Puli Sadam, Tamarind Rice, Puliyodharai, Puliyogare

          Puli Sadam, Tamarind Rice, Puliyodharai or Puliyogare, this is one of most popular mixed rice dishes of South India, something that we pack for trips and also most often served as a ' prasadam' at the temple. All of us in the family love the ' prasadam puli sadam '. Also this is one of the rice mixes, that I used to make and keep for my husband, when I came to India on vacations ( when we were staying in the US ), it keeps well in the refrigerator for at least 2 months. If you have the mix ready, then it takes minutes to mix in some cooked rice with it. I follow this recipe that I had jotted down long time back from a cookbook. And one more thing, gingelly oil, sesame oil is a must for this rice and also in a generous amount, so if someone is allergic to sesame seeds, then don't try this rice. I feel, that the rice will loose its unique flavor if we replace the sesame oil. Serve it with some papadams or chips on the side for a delicious meal..

Need To Have
To Make The Mix

• Tamarind - 1 small orange size ball
• Turmeric Powder - 1/2 teaspoon
• Jaggery - 2 tablespoon
• Dried Red Chillies - 10
• Mustard Seeds - 2 teaspoons
• Chana Dal - 1 tablespoon
• Sesame Oil - 2 tablespoons
• Curry Leaves - 15
• Salt to taste

For The Masala Powder

• Coriander Seeds - 1/2 cup
• Chana Dal - 1 tablespoon
• Urad Dal/Husked Black Gram - 1 tablespoon
• Dried Red Chillies - 10
• Black Peppercorns - 1 teaspoon
• Cumin Seeds - 1 teaspoon
• Fenugreek Seeds - 1 teaspoon
• Mustard Seeds - 1/2 teaspoon
• Curry Leaves - 15
• Asafoetida - 1/2 teaspoon
• Oil for sauteing the ingredients

For Making The Rice

• Rice - 1/2 cup
• Turmeric Powder - 1/2 teaspoon
• Peanuts - 1/4 cup
• Sesame Oil - 2 tablespoons
• Mustard Seeds - 1/2 teaspoon
• Chana Dal - 2 tablespoons
• Urad Dal - 2 tablespoons
• Curry Leaves - 10
• Asafoetida - 1/4 teaspoon
• Tamarind Rice Mix - 3 to  4 tablespoons
• Sesame Seeds - 1 teaspoon
• Salt to taste

Method

          First let's make the Tamarind Rice Mix, for this first soak the tamarind in about 2 cups of hot water for about 20 to 30 minutes. Then squeeze out the juice, add another cup of water and squeeze out completely and keep it ready. Now heat some oil, roast the coriander seeds, remove and keep, then add the dried red chillies, roast and remove.

          Then heat some more oil and add all the remaining ingredients except the curry leaves, remove, then roast the curry leaves well till dry, remove and let all the roasted ingredients to cool a little.

          Once the ingredients have cooled down, powder them and keep.

          Now heat the 2 tablespoons of oil, add the mustard seeds, chana dal followed by the dried red chillies (broken into halves ), saute for a minute, then add the curry leaves and saute for another minute. Now add the tamarind extract, turmeric powder and jaggery along with some salt. Cook on medium low heat till the mixture comes to a thin jam like consistency.

          Add the ground masala powder, mix it well till thick, remove and keep, now the Tamarind Rice Mix is ready. Cook the rice and let it cool, add one tablespoon of oil and the turmeric powder, mix and keep.

          Heat a little oil, roast the peanuts and  remove. Toast the sesame seeds a little, remove, cool and powder it. Heat remaining oil, add the mustard seeds, when it starts sputtering, add the chana dal, urad dal asafoetida followed by the curry leaves, mix and remove.

          Now add this and the peanuts, tamarind rice mix, sesame seeds powder to the rice, mix everything well, now the rice is ready.

Some More Rice Varieties on the blog, to name a few,
Mango And Peas Rice
Brinjal/Eggplant Rice
Coriander Rice
Thakkali Sadam, Tomato Rice
Chitranna, Karnatka Style Lemon Rice
Check out here for the complete list.

Note
The tamarind mix can keep for months if refrigerated.
Don't reduce the oil, if needed you can add another tablespoon too.
If the final rice seems dry, then add some more oil.
The sourness of the paste depends on the tamarind, so taste the rice, then add more or less of the paste.