One pot cooking is one of the most efficient ways of cooking. It preserves nutrients and saves time. Cooking a hearty and fulfilling meal becomes very convenient. This is ideal for anyone who can’t spend much time in the kitchen. Many dishes can be made using the one pot cooking method. Examples include khichidi, pulav, sambar rice, rasam rice, dal, vegetable gravies, soups, and pasta.
Rasam and rice is my personal favourite and I really enjoyed making and eating this one pot milagu rasam rice. This is my own recipe. As always, it is easy to make. It requires only the basic ingredients available in our kitchen.
Rasam is actually a traditional functional food of South Indian cuisine. Traditional functional foods are usual food that has special disease prevention attributes and are consumed as normal everyday diet.
Functional foods are those which are part of day to day diet made using functional ingredients. Functional ingredients contain a lot of important micro nutrients. These nutrients offer many health benefits. They also help to lower the risk of health problems.
Black pepper is known as milagu in tamil. Milagu rasam is highly recommended for those who have fever, cold and cold, bloating or any digestive problems. Few days back, I made this one pot milgau rasam rice for lunch. Rasam and rice is a comfort food for many as it is very light on the stomach and nourishing. When someone is sick, they need a warm, light, and nourishing meal. Trust me, there can’t be a better choice than milagu rasam and rice. And if it can be made without much effort and time, can there be any better option?
Ingredients
| Ingredients | Quantity |
| Rice | 1 cup |
| Tuvar dal | 2 tbsps |
| Coriander seeds | 1 tbsp |
| Cumin seeds | 2 tsps |
| Whole black pepper | 1 tsp |
| Red chillies | 4 |
| Turmeric powder | ½ tsp |
| Tamarind | Goose berry sized (10 gms) |
| Tomato | 2 medium sized |
| Ghee | 1 tsp |
| Mustard | 1 tsp |
| Asafoetida | ½ tsp |
| Curry leaves | 2 sprigs |
| Coriander leaves | 2 tbsps |
| Salt | 1 and ½ tsp ( or to taste) |
| Preparation time | 10 mins |
| Cooking time | 15 mins |
| Servings | 4 |
| Cuisine | South Indian |
| Author | Anuradha Balasubramanian |
| Key words | Rasam, milagu rasam, pepper rasam, one pot meal |
Method
To make rasam powder:
- Dry roast coriander seeds, tuvar dal, and half of the cumin seeds. Add pepper, red chillies, and curry leaves. Continue roasting till everything becomes crisp. Add tamarind and roast for few more seconds.
- Cool and grind these spices to a coarse powder. Keep it aside.
To make rasam rice :
- Wash and soak in rice 6 cups of water for 15-20 mins.
- Wash and chop tomatoes.
- Now, transfer the soaked rice along with the water to a pressure cooker. Add the chopped tomatoes and ground spice powder and salt.
- Pressure cook for 5-6 whistles so that rice is cooked very well. The texture of the rice should be very soft.
- Once the pressure subsides, open the cooker and mash well.
- Heat ghee in a pan. Add mustard.
- Once it starts spluttering, add cumin seeds and asafoetida. Add the tempering to the rasam rice.
- Garnish with chopped coriander leaves and serve the milagu rasam rice hot along with some roasted papad.
Nutritive value per serving
| Energy | 244 kcal |
| Carbohydrate | 44 gms |
| Protein | 6 gms |
| Fat | 4 gms |
| Fibre | 5 gms |
Variations and Tips
- Crushed and chopped garlic can be added while tempering and added to the rice.
- Along with curry leaves, you can add one betel leaf while making the rasam powder. Alternatively, use a karporavalli leaf, also known as an ajwain leaf. Betel leaf is anti-allergic and karporavalli is anti-viral.
- A small piece kandam thippili (long pepper) can be included while making the rasam powder. Kandan thippili is a good remedy for soothing throat irritation and helps in healing sore throat and cough.
- Tomatoes can be pureed instead of chopped and added.