Tomato Rice is very simple, flavor packed rice for your quick lunch/dinner. This wonderful spicy, tangy rice takes under 30 minutes to get it ready! For your daily dose of carbs try this South Indian style tomato rice.
Busy mid week dinner or lazy weekend lunch, be it any day of the week tomato rice recipe will come in handy for all those days. With easy steps to follow and most common ingredients from your pantry you can make tomato rice in under 30 minutes.
Some call it tomato rice and some tomato rice bath. It’s popularly called thakkali sadam in tamil. It’s basically cooked rice stirred with flavorsome spicy tomato puree masala. And tomato rice bath is only as delicious as fresh your tomatoes are. So I only recommend you use fresh ripe tomatoes puree.
You make ask, can I use canned tomato puree?
NO! I wouldn’t recommend it. The taste of tomato bath is got from fresh ripe tomatoes. Canned tomatoes won’t do justice to the recipe.
The preparation of this flavorsome rice can be done in two different ways :
How To Make Tomato Rice On Stove Top (Using Pre-Cooked Rice)
First cook rice (can use short grain raw rice or long grain basmati rice) separately.
In a wok, prepare tomato masala by heating 1 tablespoon oil+1 tablespoon ghee in it.
Add whole spices -4 cardamom, 1 cinnamon sticks, 4 cloves, 1 bay leaf, ½ star anise.
Add chopped onions (about 3 medium sized onions) along with 4 slit green chilies and 1 tablespoon ginger-garlic paste to the oil. Saute until onions turn translucent.
Add 1 cup tomato puree + 1 chopped tomato. Cook until tomatoes turn mushy.
Optional – you can add some green peas into the masala.
Add spice powders – ½ tablespoon red chili powder, ½ teaspoon turmeric powder, 1 tablespoon coriander powder, salt to taste. Cook until all spices blend well and oil separates from sides of the pan.
Add handful of mint and coriander leaves.
Finally add pre-cooked rice and stir gentle. Turn off flame. Serve with popodum, yogurt on the side and spicy pickle.
You can even substitute the spice powders with madras style sambar/curry powder. It tastes delicious too.
How To Prepare Tomato Rice In Instant Pot Or Pressure Cooker (Cooking Rice Along With The Masala)
This method involves cooking everything in one pot, instant pot or any pressure cooker.
Rinse rice (I have used long grain basmati rice) twice and soak in enough water for about 15 minutes. Drain and leave it aside.
Heat 1 tablespoon oil+1 tablespoon ghee in Instant Pot set in Saute Mode.
Add whole spices -4 cardamom, 1 cinnamon sticks, 4 cloves, 1 bay leaf, ½ star anise.
Add chopped onions (about 3 medium sized onions) along with 4 slit green chilies and 1 tablespoon ginger-garlic paste to the oil. Saute until onions turn translucent.
Add 1 cup tomato puree + 1 chopped tomato. Cook until tomatoes turn mushy.
Optional – you can add some green peas into the masala.
Add spice powders – ½ tablespoon red chili powder, ½ teaspoon turmeric powder, 1 tablespoon coriander powder, salt to taste. Saute and cook until all spices blend well and oil separates from sides of the pan.
Add handful of mint and coriander leaves. Coriander or cilantro leaves is must when you make tomato bath.
Finally add soaked and drained rice. For 1 cup long grain rice, use 1.25 cup water. Check this post to know how to cook rice in instant pot.
Select Rice button and cook for 12 minutes. Let the pot release it’s pressure naturally for 10 minutes. Then open lid, and let rice stand for 8 to 10 minutes(Instant pot in Off state). Then stir gently and serve.
Serve with popodum, yogurt on the side and spicy pickle.
When you try it you will agree. Tomato rice recipe is wholesome meal in itself. Paired with cooling onion-yogurt mix(raita) it’s a perfect balance of spice, tangy and slight sweetness from the yogurt.
CONSIDER TRYING THESE POPULAR RICE RECIPES:
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Tomato Rice Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cup rice use long grain basmati rice or short grain raw rice
- 3 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 1 tablespoon ghee
- 3 medium sized tomatoes blanched skin peeled and pureed
- 2 large onions
- 2 tomatoes chopped
- 3 large green chillies slit in the center
- 1 tablespoon ginger-garlic paste
- 2 teaspoon red chilli powder
- 1 teaspoon coriander powder
- ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder
- ½ cup green peas (optional)
- 1 inch cinnamon stick
- 3 cloves
- 1 star anise
- 1 small bay leaf
- Salt to taste
- 2 tablespoon coriander/cliantro
- 3 tablespoon mint leaves
Instructions
- In a pan add oil and allow to heat. Once oil is hot add the whole spices mentioned above. Next add onions and green chillies and saute till onions turn translucent.
- Ginger-garlic paste goes in and saute till raw smell of the paste is gone.
- Add chopped tomatoes,cook until tomatoes are mushy. In goes the blanched tomato puree and cook until you see oil separating from the edges of the pan.
- Green peas goes in and cook for a minute.
- Add red chilli powder, turmeric, coriander powder, salt cook for a minute.
- Put chopped coriander and mint leaves and cook until fragrant.
- Reduce heat to low, add cooked rice and mix gently until all rice is coated in masala well.
- Add a little hot water about 2 to 3 teaspoon. Cover the pan with lid and let it simmer for 5 minutes.
- Yummy tangy tomato rice bath is ready. Serve hot with any onion raita or just as it is.
Nutrition
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Comments & Reviews
Shubha says
Delicious tomato rice… will make a great lunch box option:)
jyothirajesh says
Absolutely right Subha