Puliyodarai, a traditional rice dish, stays good & tastes divine even if it is kept without being refrigerated for 3 or 4 days.  My mother used to say that her grandfather always preferred to carry puliyodharai while traveling in bullock cart for all their family trips.

Puliyodharai served to devotees in temples is one of the most sought-after prasadams relished by all. Here is my simplified recipe for puliyodharai without compromising the quality & taste:

Time taken: 15 min

Yield: This pulikachal (tamarind masala) can be used to mix the rice required for 5 or 6 people. If you are not using them all at once, you can refrigerate the remaining for later use.

Ingredients:

1. Tamarind (puli) – lemon sized
2. Salt – 1 tsp
3. Cane jaggery – ¼ tsp
4. Sesame oil (nallennai) – 1 tsp

For Masala:

1. Sesame oil – 1 tsp
2. Red chillies – 10 Nos.
3. Coriander seeds (malli vidhai) – 1 tbsp
4. Split blackgram (de-skinned) –  1 tsp
5. Asafoetida – a small block

For Tempering:

1. Sesame oil – 1 tbsp
2. Mustard seeds – ¼ tsp
3. Bengal gram (kadalai paruppu) – ¼ tsp
4. Roasted peanuts (varutha kadalai) – 25 Nos.
5. Curry leaves – 1 sprig
6. Red chillies – 2 Nos.
7. Turmeric powder – ½ tsp

Cooking Method:

• Soak tamarind in hot water (or microwave for a minute) and keep aside.
• Heat a pan with oil in medium flame.
• Roast an asafoetida block, coriander seeds and black gram & red chillies separately (as shown below) in a teaspoon of oil.
• Grind these roasted spices into a powder using mixer-grinder.
• Remove seeds or fibers in the soaked tamarind and add to the spice powder and grind into a fine paste.

• Heat the same pan with oil in medium flame, add mustard, Bengal gram, peanuts, red chillies, & curry leaves and fry for 30 sec.
• Add turmeric powder & ground masala and saute till oil gets separated (about 5 min).
• Add salt & jaggery, mix well and remove from heat.
• Add cooked rice into the tamarind masala and mix well.
• Finally add a teaspoon of sesame oil to enhance the flavor & texture of tamarind rice.
• Puliyodharai is ready to serve.