South Indian Side
Lemon Rice
Ratings & commentsZesty South Indian lemon rice with turmeric, peanuts and curry leaves. A 30-minute, vegan lunchbox favourite that uses up leftover rice.
- Prep
- 10 min
- Cook
- 20 min
- Total
- 30 min
- Serves
- 4
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Heat
- Gently spiced
About this Lemon Rice
Lemon rice (chitranna) is the quickest way to turn plain rice into a feast: golden with turmeric, crunchy with peanuts, and zingy with lemon. It is vegan, travels well in a lunchbox, and is excellent with leftover rice.
Ingredients
- 400 gRice, cooked and cooled (about 1 kg cooked)
- 50 gLemon, juice
- 50 gPeanuts, raw
- 5 gTurmeric
- 10 gCurry Leaves
- 5 gMustard Seeds
- 10 gGreen Chillies, slit
- 30 mlVegetable Oil
- 10 gSalt
Plus water and a little salt to taste.
How to prepare Lemon Rice
Cook the rice in plenty of salted boiling water until just tender, drain, spread on a tray and let it cool so the grains stay separate.
Heat the oil in a large pan. Add the peanuts and fry for 2 minutes until golden and crunchy. Lift out with a slotted spoon.
In the same oil, add the mustard seeds; when they pop, add the curry leaves and green chillies for 20 seconds.
Stir in the turmeric, then add the cooled rice and salt. Toss gently for 2-3 minutes until evenly coloured and hot.
Take off the heat, add the lemon juice and fried peanuts and toss lightly. Taste and add more lemon or salt as needed.
Serve warm, or at room temperature in a lunchbox.
Tips
- Always add the lemon juice off the heat - cooking it makes the dish bitter.
- Day-old rice works best: fresh rice turns sticky.
Ratings & comments
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