Bisi - Bela Badh

ORIGIN

"BISIBELABADH" is a popular kannada dish made by kannadigaas (people of karnataka are kannadigaas).It is a heavy lunch as its main ingredient is Dhal with vegetables.It exists from the 19 th century.

INGREDIENTS

Raw Rice - 200 gms.

Thuvar Dhal - 100 gms.

Tamarind - a big lemon - sized ball

Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp.

Red Chillis - 10 pieces.

Curry Leaves - 2 tsps. (chopped)

(sambar onions) Small onions - 100 gms.

Bengal grams - 1 tsp.

Coriander seeds (dhaniya seeds) - (chopped) 3 tsps.

Grated coconut - 2 tsps.

Water - 4 cups.

Oil - 100 gms.

Ghee - 2 tbsps.

Tumeric powder -1/4 tsp.

PROCEDURE

Step 1:Wash raw rice and Thuvar dhal in water and drain the water.

Step 2:Mix the rice and the dhal and add 4 cups of water to it and cook in a pressure cooker (add the weight on to the top of the pressure cooker)for 20 minutes.

Step 3:Soak tamarind (a big lemon-sized ball) in hot water for 10 minutes.

Step 4:After 10 minutes , dissolve the tamarind in the water and mix well.
Thus,thetamarind syrup is ready.

Step 5:Heat the frying pan and add 1 tsp.of oil.Now fry red chillis,coriander seeds,bengal gram dhal and grated coconut in the pan till the ingredients turn golden brown.

Step 6:Now,grind these fried ingredients in a dry mixer-grinder to get a dry powder.Thus the masala powder is ready.

Step 7:Add 100 gms oil into a frying pan (on flames) and add mustard seeds into it .

Step 8:When mustard sputters, add small onions and chopped curry leaves to it and fry for 5 minutes.

Step 9:Now add 2 cups of tamarind syrup , tumeric powder to the frying pan and boil for 15 minutes.

Step 10:Now add the masala powder to the boiling mixture in the frying pan and heat for 2 minutes.

Step 11:Add the cooked rice-dhal mixture to the pan and keep on mixing for 10 minutes.

Step 12:Add 2 tbsps. of ghee to it and mix well.

Serve hot with onion raithas and pappad.

NOTE:

*After heating the cooker for 20 minutes,donot open the cooker immediately.Wait for 15 minutes and then open ,otherwise the cooker would burst open.
*Donot add too much or too little of water.(Rice would not be cooked properly then).
*Donot forget to put the weight on the cooker top.
*Take all the ingredients in the above mentioned quantity only.