Bisi Bele Bath

Bisi Bele Bath is a popular dish made out of rice, lentil (dal), tamarind, chilli powder, ground spices, coconut and other vegetables served with ghee on top. It is very similar to 'Sambar sadam' of Tamil Nadu except that it has his own distinct flavour.

Ingredients:
• Tur dal - 1/2cup
• Rice - 11/2cups
• Madras onions - a handful
• Small brinjals - 2
• Carrot - 1
• Drumsticks - 2
• A small piece of vegetable marrow
• Turmeric powder - a pinch
• Tamarind - size of a lime
• Red chillies - 6nos
• Green chillies - 4nos
• Mustard - 2tsp
• Curry leaves - few
• Cashewnut - 20gms
• Coriander leaves - few
• Ghee for frying
• Salt to taste For Powdering
• Red chillies - 6nos
• Fenugreek seeds - 1tsp
• Coriander seeds - 1tsp
• Grated coconut

For Masala
• Poppy seeds - 1tsp
• Cloves - 4
• Cinnamon - a small piece
• Cardamoms - 4
• Aniseeds - 1/2tsp


Method of Preparation :
Peel Madras onions. Peel and cut vegetables into 1 inch pieces. Wash rice and dal thoroughly. Place it in a container with 21/2 cups of water, a pinch of turmeric powder and chopped vegetables.
Heat a little oil in a frying pan and fry the ingredients for powdering until fenugreek turns golden brown in colour. Powder and keep aside.
Heat some more oil and fry poppy seeds, cloves, cinnamon, cardamom, aniseeds. Powder and keep aside. Soak tamarind in a little water and extract juice.
Heat oil, add red and green chillies, mustard and curry leaves. When mustard crackles, add to rice and mix well. Add tamarind juice, salt to taste and mix thoroughly.
Heat a little ghee and fry Cashewnuts until golden brown in colour. Add to rice along with powdered ingredients and masala powder. Mix well. Remove from fire. Garnish with chopped coriander leaves and add some ghee just before serving



Vegetable Biriyani
Serves 6

Ingredients :
Basmati Rice
- 2cups Cardamom - 4nos
Beans - 100gm Andhra moggu
Carrot - 100gm Bay leaves - 1
Turnip - 100gm Salt - 1/2tsp
Green peas - 1/4cup Oil - 50gm
Onion - 250gm Ghee - 100gm
Garlic - 2flakes Chopped Cilantro leaves - 1/4cup
Ginger - 1/4" piece Chopped Mint leaves - 1/4cup
Green chillies - 2nos Cashew nuts - 20gms
Cinnamon - 2"piece Salt bread - 1/2 cup (optional)
Cloves - 4nos


Method of Preparation :
Wash rice and drain. Slice beans, carrots and turnip into thin long pieces. Cook these vegetables with green peas and keep aside.
Slice 1/3 of the onions and keep aside. Grind the remaining onions, ginger, garlic and green chillies into a fine paste. Dry roast andhra moggu and coarsely grind it along with half quantity of cinnamon, clove and cardamom.
Heat oil and ghee in a vessel and roast bay leaves and the remaining cinnamon, clove and cardamom. (Reserve some ghee for frying cashew nuts and salt bread) Add sliced onion and sauté till golden brown. Add ground paste kept aside and fry.
When it's done, sauté well with ground cinnamon and add rice, fry for a while. Add salt to taste along with 4cups of water and mix well. Close the vessel and cook the rice on a low heat. When it is done add the cooked vegetables and boil for some time. Finally add chopped cilantro and mint leaves.
Cut the salt bread into fine pieces and deep fry in ghee or oil until they become crisp and brown. Fry cashew nuts in the same ghee.
Before serving the biriyani, garnish it with fried cashew nuts and salt bread.



Pulihora (Tamarind Rice)
Serves 6


Ingredients :
Rice - 1cup
Bengal gram dal - 1/4cup
Turmeric powder - 1/4tsp
Thick Tamarind pulp - 1/2cup
Curry leaves - 12
Urad Dal (Black gram dal) - 2tsp
Mustard - 1/2tsp
Cashew nuts - 1tbs
Split Red chillies - 2nos
Split Green chillies - 2nos
Asafeotida - a pinch
Ginger - 1 piece
Sesame seed powder - 4tbs
Oil - 4tbs
Salt - to taste


Method of Preparation :
Wash the rice and dal and cook it together with enough water (don't overcook). Spread the rice into a vessel and sprinkle turmeric powder, 2tbs oil, salt, tamarind pulp and 7-8 curry leaves.
Heat oil in a deep frying pan and add urad dal, mustard seeds and cashew nuts. When the seeds begin to crackle, add ginger, red chillies, green chillies, asafeotida and the remaining curry leaves. Fry for a while, remove from fire and add it to the rice. Sprinkle sesame powder, mix thoroughly and cover with a lid for an hour.
Serve with seasoned yogurt.


Tomato Rice





Ingredients: 3 cups rice-soaked
5 medium sized tomatoes
1 medium size onion-chopped
3/4 cup chopped carrot and beans
1 cup green peas
2 green chillies-sliced
1 inch cinnamon stick
4 cloves
3 cardamoms
3 bayleaves
1 tbsp ginger garlic paste
1 tbsp ghee
2 tbsp chopped coriander leaves
4 tbsp oil
salt - to taste

Method: Boil the Tomatoes and squeeze out the juice, add water to make 6 cups of tomato juice.

Pour oil in the pressure cooker and heat it over the stove.

Add bay leaves, cardamom, cloves and cinnamon stick and fry till they change color.

Add onion, chillies, chopped carrot and green peas and fry for 3-4 minutes on high flame and then add ginger garlic paste and fry for another 1 minute.

Add soaked rice and fry for a minute or so and then add salt and prepared tomato juice and close the cookers lid and let it cook under pressure till 2 whistles.

Before serving, add ghee and chopped coriander leaves to hot tomato rice