26 August 2013

Tomato Rice/Thakkali Sadam

Tomato rice


This is that (pic's) red rose recipe.No no noo not a flower recipe. In fact a tomato recipe called Thakalli sadam or Tomato rice .It is basically a South Indian recipe ,a Tamil Nadu special .South Indians are known for their immense liking towards rice .Lunch and dinner are considered incomplete without rice.So ,it led to the creation of different varieties of Rice and this sadam,which literally means cooked rice in the language Tamil made specially with Tomato is one among them .Very easy breezy tasty one pot meal it is.Honey P loves it especially the aroma during and after it's preparations.He says it's kinda magnetic and irresistible.Good for him and good for me as it is a quickie recipe :)

It reminds me of my hostel days as I got the redden ..oops,I mean golden (got carried away by the red tomatoes i guess ,excuse me :P ) opportunity to taste this delicious recipe when I was doing my masters in Coimbatore .Well,needless to say,I hated hostel days especially hostel foods .Those foods possessed the magical powers to make one lose weight like a snap.Well ,yeah at least that was the bright and the only right side of it (for me ) rest should be just left.Oh there was one more bright thing about it that it made me value my momma's handmade foods more,the way she insisted to have more those vegetables,fish,meat etc and how I would make a big fuss about it then."No vegetables,more snacks please " used to be my motto .However at hostel I craved for anything everything mom made.SIGH!!

Anyways, long story short,the only food that was yummyliciously edible and lingers in my memory  was/is "THAKKALI SADAM".I used to look forward to this dish which unfortunately they used to make once in a while.That certainly used to make my day.I used to gulp it down as if I was starving since ages .This rice is not made at our place so never got a chance to learn from my mom.Thanks to the internet and my all in all,Mr.Google guru who helped me to unearth and recreate this recipe successfully. I usually make it in couple of ways ,sometimes with or without garam masalas/Indian spice mix or any other masala powder.

This recipe is my ultimate version and my man's fave .As I said before, for him even the aroma is edible he says.So,here goes the recipe for "THAKKALI SADAM/TOMATO RICE RECIPE".

Ingredients:

Tomatoes ( Ripe) - 3 medium
Onion - 1 medium
Green chilies - 4
Ginger Garlic paste - 1 table spoon
Red chili powder - 1/4 teaspoon
Coriander powder - 1/4 teaspoon
Turmeric powder - 1/2 teaspoon
Shan's Biryani spice mix - 1-2 tablespoon 
Basmati Rice - 1 cup
Water - 2 cup
Ghee - 1-2 teaspoon
Salt- As needed

For tempering:

Canola oil /any cooking oil - 2 tablespoon
Cinnamon - 1" piece
Cardamom - 2
Clove- 4
Cumin - 1/4 teaspoon
Bay leaves - 2
Cilantro leaves (optional)
Curry leaves(optional)


Preparations :

  1. Clean the Basmati rice gently until it looks clean and clear .It makes the rice clean and starch free.
  2. Soak the rice for 20-30 minutes (For making fluffy and not mushy rice ) and then drain.
  3. Meanwhile , chop the tomatoes into cubes and slice the onions , green chilies lengthwise.
  4. Heat oil in the pressure cooker (I usually make it in my pressure cooker as it saves time ) and put everything under tempering section above in a medium flame.
  5. After a minute ,sprinkle some salt and add the sliced onions and green chilies.
  6. Saute them until onion becomes transparent.
  7. Now add the ginger garlic paste and saute till the raw smell disappears.
  8. Add the chopped tomatoes at this time ,saute till they become mushy.
  9. Add the SHAN Biryani spice mix (any) & other powders to it and saute,cover and  wait till everything looks saucy.Like this :

    9. Finally add drained rice to it,saute for 1 minute.
    10. Add 1 1/2 cups of water to it ,then ghee,salt (taste if it's enough) and mix.(like the 3rd picture in the collage)
    11.Now,cover it and pressure cook for 3 whistles .
    12.Once the pressure subsides in the cooker wait for another few minutes or be careful to open it.
    13.Fluff it with a fork/spoon or ladle slowly and there you go,yummy quickie Tomato rice is ready to be served :).So that's how my rose (a.k.a tomato) rice is made :)

    Thakalli Sadam

    The beauty of a tomato.



    Note:-

    1. The Shan Biryani spice mix has a very unique taste .It takes this simple tomato rice to a new level.If you have it or gonna buy it , add 1-2 tablespoon to make it spicy otherwise less would be better just for flavor sake. It can be substituted with Garam Masala/Indian Spice mix , use  like 1/2 teaspoon. Or omit any masalas for non spicy version.

    2.I Have an American pressure cooker which doesn't blow whistle (Good boy!!) , it takes 5-6 minutes to cook it in a medium flame but in Indian cooker as my friend told me would probably  take approx 3 whistles which I am not personally sure of as I never cooked in those cooker yet. So, do double check it for sure.

    3. Since mine is a spicy version I only have raita/yogurt sauce and pickles with it.If it's not that spicy or if you wish you can have it with any curry as well.

    4. That rose is as you may or may not know is made up of tomato's skin.


    Have a nice time.