Tuesday, December 1, 2009

Chitranna or Mixed Vegetables Rice


Cutting the vegetables is also a art, and the way you cut the vegetables, its going to make a difference in taste also, that's my experience! For example, if you cut beans big in size the curry would taste different with the same recipe or if you chop beans finely the same recipe, would taste better and different!! There are certain dishes which needs some extra attention and when everything comes out perfect the end result would be awesome!
Well, its quite sometime I blogged! Life became too hectic, busy, sometimes tiresome and could not connect with my mood of writing though I was missing out writing! But today I was able to connect with my mood of writing and sat down to write and send it your way and get once again connect with you all!
Getting back to my perfect cutting of veggies...........today I made mixed vegetable rice or what we call in our language "Chitranna"! So this particular dish comes out yummy by cutting the veggies thin and long and cooking the rice perfectly!
This is actually one of my favourite dish, which my mom makes it and it comes out awesome, whenever I make it and my husband also likes it very much. Today my mother-in-law also loved it!
So I like to share this recipe with you hoping that you will enjoy as much as I do!


Ingredients:

1/2 Cup Rice(Sona massuri,a Indian variety, I prefer)
Few Beans
2 Carrots
1/2 Turnip
1 Capsicum
4-5 Green chillies(or adjust according to taste)
1/4 inch Ginger
Few curry leaves
Few coriander leaves
1 Lemon or Lime
3 Tsp oil
1/4 Tsp Mustard seeds
1/4 Tsp Urad dal
1/4 Tsp Channa dal
Pinch of turmeric
2 Tbsp Desiccated coconut
Salt to taste


Method:

Pressure cook rice, make sure that its not too mushy and keep aside. Cut the beans into thin 1/4 inch strips. If you have patience and time, slit the beans in the middle and then cut into 1/4 inch strips. Peel the carrot and cut into 1/4 inch thin strips. Peel the turnip, which you can get in Indian stores and usually the skin is thick and little hard to scrap. Cut into same 1/4 inch thin strips. Cut the capsicum into 1/4 inch thin strips.
Chop the green chillies,coriander leaves and ginger.

I cook all the chopped vegetables in little water, but you also fry veggies in oil, but it may not taste very nice and also you need to add more oil to fry the veggies, so that way you can avoid oil by cooking with little water!

So mix all the vegetables together and cook in little water in a vessel, make sure that there is enough water. Also make sure that you don't over cook and make the veggies mushy. Drain all the water and keep aside.

In a deep pan, add oil and when the oil gets heated add mustard seeds and once it splutters add channa dal,urad dal and reduce the heat and once channa dal and urad dal turns golden brown, add green chillies,ginger,curry leaves and switch off the heat!

Now add the cooked veggies and now switch on the heat again. I switch off the heat since that way the seasoning and green chillies and ginger will not get burnt, while it takes few seconds for you to add the veggies!

Mix well the veggies and add little bit of salt and turmeric and mix well and turn off the heat.

I would do everything only when you are ready to eat, since this has to be eaten hot else, it does not taste good! So cook the rice while you are cutting the veggies and by the time the rice is cooked all your cutting/cooking the veggies/seasoning would be done and still the rice will be hot!

Now take a big bowl and put the rice into it and add salt and squeeze the lime/lemon juice to it. And add the seasoned veggies and the dessicated coconut to it and mix well. While mixing be very careful that you won't make rice very mushy by mixing it fast, do it slowly.

And garnish with coriander leaves and serve hot! Cucumber Raitha goes very well with this, but today I could not make it, since I had lot of things to do and did not find time to cut the cucumber!! Enjoy!

Tip: You can also add peas or any other vegetable of your choice to this rice.

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