powder and rest of the ingredients in a mixer. Try not to add water to this paste.The resultant paste will look like the one in the above picture.

Heat oil add mustard seeds let it splutter. Add the ground paste and fry it for 3 minutes. Take off flame and mix in the pre-cooked rice into it.

Serve this Fresh Coriander Leaves Green rice with plain curd or pack in the lunch-boxes with some freshly home-made chips.

3. Spicy Black Peppercorn & Sesame Rice

Ingredients;

Spice mix;

1/2 cup Black peppercorns
1/4 cup sesame seeds
2 tsp. Cumin seeds
2 tsp. rock salt
A few curry leaves
1/4 tsp. asafoetida powder

For tempering;

(For making 2 servings)

2 cups pre cooked rice*
2 tsp. oil
1/2 tsp. mustard seeds
1/ tsp. de husked black gram

Method; Wash and cook rice and keep it separate. heat a wok and dry roast the peppercorns, curry leaves, cumin seeds and sesame for about 5-6 minutes on medium heat. Take off the heat and let it cool a bit.

Grind the above roasted ingredients, rock salt and asafoetida powder into coarse powder and store it in a clean glass bottle for future use. This powder stays good for 5-6 months and more if refrigerated.

Peppercorn rice; heat a wok and crackle the mustard seeds add black gram in it. Take off the flame and then add 1 tbsp. of the above spice mix in it. Pour this tempering over the pre cooked rice and mix well.

Serve this Spicy Black Peppercorn & Sesame Rice with plain yogurt or a veggie Raita.

4. Spicy Dry Mint Leaves Rice

Ingredients;

1 cup of dry mint
1/2 cup Bengal Gram (Channa Dal)
1/4 cup De-husked Black gram (dhuli rad dal)
1 tsp. Black peppercorn
1 tsp. Cumin seeds
9-10 dry red chillies
2 tsp. rock salt
1/4 tsp. asafoetida powder

For tempering;

(For making 2 servings)

1 tsp. de husked black gram
2 cups pre cooked rice
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
2 tsp. oil

Method; For getting one cup of dry mint you may need about 3 cups of fresh mint leaves. Pluck the mint leaves from the stem and wash it in clean water. Spread the leaves on a kitchen towel and let it dry under fan for an hour.

For drying the mint leaves you can use 3 methods;

Dry roast the leaves along with the peppercorn mix for about 2- 3 minutes till the moisture escapes. But this method makes the mint leaves loose its freshness and become black.
After washing the leaves dry them in shade for a week on a clean towel or paper. Go for this option if you have time in your hand. But this is the most perfect way to retain both the color and the flavor in mint.
Keep the mint leaves in microwave and dry it at high power for about 5-6 minutes. The leaves above are dried in MW and thus look green and retain the minty flavor.

Take out the dried leaves and crush it in your palm.

Dry roast the bengal gram and de husked black gram in a hot wok till the color changes to golden brown, it will take about 10 minutes on medium heat. Dry roast the peppercorns, red chillies and cumin for 2 minutes on medium heat.

Add all the fried gram, rock salt, asafoetida and spice mix along with the crushed mint in a blender and grind it into a coarse powder. Store the mint powder in a clean glass bottle and use it as and when required. It stays good for 4-5 months.

Mint rice; Heat oil in a wok and crackle mustard seeds and add the back gram. Put off the flame and add about 1 tbsp. of the above dry mint powder in the tempering. Pour this tempering over the pre cooked rice.

Serve this Spicy Dry Mint Leaves Rice with fresh yogurt Raita and poppadoms or potato chips.

These are just a few easy rice recipes from my treasure, be sure to check this space if you love your rice and time!

Notes;

I use a mix of boiled rice (a much healthy variety than the polished white rice) and brown rice in cooking.
The amount for spice mixes given in the ingredients will come for almost 12- 15 servings.
Make sure the cooked rice is fluffy and not of sticky consistency.
The Spice mixes can be made well ahead of time and would be really very handy when you are loggerheads with time.

A crispy Rice snack on my other blog Different Strokes;

Crispy rice and soya snack

46 Comments »

Baker Street said:

Most of these bring back childhood memories. Tangy Tomato was always a treat.
Baker Street recently posted..Muffin Monday: Banana Streusel Muffins

# 6 July 2011 at 2:44 pm

sangeeta said:

Loved all of these rice recipes. I love sesame and mint a lot in my fried rice .
sangeeta recently posted..can you recognize this plant?

