Mint Rice-Pudina Pulao with Tomato Thayir Pachadi

This is a very simple and flavorful rice perfect for bachelors and busy women. I have abundant mint growing in my garden, so I used freshly plucked mint leaves to prepare this pulao. When preparing this pulao, my whole house was filled with the aroma of fresh homegrown mint. We enjoyed piping hot mint pulao prepared with home grown mint leaves along with tomato pachadi. Today we will learn how to prepare mint pulao/pudina sadam and thakkali thayir pachadi/ tomato pachadi following our easy recipes.

Mint Pulao-Pudina Sadam


 Prep Time : 10 mins

Cook Time : 20 mins
Serves: 2
Recipe Category: Rice-Lunch-Mint
Recipe Cuisine: Indian
Author:

   Ingredients needed

   Basmati rice or raw rice – 1 cup
   Onion – 2
   Mint leaves – 1 medium sized bunch or 1 cup tightly packed
   Green chilli – 2
   Ginger – 1 inch piece
   Fresh peas – fistful (optional)
   Fresh lemon juice -1 tbsp or juice of half a small lemon
   Salt needed

   For the seasoning

   Oil – 2 tbsp
   Cardamom -1
   Cinnamon – 1 inch piece
   Cloves – 2

Preparation


Wash mint leaves and grind it to a fine paste along with half an onion (optional), 1-2 green chilli and a small piece of ginger adding very less water.

Soak basmati rice for 20 minutes, drain and keep it aside.

Method


Heat oil in a pan, add the ingredients mentioned under seasoning, saute for a few seconds, then add thinly sliced onions and saute till onions turn pink.

Add the ground paste and saute till the raw flavor of the mint paste goes. If you have fresh peas with you, then you can add a handful of fresh peas now.

Add drained rice, salt needed (for 1 cup rice it is approximately 2 tsp flat salt), juice of half a lemon, and 1 3/4 cup of water. Transfer it to another vessel (in case if you have done it in kadai) and pressure cook for 3 whistles and switch off.

In case, if you are cooking directly in the pressure cooker/pan as shown above, pressure cook for 1 whistle and simmer for another 5-6 minutes. Switch off and open the cooker once the pressure subsides.

Another method for cooking directly in the pressure cooker – You can cook as I have done in my Vegetable biryani in Pressure cooker.

Variations – You can add 1 small potato (peeled and chopped) along with peas (step -2) if you like.

You can grind 1/4 cup of freshly grated coconut along with mint.

You can also cook rice separately and mint separately and mix both together. In that case, you cook rice as you normally do but I do not recommend this unless you have leftover rice.

Now we will learn a different style of making tomato pachadi/raita –

Tomato Thayir Pachadi (South Indian style)

Tomato – 4
Onion -1
Green chilli -1 slit
Coriander leaves for garnishing
Curd/Plain yogurt – 1 cup (chilled)

For the seasoning

Oil -1 tsp
Mustard seeds – 3/4 tsp

Method 


Put tomatoes in hot water for 10 minutes.

Peel the skin and chop it into medium sized pieces.

Heat a tsp of oil, add mustard seeds, when it splutters, add green chilli, chopped tomatoes and saute for a few minutes, till the water evaporates. Leave it to cool.

Add finely chopped raw onions, finely chopped coriander leaves and salt needed to the above.

Mix whisked curd and serve with any pulao.

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