I am mad about collecting cookbooks and recipe cut-outs, irrespective of whether I make them or not. I have a few files full of print outs, which then stopped and gave way to saved word documents neatly saved into my pen drive. Then there are pictures that I have taken of recipes from all over the place, and marked as “favorites”. I also have a book in which I have jotted down interesting recipes while watching them on channels. I am not an over enthusiastic cook, but once I start cooking, I go really overboard. How many of you are like me? Please raise your hands… 🙂
Following on with easy recipes, is this Chettinad Milagu Saadam that I pulled up from my notebook. Not sure which show I saw the recipe on, but all I know is that this is perfect fodder for your lunch box. Chettinad is home for some exquisite and flavor filled cooking. The uses of spices in very intriguing proportions makes this cuisine very interesting. The Milagu Saadam – literally translated as pepper rice – is a dish with very few ingredients, but it scores high on the flavor quotient. I could eat up that whole plate of rice without any side dish, or maybe just a dollop of my grandma’s garlic pickle and some cucumber raita. 🙂 Off to the recipe…
Chettinad Milagu Saadam ~ Black Pepper Rice
Ingredients
- 2 cups basmati rice
- 2 tbsp oil
- 1 tsp mustard seeds
- 1 tsp chana dal
- 1 tsp urad dal
- 1 sprig curry leaves
- 1 onion sliced
- FOR ROASTING AND GRINDING:
- 1 tsp cumin seeds
- 2 tbsp black peppercorns
- 1 dry red chilli
Instructions
- Dry roast the whole spices under "for roasting and grinding" and grind them finely. Set aside.
- Cook the rice till done. Set aside
- In a large pan, heat oil. Splutter mustard seeds
- Fry the dals and curry leaves briefly. Add the onion and cook till wilted.
- Add the rice and the powder and toss to coat well. Cook for a couple of minutes and switch off.
Fluffy and delicious…the rice looks perfect. Do we need to rinse the rice here?
Normally we don’t… we just fluff up the rice. Thank you so much Angie…
Looks tempting Rafee! I somehow stopped buying cookbooks, didn’t know the real reason until I got the Persian recipe book from huma, I think, I love books that weave a story around the recipe like reading a novel! Now have to look for such cookbooks!!
Love this simple pepper recipe, a hot steaming plate of this on a tired, aching day will really pep you up!!
Cookbooks can be an expensive habit if addicted to it! I know… grrr… hehe… Thank you so much Priya…
I too have a collection of pinned up recipes, cut outs, jotted ones but never get tym to look back at them and try out though..podi thatti edukenam 😀
Flavorful rice, am sure it tastes yumm with some gravy sides..
Hehe… because many keep coming on top of the old one… 😉 Thank you so much Julie…
I am like that… have recipes everywhere possible…. and each time I think I should collate and keep one go-to place. 🙂 This recipe is new to me and one that I can make for my lonely lunch… may be I will use powders as it would be too less to grind.. 😛 don’t want to wash more dishes.
Mine are all collated and neatly arranged, but I never get to going back to them! 😉 Powders won’t give the same fresh flavor like roasting and powdering it then and there, but then when you feel lazy, who cares? Hehe… Thanks a lot Fami…
Classic recipe
Thanks Tum…