This moist, pleasantly seasoned rice and yogurt dish in the South Indian tradition takes only a short time to prepare. Whenever rice is combined with yogurt, the result is refreshing, nutritious and easy to digest. The combination may be served either chilled or at room temperature, so it fits into many different menus. This particular rice dish is a welcome favorite, especially in the summer season, when a light rice is preferred. For a luncheon, try it with Sprouted Mung Bean Salad with Water Chestnuts and Toasted Almonds and chilled grape juice. For a formal dinner menu, try it with Toovar Dal with Chopped Spinach, Green Beans with Coconut and Deep-Tried Shredded Plantain Clusters and garnish with Fresh Mint Chutney . For dessert, serve Dainty Chenna Cheesecakes with Almond Frosting .
Preparation time (after assembling ingredients): 5 minutes
Cooking time: 20–30 minutes
Serves: 5 or 6
• 1 cup (95 g) basmati or other long-grain white rice
• 1⅔–2 cups (400–480 ml) water
• 1½ cups (360 ml) plain yogurt or mixture of sour cream and yogurt
• 1 teaspoon (5 ml) salt
• 1¼ teaspoons (6 ml) ground ginger
• ¼ teaspoon (1 ml) freshly ground black pepper
• ⅔ cup (160 ml) peeled, shredded green raw mango, firm but underripe (cucumber or carrot can be substituted for the mango)
• 1½ tablespoons (22 ml) ghee or sesame oil
• ½ tablespoon (7 ml) split urad dal , if available
• 1 teaspoon (5 ml) black mustard seeds
• 6–8 curry leaves, preferably fresh
• a few sprigs of fresh parsley or coriander for garnishing
1. If basmati rice is used, clean, wash, soak and drain as explained on this blog.
2. Bring the water to a boil in a heavy 1½-quart/liter nonstick saucepan. Stir in the rice and reduce the heat to very low. Cover and gently simmer without stirring for 20–25 minutes or until the rice is tender and fluffy and all of the water is absorbed. Remove from the heat and let the rice sit, covered, for 5 minutes to allow the fragile grains to firm up.
3. Spoon the cooked rice into a flat dish. Let cool to room temperature. Gently fold in the yogurt, salt, ginger, pepper and mango until evenly mixed.
4. Heat the ghee or oil in a small saucepan over moderate heat until it is hot but not smoking. Toss in the urad dal and mustard seeds. Fry until the dal is richly browned and the mustard seeds turn gray and sputter and pop. For the last 3–5 seconds of frying the spices, toss in the curry leaves. Pour the fried spices into the rice and mix gently. Chill if desired.
5. Garnish each serving with parsley or coriander.
