Lemon rice
Veg
This South Indian dish goes well with seafood and vegetables. Curry leaves are used frequently in this part of India. When you find a fresh bunch, put them to dry on a towel on top of the boiler, then place them in an airtight jar to use as needed.
Ingredients
2½ tbsp vegetable oil
½ tsp mustard seeds
pinch fenugreek seeds
1 tsp split chana dal (also called Bengal gram lentils)
1 tsp split black gram (also called urad dal or black lentil)
2-3 dried red chillies, left whole
1 rounded tsp chopped fresh ginger
¼ tsp ground turmeric
4 tbsp roasted peanuts
10 curry leaves, torn in half
salt, to taste
3 tbsp lemon juice, or to taste
350g/12oz freshly cooked basmati rice
Preparation method
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Heat the oil in a large non-stick frying pan and add the mustard and fenugreek seeds, the chana dal, black gram and the chillies and stir fry until lightly browned.
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Add the ginger, ground turmeric, peanuts, curry leaves and salt, to taste, and cook for about 40 seconds.
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Stir in the lemon juice and cook for another minute before adding the rice. Stir fry to heat through, being careful not to break up the grains too much.
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To serve, place the rice onto serving plates.
