Tomato rice is a popular dish from the South of India. However, my version is inspired by Maharashtra. I developed this recipe when I had a lot of leftover tomatoes from a large harvest. Masale bhaat is one of my favorites and I decided to pair the tempering for masale bhaat with tomato rice. This is not your typical South Indian version.
One thing I have realized is that this rice turns out flavorful and good only if you use tomatoes that are of the best quality. Think Roma tomatoes, Campari tomatoes, or even cherry tomatoes. My mom loved this rice when I made it for her while she was here and she tried to replicate the recipe back in Goa without success. When I visited her in Goa, she asked me to make it for her and it still did not have the same flavor.
If you find the right tomatoes, do not miss out on this absolute crowd-favorite dish that takes very little effort to make!
What you will need:
| Ingredients | Quantity |
|---|---|
| Rice (sona masoori or jeera samba) | 1 cup |
| Tomatoes | 300 grams |
| Cumin Seeds | 1 teaspoon |
| Salt | 2 teaspoons |
| Kashmiri Chili Powder | 2 teaspoons |
| Garlic | 2 large cloves |
| Ginger | 1/2 inch |
| Green Chili | 1 |
| Cloves | 3 |
| Black Pepper | 10 |
| Ghee | 1 1/2 tablespoon |
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 20 minutes
Servings: 4
How to make it:
- I would recommend using Jeera Samba or Sona Masoori rice for this recipe. Wash the rice until the water runs clear. Leave it aside.
- In a mixer, add the tomatoes and make a paste.
- In a mortar and pestle add the garlic, ginger, green chili, cloves, and black pepper. Crush into a coarse paste.
- In an instant pot or a cooker, add ghee and let it heat.
- Once hot, add the cumin seeds. Next, add the paste that you made and sauté for two minutes or so.
- Add the rice next and toast it on a low flame for 2 minutes.
- Add in the tomato paste. Make sure you measure the paste. The total water content needs to be 2.25 times your rice. Note: In this recipe, since we took 1 cup of rice, we need 2 ¼ cups of liquid. Depending on the tomatoes you use, the amount of liquid they yield will vary. So just add water to make up the 2 ¼ cup. For example, if your tomato paste after measuring is 1.5 cups, add ¾ cup of water.
- Add Kashmiri chili powder and salt. Mix everything well.
- Let it pressure cook for 2 whistles or pressure cook in the instant pot for 10 minutes.
- Let the pressure cooker or instant pot vent naturally.
- Enjoy warm with some yogurt!