Coconut Mustard Rice

Coconut Mustard Rice is just the dish for you if you need to put together a quick tasty dinner. Just a few seasonings, some rice and you're done. It doesn't get any simpler than this. This vegan side dish can be made in just 10 minutes if you have cooked rice ready!

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New twist on a family classic recipe

My culinary choices are very much influenced by my upbringing in a traditional South Indian home. My palate is attuned to the flavor and spiciness that is a characteristic of food from India. It's also why I love using a variety of spices (whole and ground) in my cooking. I also always lean more toward spicy food rather than sweet treats. Although becoming a food blogger has taught me to be more adventurous when it comes to trying out new ingredients and cuisines, my heart still beats for Indian inspired food.

Today's recipe is an ode to my childhood! My grandma would make this very different tasting rice dish called Kayi Sasive Chitranna on certain festive days. Everyone in the family loved it and would look forward to it. It is a South Indian delicacy and literally means Coconut Mustard Rice.

In my quest to preserve such amazing traditional recipes, I decided to feature her recipe on my blog today.

Mixed rice varieties

We loved all kinds of mixed rice varieties at home! If you have tried Roasted Peanut Rice or Sesame Rice, then you will love this recipe too.

• This kind of dish is very easy to make
• It's a great way to use up leftover rice
• Can be made using very few ingredients
• Simple ingredients, but great flavor
• A versatile meal that can be enjoyed anytime of the day

Now talking exclusively about this mixed rice, it's an extremely flavorful dish. It is vegan and gluten free as well. This recipe is one that you can make when you are pressed for time or if you are not in the mood to cook something elaborate.  It was generally served as a main dish in our home, but you can serve it as a side also. It can be served at family brunches, packed in lunch boxes, served as an evening snack or even be had for breakfast. It's a quick fix recipe if you happen to have leftover rice. Since it is a carb rich meal, it is very filling.

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Why Maille?

I love the taste and the fact that it’s creamy  – makes it so easy to use in gravies! Dijon Mustard gets its name from the town of Dijon, France.  A long time ago, someone used the juice of unripe grapes to create the mustard paste (instead of vinegar). This lends the resulting mustard a bit of spicy tartness. Maille®‎ products can truly transform simple recipes into delicious food experiences and cooking with them is exciting! It's interesting to know that from Dijon Originale mustard to Cornichons, Maille®‎ has a rich heritage starting in 1747.

If you want to know about Maille, you can check their website.

This small jar stays good for a couple of weeks in the fridge. Though, I use it frequently as a condiment and over my sandwiches and burgers, I also don't shy away from using it in different recipes like this one here. Just the fact that I have used Maille Dijon Originale Mustard to make a very traditional Udipi Chitranna recipe shows how much I trust the quality and flavor of this product. Let's get started with the recipe ingredients first.

Ingredients to make Coconut Mustard Rice

• Rice -  I prefer to use Basmati Rice because it's light, delicate and yields separate grains. Basmati is now readily available at most grocery stores.
• Maille Dijon Originale Mustard - This is the soul of this recipe. Its unique, strong and spicy flavor is what needed to make this mustard dish.
• Coconut - This is the other main ingredient here. It gives a nice texture and flavor to this hearty meal.
• Peanuts - Gives this dish a nice crunch and aromatic flavor.
• Sugar - Is added to balance out bitterness if any and to balance the strong flavors.
• Lemon juice -  It adds tang to the dish. You can also add turmeric paste as an alternative to lemon juice.
• Curry Leaves - This herb is a signature ingredient of dishes from South India. Though it doesn't have a dominant taste, it imparts subtle flavor to the dish.
  • They are available on Amazon and in any local Indian grocery stores.
• Dried red chillies - They give this snack the required spiciness and color.
• Mustard seeds - Used in tempering. Toasting these bitter seeds in oil first helps to revive the enzymes that contain the pungent flavors and mellow out bitterness.
• Urad Dal - When added to to hot oil while tempering, it brings out the smell and flavor of dal as well as its nutritional benefits and healing properties.
• Turmeric - It's slightly warm and peppery flavor works especially well rice. It also gives it a mild flavor and color.

