Lemon rice Indian aka easy lemon rice is a south Indian delicacy and one of the finest rice recipes of India. It is vastly popular in South India, especially in Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. This easy lemon rice is slightly tangy in taste and overloaded with flavours. In this simple and easy preparation, cooked rice is mixed with tempered spices, lentils, peanuts, curry leaves and fresh lemon juice. It is mostly served as lunch with coconut chutney and Papad. It is a great option for lunchbox for the kids too.
Table of Contents
About the recipe
How to make Lemon rice (step wise photos)
Recipe Card
About the recipe
Lemon rice Indian is an effortless one-pot dish pre-cooked rice is mixed with mustard seeds, dry red chillies, urad dal, chana dal, curry leaves hing, ginger, peanuts, cashew nuts and freshly squeezed lemon juice with a few more basic ingredients. Lemon rice is known by different names in different languages. It is also known as chitranna in Kannada, nimakkaya pulihora in Telugu and elumichai sadam in Tamil.
This lemon rice can be a very healthy addition to our diet. It is a very light dish which is not only suitable for kids but for people of all age groups. It does not contain any ingredients of high-calorie substances and does not require any sides too. It gets prepared quickly, making it a perfect option for kids’ lunchbox. If you are cooking this dish, especially for kids, then I would recommend that you to either skip or add a lesser quantity of chillies.
Reason for the popularity of aval upma
- Vegan
- Gluten-free (if you skip hing aka asafoetida)
- Easy to cook
- Quick recipe
- Kid’s friendly
- Tastes delectable
- Perfect for lunchbox
I have a strong connection with South Indian rice recipes. When I was working in Bengaluru, lemon rice was one of my most ordered menus for lunch. I was not aware of the delectable rice recipe until one of my office colleagues took me to a pure vegetarian South Indian restaurant. It was there that I had seen the different ranges of rice dishes with incredible taste and flavour for the first time. Since then I have fallen for the South Indian rice recipes and South Indian lemon rice is one of them.
This vegan rice recipe has the essence of South India. My husband has never been to South India yet. When I told him about the rice recipe, he was completely surprised and insisted I prepare it. That was for the first time that I cooked the easy lemon rice recipe at home and it was so effortless. I served him after preparing the dish, he just loved the rice and devoured a large portion of it. Now lemon rice recipe has become our family’s favourite lunch box meal.
Lemon rice Indian is a very simple and easy recipe. It requires very common and limited ingredients in our pantry to get prepared. All the ingredients are easily available in any supermarket or Indian grocery store. The best part of the recipe is that it can get prepared with leftover rice too other than freshly cooked rice.
Recipe for leftover rice has become a global need in today’s world because people have become much more aware of the wastage of food. Lemon rice can be a salivating way to utilise leftover rice.
Ingredients for Lemon rice Indian
Rice: The primary ingredient of the recipe which provides body to the dish. I have used basmati rice for the recipe. Cooked rice is required for the recipe.
Lemon: The second most important ingredient of the recipe which adds tangy taste and refreshing flavour to the rice. Freshly squeezed lemon juice works best for the recipe.
Cashew & peanuts: The addition of these nuts gives a bite and enhances the taste and flavour of the dish.
Whole spices & lentils: I have used mustard seeds, dry red chillies, urad dal, chana dal and curry leaves for the tempering of the dish. All the spices and lentils provide flavour to the dish.
Ground spices: Only turmeric powder and hing aka asafoetida are added to the rice recipe.
Green chillies and ginger: The addition of green chillies adds a heaty taste and refreshing flavour to the pulao. On the other hand, the addition of ginger enhances the flavour of lemon rice.
Salt: It adds a salty taste to the rice recipe. I have used cooking salt for the recipe.
Sugar: It is used to balance the tangy taste of lemon juice.
Oil: You can use any flavourless edible oil to prepare the dish. I have used olive oil for the recipe.
Lemon rice recipe with step-by-step photos and instructions have been provided in the ‘Instructions’ section. If you follow the steps carefully then you will surely get perfectly fluffy and flavourful Indian lemon rice. But before directly jumping into the recipe, let me share a few interesting facts about the recipe.
Variation in Lemon rice
- You can add a choice of vegetables like potato, cauliflower, beans, carrot and peas to make the dish healthier.
- You can either use cashew nuts or peanuts for different flavours.
- You can add coconut to enhance the taste and flavour of the rice.
How to eat Lemon rice?
Lemon rice Indian can be eaten without any sides but still, few people love to pair it up with yogurt or coconut chutney. You can also have it with pickle and papad or veg items like aviyal or veg kottu etc.
How to make Lemon rice?
To prepare lemon rice Indian, first, cook the rice and allow it to cool down completely.
In a small bowl, squeeze some lemon juice and keep it aside. Make sure no seeds and pulps are there in the juice.
Then put a pan on flame and allow it to become dry. Add oil to the pan. Once the oil is hot, add peanuts to the pan and fry it over low flame for 1-2 minutes until the colour turns darker and then add cashew nuts into the pan and mix. Cook it for 3—40 seconds until the cashew turns light golden in colour. Strain the nuts and keep them aside on a plate.
Then add dry red chilli, mustard seeds into the same pan and let them crackle.
After this, add chana dal, urad dal for tempering and fry them till the lentils become pinkish in colour.
Now, add curry leaves, chopped ginger into the pan and stir them for 20-30 seconds.
Add hing aka asafoetida and give a quick stir. Add chopped green chillies and mix it well. Then add turmeric powder and mix it well. Cook it for 10 seconds.
