Coconut Rice and Carrot Sambal

Continuing with my South Indian culinary adventure, I made carrot sambal and cocunut rice for dinner last night.

Coconut rice is typically made in the south of India, where coconuts are aplenty. There, they typically add coconut milk or shards of fresh coconut to rice and cook the rice as usual. I had neither fresh coconut shavings, nor coconut milk. But I did have plenty of my coconut chutney from my morning order of dosas and wadas. Seemed like a shame to toss out the perfectly good coconut chutney that came with my order.

To make your own coconut chutney, blend together one cup fresh coconut, 2 green chillies, piece of ginger. Temper mustard seeds, chilli, and curry leaves for a minute and add that mixture to your coconut paste.

Since I did use more coconut than rice, the result was more a coconut risotto with a creamy texture and very heavy to eat.

I am especially proud of my carrot sambal, which is unbelievably easy to make and tastes great! Indian Sambals, unlike their Thai cousin, are not a sauce, but rather a dry condiment-like addition to a dish. The sweetness of the carrots, combined with the mustard and chillis in the sambal go really well with the heavy creaminess of the coconut and starchiness of the rice.

Coconut Rice

Ingredients:

• ½ cup rice
• ¾ cup coconut chutney
• Tablespoon of coconut oil
• 1 cup water

To make:

Add all the ingredients in a pot and cook for 15-20 minutes, or till the rice is done. I stopped cooking when the rice was done but there was still a little liquid left in the pot.

Carrot Sambal

Ingredients:

• 1 carrot
• 1 teaspoon mustard seeds
• 1 green chilli
• 5-10 curry leaves
• Teaspoon of oil

To make:

• Grate the carrot and chop the chilli finely.
• In a small pan, add a little oil.
• Once the oil is heated, add the mustard seeds, curry leaves, and the chilli.
• Temper for one minute and then add the carrot.
• Turn off the gas after a minute. Mix well and serve hot.