Instructions to make this rice

Prep - First soak the Basmati in water for 30 minutes and then cook it in a Rice Cooker/Instant Pot or on the Stove-Top. Why soak rice before cooking?

• Soaking rice speeds up the cooking by kick-starting the absorption of water before it even enters the pot.
• When you want perfectly separate grains (instead of sticky rice), rinsing removes the thin layer of starch from the surface of each grain and helps keep the rice from sticking together.

How to make Coconut Mustard Rice

1. Prepare the masala by adding shredded coconut, dried red chillies and turmeric powder to a blender.
2. Then add Maille Dijon Originale Mustard to it and blend it coarsely. Don't add any water.
3. The masala needs to be semi-dry and crumbly.
4. Heat a pan and add coconut oil. Once it melts, temper with mustard seeds and urad dal. When the mustard seeds begin to splutter, add peanuts, dried red chillies and curry leaves. Fry till the peanuts turn light golden.
5. Then add in the crumbly ground mix to the pan and saute it for 2-3 minutes over a medium flame.
6. Lastly add the cooked rice, lemon juice, sugar and salt. Toss it all together so that the rice gets coated well with the masala. Cook for a minute and take it off the flame.

Serving Suggestions

Kayi Sasive Chitranna or Coconut Mustard Rice has some very strong flavors thanks to mustard, lemon juice, dried red chillies and sugar. While that makes it very appetizing, some may find this dish a bit spicy and pungent, I would suggest that you either team this with a tall glass of Cucumber Flavored Vegan Buttermilk | Chaas or serve it with a side of Yogurt Veggie Salad. But if you find yourself craving for something sweet after this meal, make Kheer.

Tips to make the best Mustard Rice

• Basmati works best for this recipe. However, you can even use Jasmine rice or any other rice variety.
• Always soak rice for 30 minutes prior to cooking.
  • Soaking rice speeds up the cooking by kick-starting the absorption of water before the rice even enters the pot.
  • When you want perfectly separate grains, rinsing removes the thin layer of starch from the surface of each grain and helps keep them from sticking together.
• This recipe works best with leftover rice. But if using freshly cooked rice, here is what you can do to avoid a mushy lump of rice:
  • Cook the rice well in advance.
  • Once it's cooked and cooled down, transfer it onto a plate and spread it out.
  • Let it cool at room temperature or put it in the fridge till you need it.
• To make this low carb, swap rice with quinoa or cauliflower rice.
• I have used unsweetened desiccated coconut here. But feel free to use freshly grated, shredded or frozen coconut.
• Store the Maille Dijon Originale Mustard in the fridge once you have opened it.
• Do not add any water while grinding the masala. We need a semi-dry crumbly texture.
• Cooking the spices in coconut oil gives it a nice aroma and flavor.
• But feel free to use ghee (if not vegan) or any other cooking oil.
• Skip adding curry leaves if you don't have them.
• After you add the ground masala to the pan, cook over a medium flame and be careful to not burn it. Keep mixing it continuously, so the rice does not stick to the bottom of the vessel and burn.
• You can use tamarind paste instead of lemon juice if available to you.
• If using tamarind, add it along with the coconut and grind it or fry it in oil along with peanuts.
• You can add jaggery powder instead of regular brown sugar if available to you.
• After you add the rice, you need not cook it for long. Just toss it all together till the it is well coated with the masala. Cook for a minute and take it off the flame.
• Always eat this meal hot or warm.

Love Maille?

If you have a jar of this lip smacking Maille Dijon Originale Mustard in your refrigerator, here are two more recipes that you can make using it.

Grilled Potatoes in Mustard Gravy

Homemade Spicy Green Peas & Spinach Pastry Puffs

Also, be sure to visit the Maille Facebook Group: My Maille Community This group has been launched just a year ago and is already one of the most successful Food Groups on Facebook, with more than 38,000 members. Joining it is a fun way to discover new recipes and make new friends.