Now, add the peanuts and cashew nuts into the pan and give a stir.
Add the cooked cold rice, salt, sugar and lemon juice, one by one into the pan and mix it well. Make sure the rice has cooled down completely before adding it into the pan or else the rice may break during the time of mixing. The addition of sugar is completely optional.
Check the salt and tanginess of the rice and add more if required. Turn off the flame and the lemon rice Indian is ready to serve now.
Many Rice recipes have already been shared in my previous posts. You can check a few of them like
Tomato Rice
Capsicum Rice
Beetroot Pulao
Pudina rice
..And Many more…
Ingredients:
1 cup = 250ml
- 2 cups cooked Rice
- 2-3 tablespoons Lemon juice, freshly squeezed
- 1 tablespoon Ginger, finely chopped
- 2 green Chillies, roughly chopped
- 2 tablespoons Peanuts
- 1-2 tablespoons Cashew nuts
- ½ tablespoon Urad dal
- ½ tablespoon Chana dal
- 1 teaspoon Mustard seeds
- 1 dry red Chilli
- 12-15 Curry leaves
- ¼ teaspoon Hing aka asafoetida
- ½ teaspoon Turmeric powder
- 1 teaspoon Sugar (Optional)
- 1 teaspoon Salt (Adjust accordingly)
- 2 tablespoons Oil
Instructions:
- First, cook the rice and allow it to cool down completely.
- In a small bowl, squeeze 2-3 tablespoons of lemon juice and keep it aside. Make sure there are no seeds and pulps in the juice.
- Put a pan on flame and allow it to become dry. Add 2 tablespoons oil to the pan.
- Once the oil is hot, add 2 tablespoons peanuts into the pan and fry it over low flame for 1-2 minutes until the colour turns darker and then add 1-2 tablespoons cashew nuts into the pan and mix. Cook it for 30-40 seconds until the cashew turns light golden in colour. Strain the nuts and keep them aside on a plate.
- Add 1 dry red chilli, 1 teaspoon mustard seeds into the same pan and let them crackle.
- After this, add ½ tablespoon chana dal, ½ tablespoon urad dal for tempering and fry them till the lentils become pinkish in colour.
- Now, add 12-15 curry leaves, 1 tablespoon chopped ginger into the pan and stir them for 20-30 seconds.
- Add ¼ hing aka asafoetida and give a quick stir.
- Add chopped 2 chopped green chillies and mix it well.
- Add ½ teaspoon turmeric powder and mix it well. Cook it for 10 seconds.
- Add the roasted peanuts and cashew nuts (Step 4) into the pan and give a stir.
- Add 2 cups cooked cold rice, 1 teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon sugar and 2-3 tablespoons of lemon juice, one by one into the pan and mix it well.
Note: Make sure the rice has cooled down completely before adding it into the pan or else the rice may break during the time of mixing. The addition of sugar is completely optional. - Check the salt and tanginess of the rice and add more if required. Turn off the flame and the lemon rice Indian is ready to serve now.
Serving Instruction
Transfer the lemon rice Indian to a serving plate or to a bowl. Serve immediately to enjoy the best taste of the rice recipe. Serve it as a one-pot meal with coconut chutney, salad and enjoy your healthy and delectable meal.
Ingredients
1 cup = 250ml
- 2 cups cooked Rice
- 2-3 tablespoons Lemon juice, freshly squeezed
- 1 tablespoon Ginger, finely chopped
- 2 green Chillies, roughly chopped
- 2 tablespoons Peanuts
- 1-2 tablespoons Cashew nuts
- ½ tablespoon Urad dal
- ½ tablespoon Chana dal
- 1 teaspoon Mustard seeds
- 1 dry red Chilli
- 12-15 Curry leaves
- ¼ teaspoon Hing aka asafoetida
- ½ teaspoon Turmeric powder
- 1 teaspoon Sugar (Optional)
- 1 teaspoon Salt (Adjust accordingly)
- 2 tablespoons Oil
Instructions
- First, cook the rice and allow it to cool down completely.
- In a small bowl, squeeze 2-3 tablespoons of lemon juice and keep it aside. Make sure there are no seeds and pulps in the juice.
- Put a pan on flame and allow it to become dry. Add 2 tablespoons oil to the pan.
- Once the oil is hot, add 2 tablespoons peanuts into the pan and fry it over low flame for 1-2 minutes until the colour turns darker and then add 1-2 tablespoons cashew nuts into the pan and mix. Cook it for 30-40 seconds until the cashew turns light golden in colour. Strain the nuts and keep them aside on a plate.
- Add 1 dry red chilli, 1 teaspoon mustard seeds into the same pan and let them crackle.
- After this, add ½ tablespoon chana dal, ½ tablespoon urad dal for tempering and fry them till the lentils become pinkish in colour.
- Now, add 12-15 curry leaves, 1 tablespoon chopped ginger into the pan and stir them for 20-30 seconds.
- Add ¼ hing aka asafoetida and give a quick stir.
- Add chopped 2 chopped green chillies and mix it well.
- Add ½ teaspoon turmeric powder and mix it well. Cook it for 10 seconds.
- Add the roasted peanuts and cashew nuts (Step 4) into the pan and give a stir.
- Add 2 cups cooked cold rice, 1 teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon sugar and 2-3 tablespoons of lemon juice, one by one into the pan and mix it well. Note: Make sure the rice has cooled down completely before adding it into the pan or else the rice may break during the time of mixing. The addition of sugar is completely optional.
- Check the salt and tanginess of the rice and add more if required. Turn off the flame and the lemon rice Indian is ready to serve now.
