Pulihora: Rice Recipe For Ugadi

Wednesday, March 21, 2012, 13:55

Pulihora is one of those festive foods that are brewed in the kitchen on any auspicious occasion. Ugadi being the new year day for Karnataka and Andhra is just another special reason to prepare this Indian rice recipe. As the festival is South Indian, the recipe too is likewise. Pulihora can be described in simple terms as tamarind rice. This Indian rice recipe is primarily spiced up with tamarind but that is not all. It is has a whole trousseau of accompanying spices.

This is a very simple South Indian recipe to make your Ugadi special. Your tamarind rice will be ready in half hour but it needs a couple of hours of sitting time.

Ingredients For Pulihora:

1. Rice 2 cups
2. Tamarind pulp 1 cup
3. Chana dal or bengal gram pulses 1 tablespoon
4. Urad dal or split black pulses 1 tablespoon
5. Jaggery 1tablespoon
6. Peanuts (fried) handful
7. Turmeric powder 1 teaspoon
8. Mustard seeds 1 teaspoon
9. Asfoetida or hing 1 pinch
10. Cumin seeds 1 teaspoon
11. Sesame powder 1 teaspoon
12. Curry leaves 6-7
13. Dry red chillies 3-4
14. Green chillies 3-4 (slit)
15. Salt as per taste
16. Ghee or clarified butter 1 tablespoon

Procedure For Pulihora:

Cook rice in a cooker in the usual way but make sure you use optimum water so that it does not get sticky.
Spread out the cooked rice to cool and dry it. Add turmeric powder and curry leaves to the rice and keep it aside for later.
In a pan heat the ghee and season it with all the spices. Fry the dals in ghee for a few minutes. Add green chillies in the end.
Then pour the jaggery and tamarind into the pan. Cook it on low flame for 5-6 minutes till the tamarind gets totally broiled.
Then mix the rice with this spicy gravy and garnish with fried or roasted peanuts.

Pulihora is one of the common festival foods in South India so serve it to your guests on Ugadi; they will not be disappointed.