Turmeric Rice 5/5 (1)

I swear this rice is super easy and packed with nutrients to build the immune system of your family. It’s again a one-pot dish and cooked with simple, available ingredients in a jiffy. It adds more benefits if you are fortunate enough to get fresh turmeric. If not, don’t worry, you can manage with turmeric / haldi powder with the same recipe. 

I’m very particular about the ingredients stored on my kitchen shelves. It should be either organic or homemade spice powders. Back in India, in our hometowns, we have these mills which grind fresh spices like chilli powder, dhaniya (coriander) powder, turmeric powder. Whenever I fly to India, my baggage is stuffed with these products as I’m against the store-bought readymade spices. I never buy any easy to cook products. Also, I try to reduce the intake of preservatives included in the foodstuffs (I’m a health freak, much to the chagrin of my kids). 

Turmeric contains Curcumin, a substance with powerful anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties. Curcumin has powerful antioxidant effects. It neutralizes free radicals on its own but also stimulates your body’s own antioxidant enzymes.

It may help prevent and perhaps even treat cancer, can help treat symptoms of arthritis, lead to various improvements in the pathological process of Alzheimer’s disease.

Don’t forget to scroll down to the Notes, you’ll have a bonus recipe under my kitchen secret. My Kitchen Secrets saves you when you are puzzled with leftovers. Every recipe in this blog has a surprise package in the kitchen secret which will definitely make you awestruck…😲. You’ll visualize how each leftover of that recipe transforms into an unimaginable dish, unleash your creativity and explore beyond limits.

Click here to jump to recipe card!

Wash and soak the rice for 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, finely chop ginger, garlic, fresh turmeric, slit green chilli. Heat oil and ghee in a pressure pan and add all the whole spices mentioned sauté for a minute.

Immediately add chopped ginger, garlic, turmeric, green chili and sauté for 3 -4 minutes till the raw smell goes off.

Then add mint leaves, sauté for few seconds, later add 4 cups of water and required salt, stir it thoroughly and close the lid for some time.

Once the water boils, add the strained rice to it, stir well, check the salt, adjust if required.

Close the pan and let it steam for 5 minutes in high flame.
After 5 minutes, completely slim the flame to lowest possible, once the steam subsides, open the lid and stir the rice from top to bottom gently without breaking the grains.

Close the lid and put on the weight of the pan and maintain the same lowest flame possible for another 15 minutes (dum method).

After 15 minutes switch off the flame, remove the pan from the gas top, move it aside. After a few minutes, lift the weight and open the lid, stir once again gently from top to bottom on all sides and loosen the grains. Drizzle a tsp of ghee.

Your one-pot Turmeric rice is ready to eat. Serve with boondi raita …👌👌

Recipe Card

Preparation time : 5 minutes

Cooking time: 20 minutes

Cuisine: Indian

Category: Rice, Healthy

Serves : 4

Author : Manimala

Ingredients:

Whole spices –

• Bay leaf – 1 small
• Cinnamon – ½ “
• Cardamom – 2 
• Cloves – 2
• Star anise – 1
• Stone flower – 1 small piece ( optional)
• Mace / javithri – 1 thread

Oil – 2 tbsps

Ghee – 1 tsp + 1 tsp 

Ginger – 1 tbsp chopped 

Garlic – 1 tbsp chopped 

Fresh Turmeric (Haldi) – 1 ½ tbsps chopped  / Turmeric powder – 1 tbsp

Green chilli – 5 slit

Pudina – handful

Basmati Rice – 2 cups

Water – 4 cups

Salt – as required 

Instructions:

1. Wash and soak the rice for 30 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, finely chop ginger, garlic, fresh turmeric, slit green chilli.
3. Heat oil and ghee in a pressure pan and add all the whole spices mentioned sauté for a minute.
4. Immediately add chopped ginger, garlic, turmeric, green chili and sauté for 3 – 4 minutes till the raw smell goes off.
5. Then add mint leaves, sauté for few seconds, later add 4 cups of water and required salt, stir it thoroughly and close the lid for some time.
6. Once the water boils, add the strained rice to it, stir well, check the salt, adjust if required.
7. Close the pan and let it steam for 5 minutes in high flame.
8. After 5 minutes, completely slim the flame to lowest possible, once the steam subsides, open the lid and stir the rice from top to bottom gently without breaking the grains.
9. Close the lid and put on the weight of the pan and maintain the same lowest flame possible for another 15 minutes (dum method).
10. After 15 minutes switch off the flame, remove the pan from the gas top, move it aside. After a few minutes, lift the weight and open the lid, stir once again gently from top to bottom on all sides and loosen the grains. Drizzle a tsp of ghee and your one-pot Turmeric rice is ready to eat.

Notes:

• I have used basmati rice, if you don’t have it, feel free to use any variety of rice, you can try with Sona masoori, Ponni raw or Boiled rice, Seeragasamba rice. Add water according to the variety you use.
• Fresh turmeric is best to use in this recipe, if it’s not available, don’t panic, you can use turmeric powder as well.
• Turmeric has a strong flavour, it’s very important you sauté well to get rid off the raw smell.
• Whole spices like the stone flower, mace add an extra tinge to the flavour, sautéing them in medium flame with ghee imparts aroma to the rice perfectly.
• I have used 2 cups of water to one cup of rice as I used aged rice, if you use new rice add 1 and a ¾ cup of the water accordingly.
• After bringing to room temperature, stir the rice immediately to avoid any lumps, ensuring to get separate strands of rice.

Now time for my Kitchen secrets.….😉😍

Don’t think of any strategies to sell your leftover rice, I know how tough it is to make the family members to eat the leftover rice. Just change the rice and sell it as a new product. Curious to know the name of the new product, obtained from leftover turmeric rice,..🤔🤔😋. It’s Healthy pancake aka Adai.