I have been so lost on what recipe I should make for my website. I want to write something new but it has been impossible. My mind is shutting down when I’m trying to jerk it awake. I’ve been making whatever is in the fridge and my dearest husband and kiddo have been sweet and just eating without complaining. VJ is usually not very picky, he eats whatever is put on his plate. But somedays he just asks what he wants, and I make it if I have the ingredients. But he hasn’t been asking me anything, so I decided to make something with rice that he would like. I usually make Jeera Rice only when there is a very spicy Korma or Curry to eat it with, instead, I made a spicy version of dal fry and we had a small portion of it with cucumber and carrot sticks on the side. The best thing about this recipe is that you don’t need to have freshly cooked rice. You can use leftover rice from the previous night or from earlier in the morning. I made rice, because I did not have any leftovers.

Cumin is very important and must have spice in Indian cooking. Though we do not use in most of our traditional ooragaya (pickles), we use it in every tempering. Cumin is aids in digestion and that’s the reason Cumin powder is added in most of the dishes that are filled with masala. Cumin is also said to be rich in iron and to improve blood cholesterol. With all these benefits why not use them in a dish. Rice is a staple dish at home and we cook it almost every day back home. But modifying it into something else isn’t something I do every day or even every week. If we are bored of rice, I make chapati or idli or dosa. VJ loves eating rice items, and he loves it when I make him biriyani. I haven’t made him anything special. Today I got the opportunity to hang out with a friend. I put Arlo to sleep, and VJ just made sure he didn’t wake up and I was back a few seconds before he woke up. I was so happy that Arlo let me have a nice lunch outside. So I decided to treat Vijay for keeping an eye on him.

Ingredients

Rice – 2 cups

Cumin Seeds – 1/8 cup (1/2 of 1/4 cup)

Green Chillies – 4 slit lengthwise

Onion – 1 whole (chopped thin) (optional)

Bay Leaf – 1 big

Ghee – 2 tablespoons

Salt – As needed

Water – 3.25 cups

How to Make

Step 1: Cook rice with 3.25 cups of water. You can cook whichever way is comfortable for you, but I used Instapot (PIP, Pressure Cooker, 8 minutes).

Step 2: Once the rice has cooled down, in a huge pan, once hot add ghee. As the ghee melts, add the bay leaf (I cut the leaf into 4 parts as I had a really big one) and fry it till it starts turning brown.

Step 3: Now add the Jeera (Cumin) and fry them up a bit, after 30 seconds add the green chilies and the onions.

Step 4: Fry till the onions are starting to brown, reduce the burner on the stove to low. Add salt and the rice and mix it together until all the cumin is stuck to the rice.

Step 5: Serve it with any dish of your choice.

Tips:

1. Onion is not necessary. Originally, Jeera rice is just made with the jeera (cumin). I add the onion for extra taste and the crunch that it gives.
2. You can also add a 1-inch piece of cinnamon, a few black peppers, and some cloves to the ghee with the bay leaf. I wanted to keep the recipe simple, that’s the reason why I didn’t add anything else.
3. I used sona masori rice, but Basmati rice is preffered.

Love,
Po