# 6 July 2011 at 2:44 pm

chinmayie @ love food eat said:

These look great Sanjeetha! I am a huge fan of rice. I eat rice everyday and I love experimenting with different spices and flavours with it. I really want to try your black and pepper and sesame rice.
Thanks for these great recipes
chinmayie @ love food eat recently posted..My Vegetarian Minestrone – The Big Soup

# 6 July 2011 at 3:18 pm

Raks said:

I love all these rice varieties over any other meals ,so flavorful and hearty!
Raks recently posted..VADA PAV

# 6 July 2011 at 4:01 pm

Sra said:

I’m sure I’ll try the peppercorn and sesame rice!
Sra recently posted..Breakfast & The Battle Of The Wills And The Won’ts

# 6 July 2011 at 4:12 pm

kadhyaa said:

thats very nice array of recipes
kadhyaa recently posted..Fenugreek/Menthe/Methi Idlis

# 6 July 2011 at 4:36 pm

Biny Anoop said:

wow dear…not onebut 4 treats…great job…awesome flavours as well

# 6 July 2011 at 5:56 pm

thepickyeater | a spoonful of yumm said:

ive had tomato and pudina rice. but the peppercorn & sesame rice looks interesting. that’s a yummy roundup you’ve posted
thepickyeater | a spoonful of yumm recently posted..Dry Fruits Oatmeal Halwa

# 6 July 2011 at 6:32 pm

Nelly Rodriguez said:

Yum, love all the variations! Rice is my favorite thing ever!!!
Nelly Rodriguez recently posted..Pie Party: Avocado Lime Pie

# 6 July 2011 at 7:04 pm

Priya Mahadevan said:

I am completely drooling over the varieties and the yummyness of each of them!! marvelous collection, Sanjeetha
Priya Mahadevan recently posted..Baklava and 200th Post

# 6 July 2011 at 8:23 pm

Nithya said:

wow Fantastic rice varieties. Love them all so much

# 6 July 2011 at 11:01 pm

Krithi said:

Simple and hearty preparations…

Krithi recently posted..Announcing "Serve It" Series.. Serve It-Grilled

# 6 July 2011 at 11:44 pm

Junia @ Mis Pensamientos said:

ahhh i love this post! i’m always looking for creative ways to season rice!!!
Junia @ Mis Pensamientos recently posted..Maple Eggplant Cookies

# 7 July 2011 at 12:21 am

Priya said:

So many wonderful and flavourful rice dishes, inviting..
Priya recently posted..Carrot & Greengram Sambar

# 7 July 2011 at 12:37 am

Sarada said:

Delicious collection of rice recipes. Looks nice and colorful.

# 7 July 2011 at 1:05 am

sayantani said:

wonderful ideas Sanjeeta. love the minty rice most.
sayantani recently posted..Aam-er Morobba (Raw Mango Preserve)

# 7 July 2011 at 1:06 am

Radhika @ foodfor7stages said:

It is really hard to resist rice with the South Indian genes in me. Love the idea of dry mint rice, got to try them.
And did you buy that copper bowl in chennai? can you please tell me where we can find it. I am really tired of searching
Radhika @ foodfor7stages recently posted..Baked Wonton Wraps with Potato peas masala

# 7 July 2011 at 1:11 am

kankana said:

That tomato rice is one of my fav and it’s been quite sometime that i had it. I have ahuge bunch of mint leaves at home and i am going to try that mint rice for sure. Looks lovely dear
kankana recently posted..Watermelon Cooler

# 7 July 2011 at 1:27 am

Suman Singh said:

I love rice dishes and these really look delicious and flavorful..

# 7 July 2011 at 2:17 am

Faith said:

Really beautiful rice recipes! I know they would all a huge success in my house…they sound so flavorful!
Faith recently posted..The Official Latte of a Busy Summer

# 7 July 2011 at 3:02 am

sanjeeta kk (author) said:

@Radhika, I got if from Udaipur, but have seen this in Ratna stores also.

# 7 July 2011 at 9:20 am

vaishali sabnani said:

I am a rice eater..and love to try rice in different forms..and all these four recipes are absolutely smashing..for the next four days…all four recipes will be on my dinner table!!…come n join:))

# 7 July 2011 at 9:33 am

Priti said:

Wow we are here for treat ….every thing looks yum but I like the pepper n mint more
Priti recently posted..Italian Pepper Biscuits

# 7 July 2011 at 3:05 pm

Joanne said:

I never really know what to do with rice, though I always love eating it! Thanks for these!
Joanne recently posted..Blueberry, Lime and Thyme Pound Cake Muffins

# 7 July 2011 at 4:37 pm

foodwanderings said:

sanjeeta, I love spiced flavored rice. Green rice often but love all your versions and totally can see myself making each one to go along with dinner.
foodwanderings recently posted..Matbucha, A Moroccan Tomato Chutney!

