Meri Rasoi: TOMATO BELL PEPPER RICE or TOMATO CAPSICUM RICE

Hiii... yes I am back again.. I know its been a while since my last post. Actually I went to India for a good month and a half :)).. It was just a very good vacation.. ate lots of yummy mangoes... total chutti from kitchen (To be honest I did miss my kitchen sometimes).. But yes I came back with a lot of traditional Mangalorean recipes which I will be sharing with y'all soon:)..But today I will be sharing a simple yet flavorful rice recipe. It is a good option for lunch boxes too.

I had tasted this dish in my aunt's place ( who happens to be an awesome cook). I tweaked it a bit to give my personal touch to it. So here is the recipe... do try it and let me know :)

INGREDIENTS:
( Note : All the measurements are based on the American measuring cups and spoons )

Basmati rice - 1.5 cups
Tomato puree - 1 cup
Onion - 1 cup chopped (I used the red onion)
Capsicum or Bell pepper - 1 cup chopped
MTR rasam powder - 3 tbsp
Jeera or cumin powder - 1 tsp
Garam masala - 3/4 tsp
Turmeric or haldi - 1/2 tsp
Cloves - 3
Green cardamom - 2
Cinnamon or dal chini - 1 inch stick
Mustard seeds or rai - 1/2 tsp
Urad dal - 1 /2 tsp
Cashews - 2 tbsp
Dried red chillies - 2
Curry leaves - 4 or 5
Cilantro - 1/4 cup chopped
Salt as per taste
Oil or ghee - 3 tbsp

METHOD:

Wash the rice and soak it in water for at least 30 mins.
Heat oil / ghee in a thick bottomed pan or a vessel ( Please note: I am going to cook this rice in a thick bottomed vessel and not in a pressure cooker or a rice cooker . You can cook it the way you are comfortable ,making the necessary changes.)
Once the oil/ ghee is hot, add the mustard seeds, urad dal, Cinnamon stick, cardamom, cloves , curry leaves , dried red chillies and cashews and fry them for a bit.

Once the cashews have changed the color , add the onion and fry them until they turn translucent.

Now add the chopped capsicum (bell pepper) and cook them for about 2-3 minutes.

Add the tomato puree and cook the mixture until most of the moisture from the puree has evaporated and you are left with a thick mixture.

Its now time to add the dry masalas like the turmeric, cumin powder ,rasam powder, garam masala powder and salt and mix well.

Add in the chopped cilantro and give it a quick mix.

Now drain the water from the soaked rice and add the rice to the tomato onion mixture. DO NOT mix at this point as mixing will break the rice grains. Now add 3 cups of boiling water ( Note: while cooking directly in a vessel , the water to rice proportion is 2:1 that is, for every cup of rice, you need two cups of water. Also I have used boiling water as this expedites the cooking process)

After adding water , give it one gentle mix. When the water begins to boil, reduce the heat between low and medium ( about 3 on an electric stove) and close the lid.
When most of the moisture has evaporated from the rice mixture turn off the heat. Even after turning off the heat, keep the lid closed and let it remain like that for another 20 minutes or so. During this time , the remaining moisture will also go away.
After 20 minutes , open the lid and fluff the rice with a fork. ( using a fork prevents the long grains from breaking ).

Serve this yummy rice with a raita of your choice.

Note:

You can use either home made rasam powder or MTR RASAM powder. The measurements mentioned are for MTR rasam powder. So if you are using your own home made rasam powder adjust the amount depending on the spiciness of the rasam powder as the heat level in the store bought powder and the home made powder might be different.
You can add other veggies like Peas or try mint in place of cilantro. Every addition will bring out a different flavor.