To make this dish, I have used precooked rice that has been cooled. I have used garam masala and chili powder for the spice and flavor. However you can also use pav bhaji masala, bisi bele bath powder or vangi bath powder. Each of these will give a different flavor to the rice. I also make this one pot Tomato rice & this Tomato bath most often for a quick meal. The taste and flavor of this thakkali sadam is entirely different from the tomato rice I have shared before. So thought of sharing this one too.
How to make Thakkali sadam
- Wash rice in lot of water and cook the rice. I soaked basmati rice for 30 mins. Then cooked in a pressure cooker with 2.5 cups water for 1 whistle on a medium heat. While the rice was cooling I went ahead making the tomato mixture.
- Heat a pan with ghee or oil. Add mustard and cumin. They will begin to pop soon.
- Then add in chana dal, urad dal and cashews.
- Fry until the dals turn golden. Add in hing, green chili and curry leaves. Skip green chili if you have young kids at home. Fry until the curry leaves turn aromatic.
- Add onions.
- Fry until they turn slightly golden or pink.
- Add chopped garlic or ginger garlic paste. Fry until the garlic losses the raw smell.
- Put in the chopped tomatoes and sprinkle salt.
- Fry for 3 to 4 mins.
- Cover and cook until the tomatoes turn completely mushy and soft.
- Then add in red chili powder, turmeric, garam masala, coriander powder and saunf powder (optional).
- Fry this mixture until it turns slightly dry and begins to leave the pan. There should be no raw smell of the tomatoes and the masala. Check the salt and spice. If needed add more salt. Set aside 2 to 3 tbsp of the mixture aside.
- Transfer the cooled rice and mix gently until the rice coats the spice mixture. If needed use up the mixture that was set aside.
- Add some chopped coriander leaves. Serve thakkali sadam with thayir pachadi or papad or plain curd. More Rice recipesGhee ricePalak ricePuliyogareVangi bath