We first had this dish while traveling in Kerala. This mix of crunchy daal, spicy chillis, and creamy yogurt with the goodness of curry leaves and pomegranate blew us away. Easy to prepare ahead of time, this dish makes for a great dinner on a warm summer night!
Makes 4 servings
Ingredients
2 cups Basmati rice
4 cups plain whole-milk yogurt
1/4 cup urad daal (split and dehusked black gram lentils)
15 curry leaves
2 dried red chillis
2 green chillis
2 tbsp ghee or peanut oil
2 tbsp mustard seeds
1 tbsp hing (asafoetida)
1/2 cup pomegranate seeds
1 tbsp red chili powder
1/2 cup cilantro
salt to taste
Directions
Rinse and soak Basmati rice in cold water for 15+ minutes.
Add salt and cook the rice in 3 cups of water. Let it cool for 15+ minutes.
Mince the green chilies and chop the cilantro
Gently whisk the yogurt until the texture is smooth and even.
In a large bowl, add cooled rice and yogurt. Add salt and red chili powder. Keep the mixture aside.
In a nonstick pan, heat up the ghee or oil. Add mustard seeds and let them split. dried red chillis.
Then add hing, curry leaves, and minced green chillis.
Lower the heat and add urad daal. Simmer on low heat for 5 minutes or until the daal is lightly golden.
Add the tempering to the rice and yogurt mixture. Stir well. Add cilantro and half of the pomegranate seeds.
Top with the additional pomegranate seeds and enjoy! This dish can be prepared and kept in the refrigerator overnight (this enhances the flavors!)