Bisi Belé Bhaat

Spicy Rice Porridge

SERVES 4–6

I longed to visit Vidyashankara Temple at Sringeri ever since I saw a picture of its blue door on someone’s desktop a few years ago. I finally got the chance to visit it when I went to Karnataka to attend an award ceremony. Built in stone in the fourteenth century, Vidyashankara Temple is a temple of knowledge and wisdom and houses some magnificent sculptures and inscriptions.

After visiting the temple with the blue door, I stopped by an eatery and ordered bisi belé bhaat, a famous rice preparation, which I hadn’t had in a while. Having it that day brought back several fond memories of the time I’d spent in Karnataka as a student. It’s a dish you’ll fall in love with instantly.

INGREDIENTS

1 cup rice (short grain like sona masoori, or basmati)

½ cup husked, split pigeon peas (arhar/toover dal)

½ tsp turmeric powder

2 (medium) carrots, diced

2 (medium) potatoes, diced

50 g white pumpkin, diced

½ cup tamarind pulp (p. 13)

1 tsp salt or to taste

Spice powder

½ tsp oil

1 tbsp coriander seeds

1 tsp cumin seeds

1" stick cinnamon

8 black peppercorns

1 tbsp husked, split Bengal gram (chana dal)

1 tbsp husked, split black gram (urad dal)

5 dried red chillies

Tempering

1 tbsp oil

¼ tsp asafoetida powder

½ tsp mustard seeds

1 (large) sprig fresh curry leaves

METHOD

Wash rice and dal and soak in water for 20 minutes. Drain rice and dal and put in a pressure cooker with turmeric powder, carrots, potatoes, pumpkin and 4 cups of water. Pressure-cook over low heat for 12–14 minutes after the cooker reaches full pressure. Remove from heat and allow pressure to settle. Meanwhile, for the spice powder, pour oil on a griddle over low heat. Roast each spice separately till it changes colour slightly. Once the spices cool, grind to make a fine powder. Add the spice powder, tamarind pulp and salt to the rice and dal in the cooker with 1 cup of water. Place cooker over medium heat and cook, stirring occasionally till mixture has the consistency of porridge. Put oil for the tempering over medium heat. When hot, add the remaining ingredients. When the spices crackle, pour the tempering over the bisi belé bhaat and mix well. Remove from heat. To serve drizzle 2 tbsp clarified butter and serve hot with sandge (p. 238).