18 years ago when I was newly married and living and working in Mumbai, a South Indian colleague used to carry his lunch to work every day, freshly home-cooked the same morning by his lovely wife. Two of the dishes that were a regular part of his menu were Lemon Rice and Coconut Rice, which both looked and smelled divine with curry leaves and golden brown cashew nuts and we all envied him as he ate. Coconut rice has been a favorite rice dish ever since.
This is my healthy take on it with both coconut and lemon as well as brown basmati rice which tastes just as good as white rice, if not better, and has added nutritional value and fiber.
Ingredients:
- 2 cups cooked brown basmati rice
- 1 cup fresh grated coconut or ½ cup desiccated coconut which has been reconstituted in warm water
- 1 tbsp ghee
- 3 finely chopped green chillies
- ½ tsp mustard seeds
- ½ tsp cumin seeds
- 1 tsp urad dal, washed and rinsed (split black gram, skinless)
- ¼ tsp turmeric powder
- 10 curry leaves
- ½ cup of raw cashews, halved
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 tbsp coriander leaves, finely chopped
Preparation:
- Heat the ghee in a skillet
- Add the cashew nuts and fry until golden brown
- Remove the cashews from the pan with a slotted spoon
- Add the mustard seeds, cumin seeds and urad dal and fry until the mustard seeds start to splutter
- Add the curry leaves, coconut, green chillies and turmeric powder and continue to fry for a few more minutes
- Add the rice, lemon juice and salt and stir well
