Bisi Bele Bhath

Traditionally, the recipe for Bisibele Bhath involved  a long and elaborate process. There were seeds that needed to be roasted and powdered, spices that needed to be shallow fried with oil and powdered. It followed with various levels of cooking each ingredient separately and then combining them all together. It required patience and skill. And maybe a love for cooking from scratch. I lack this last quality. So I usually just pick the MTR Bisibele Bhath paste or powder from an Indian Store and head back home to make this exotic dish in less than an hour.

For those of you who are willing to give it a shot, here's the recipe to this dish.

Things you'll need: To cook in Pressure cooker/ Rice cooker 1 cup Rice (preferably short grain rice, I used long grained Basmati from my stock at home) 1 cup Split Red Lentil - Masoor Dal. Alternatively use Toor Dal 1/4 tsp turmeric powder 1 tsp salt 1 small potato, peeled and diced into 1/2" pieces 1 large Carrot, peeled, cut into 1.5" long, 1 cm thick pieces handful Green Beans, ends removed and broken into 1.5" pieces 4 cups of water To shallow fry Masala 2 tsp ghee / coking oil  In a bowl, put together:  1/4 tsp asafoetida or hing  1/2 tsp black mustard seeds  1/2 tsp fenugreek seeds*  2-3 Cloves*  1 Cinnamon Stick*  5-6 Curry leaves* 6-7 cashewnuts split into half 1 small onion - medium diced  1 green chili 2 cloves of garlic and 1" piece of ginger ground together into a crumbly paste 1/2 cup frozen green peas  1/2 large Green Bell Pepper (Capsicum) - 1/2" diced  2 small tomatoes - medium diced  3 tbsp MTR Bisi Bele Bath powder/paste  1 tsp turmeric  1 tsp red chili powder salt (as per taste) 1 tsp (as per taste) tamarind paste from concentrate. (Alternatively, wash and soak lemon sized seedless tamarind in warm water for 15 minutes)  * Ingredients are optional, not necessary. If you don't have them, or if you don't like them, skip. Method: Step 1 - Porridge: Wash rice and lentils at least twice in water. In a pressure cooker/rice cooker; add rice, lentils, potatoes, carrots, beans, turmeric and salt with  4-5 cups of water. Pressure cook for 2 whistles or at 'quick rice' in a rice cooker.  Step 2 - Masala: While the porridge cooks, you can make this spicy mixture.  In a deep pan, add ghee/oil and wait till it heats. Switch on the exhaust. To this, add the mixture of ingredients in the bowl - mustard seeds, fenugreek seeds, asafoetida,  curry leaves, cloves and cinnamon stick. Keep away from the pan cos the mustard seeds splutter a lot (I usually cover it with a lid and lower the flame asap) After the mustard seeds have spluttered, add cashew nuts, green chili, onions and ginger garlic paste in this order, roast on low flame for 30 seconds. Add diced bell peppers and frozen green peas. Cook till onions turn translucent and bell peppers are cooked.  Add diced tomatoes and cook for a while. Tomatoes should turn partly squishy. Add the bisibele masala, turmeric powder, red chili powder, salt and tamarind paste. Cook for 2 -3 minutes, taking care to see that the paste does not stick to the pan.  Step 3 - Put Together: Once the porridge is ready, add it to the masala in the pan. Add more water to adjust consistency . Cook for a few minutes on low flame, stirring to ensure it does not stick to the pan. Garnish with coriander leaves. Tips: If you have never cooked with mustard seeds before, remember to stay away from the pan while adding it to hot oil, turn the flame to LOW and cover with a lid to avoid splattering on your cook top.  Roast the cashew nuts in the pan a little before adding onions and green chili to the oil so that the cashews are a little crunchy.  If using fresh green peas, boil before adding to masala pan. Alternatively, add to the pressure cooker ingredients if the peas are hard.  Tamarind paste makes the dish tangy, so add it as per your taste.  Try not to mash the veggies while stirring.  If water is added towards the end for consistency, make sure to cook for a while so that it blends well. Some people top off the dish with fried cashew nuts in the garnishing.  If refrigerated, to serve - reheat in a pan, adding water if it turns thick (the rice and lentils absorb water and thicken the dish)  Hope you enjoy making this as much as you enjoy eating it afterwards. It's easier than it looks. Trust me!