# 7 July 2011 at 4:50 pm

Yuri said:

I am impressed with all these variations! I must admit I don’t like rice [not even in sushi] because to me its empty carbs… however I got a nice brown basmati the other day and want to start playing with rice recipes. Love all your twists and photos!
Yuri recently posted..Bacon wrapped figs with honey and goat cheese filling.

# 7 July 2011 at 6:18 pm

Priya (Yallapantula) Mitharwal said:

wow, love all 4 recipes, especially the peppercorn and sesame one
Priya (Yallapantula) Mitharwal recently posted..Pound Cake for Sweet Punch

# 7 July 2011 at 10:32 pm

Gopika said:

Reminds me of my childhood looks so yummm

# 8 July 2011 at 2:10 am

Cakewhiz said:

Hubby and i love rice so it’s great to see all these creative recipes. I really like the sound of that peppercorn and sesame rice!

# 8 July 2011 at 11:30 am

Jessica said:

I love how many variations there are!! I can not wait to try the tomato rice!! YUM!

# 8 July 2011 at 11:32 am

Simone said:

These all look delicious. I actually love rice and risotto is on our menu on a regular basis. Love all your flavor combo’s!
Simone recently posted..Coconut icecream with roasted coconut

# 8 July 2011 at 6:05 pm

Mary said:

What wonderful recipes for rice. You’ve given me some great ideas for different ways to serve it. I hope you have a great day. Blessings…Mary
Mary recently posted..50 Women Game-Changers in Food – #5 M.F.K. Fisher – Bucket Bread

# 9 July 2011 at 7:08 am

BigFatBaker said:

The tangy tomato rice sounds perfect. I am always looking for ways to change up my meals, and the flavored rice is just what I was looking for!
BigFatBaker recently posted..Guest Post with That Skinny Chick Can Bake: Raspberry Souffles

# 9 July 2011 at 8:11 am

Tanvi@SinfullySpicy said:

All the rice dishes look perfect- I m in rice haven..Cant pick one
Tanvi@SinfullySpicy recently posted..Plum & Ginger Bars

# 9 July 2011 at 10:44 am

Jamie said:

Wow you have a whole cookbook of recipes here. What fascinating flavors for someone who still approaches Indian cooking as a “foreign” cuisine. So much to discover but so tempting! I absolutely love all these flavors and personally I love rice when it combines such flavors as these. Wonderful recipes!
Jamie recently posted..ENGLISH MUFFIN BREAD

# 9 July 2011 at 5:32 pm

Julie M. said:

Just beautiful! I love the simplicity of them as well as the variation. We always make our rice dishes here as well. I’m excited to try a few of your versions!

# 9 July 2011 at 5:36 pm

Mari's Cakes said:

Sanjeeta, I can’t decide which one to pick. They all look delicious to me. I love all things rice so these recipes are all to keep. Thanks for stopping by my blog, nice to meet you.
Mari’s Cakes recently posted..GRANIZADO (GRANITA) de CAFÉ con LECHE y Una Invitada

# 9 July 2011 at 8:52 pm

sanjeeta kk (author) said:

@Jamie, thanks for your lovely comment!

# 9 July 2011 at 10:18 pm

Apu said:

Wonderful – I made tomato rice and cilantro rice just last week!!
Apu recently posted..Masala Tamatar Bhaat (Spicy Tomato Rice)

# 10 July 2011 at 12:01 am

rebecca said:

lovely rice dishes he he can’t remember commenting I know I read from twitter hugs

# 10 July 2011 at 2:34 am

Heavenly Housewife said:

What a fabulous selection of rice dishes. I especially love the idea of the sesame rice. That is a must try!
*kisses* HH
Heavenly Housewife recently posted..More Ottolenghi Salads + A New Toy

# 10 July 2011 at 5:56 pm

Joyti said:

I am like your husband’s family – my family loves rice – and I am definitely a rice-loving person. Both rice dishes sound delicious – very hearty too.
Joyti recently posted..Honey-Ginger Tea Cake with Peaches

# 11 July 2011 at 10:12 pm

peachkins said:

I love rice! and these look so flavorful!

# 12 July 2011 at 6:28 am

Diane {Created by Diane} said:

Love all these varieties, and of course that copper bowl! Thanks so much for stopping by my blog, I look forward to seeing more of your wonderful recipes.

# 12 July 2011 at 10:58 pm