Watch out for the "40,000 member challenge" that should launch sometime in the near future.  40 members will be rewarded with plenty of Maille products once the magic number is reached.

If you do try this Coconut Mustard Rice or any other recipe from the blog, please let me know. I welcome your comments, star ratings, tweaks and suggestions.

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Coconut Mustard Rice

If you need to put together a quick tasty dinner, this Coconut Mustard Rice is key. Just a few seasonings along with rice makes this vegan side dish as simple as it gets. This meal can be made in just 10 minutes if you have cooked rice ready!

5 from 12 votes

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Course: rice, Side Dish, Snack

Cuisine: Indian, Karnataka, Udipi

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Servings: 4 people

Calories: 318.02kcal

Author: Priya Lakshminarayan

Ingredients 

1x2x3x

To cook rice

• ▢ 1 cup rice
• ▢ water for soaking
• ▢ 1.5 cups water to cook rice

To prepare the coconut-mustard masala

• ▢ 1/2 cup shredded coconut
• ▢ 2 dried red chillies
• ▢ 1 tsp turmeric powder
• ▢ 1.5 tbsp Maille Dijon Originale Mustard

To prepare the Coconut Mustard rice

• ▢ 1/2 tbsp coconut oil
• ▢ 1 tsp mustard seeds
• ▢ 1 tsp cumin seeds
• ▢ 5 curry leaves
• ▢ 2 dried red chillies
• ▢ 1/4 cup peanuts
• ▢ 1 tbsp lemon juice
• ▢ 1 tbsp brown sugar
• ▢ salt

Instructions

To cook rice

• First soak Basmati rice in water for 30 minutes. The level of water should atleast be two inches above the rice. Drain the water, add fresh water and then cook it in a Rice Cooker/Instant Pot or on the Stove-Top.

To prepare the coconut-mustard masala

• Prepare the masala by adding shredded coconut, dried red chillies, turmeric powder to a blender.
• Then add Maille Dijon Originale Mustard to it and blend it coarsely. Don't add any water.
• The masala needs to be semi-dry and crumbly.

To prepare the Coconut Mustard rice

• Heat a pan and add coconut oil. Once it melts, temper with mustard seeds and urad dal. When the mustard seeds begin to splutter add peanuts, dried red chillies and curry leaves. Fry till the peanuts turn light golden.
• Then add in the crumbly ground mix to the pan and saute it for 2-3 minutes on medium flame.
• Lastly add the cooked rice, lemon juice, sugar and salt. Toss it all together so that the rice gets coated well with the masala. Cook for a minute and take it off the flame.

Notes

• Basmati rice works best for this recipe. However, you can even use Jasmine rice or any other rice variety.
• Always soak rice for 30 minutes prior to cooking.
  • Soaking rice speeds up the cooking by kick-starting the absorption of water before the rice even enters the pot.
  • When you want perfectly separate grains, rinsing removes the thin layer of starch from the surface of each grain and helps keep the rice from sticking together.
• This recipe works best with leftover rice. But if using freshly cooked rice, here is what you can do to avoid a mushy lump of rice:
  • Cook the rice well in advance.
  • Once rice is cooked and cooled down, transfer it onto a plate and spread it out.
  • Let it cool at room temperature or put it in the fridge till you need it.
• To make this low carb, swap rice with quinoa or cauliflower rice.
• I have used unsweetened desiccated coconut here. But feel free to use freshly grated, shredded or frozen coconut.
• Store the Maille Dijon Originale Mustard in the fridge once you have opened it.
• Do not add any water while grinding the masala. We need a semi-dry crumbly texture.
• Cooking the spices in coconut oil gives it a nice aroma and flavor.
• But feel free to use ghee (if not vegan) or any other cooking oil.
• Skip adding curry leaves if you don't have them.
• After you add the ground masala to the pan, cook it on medium flame and be careful to not burn it. Keep mixing it continuously.
• You can use tamarind paste instead of lemon juice if available to you.
• If using tamarind, add it along with the coconut and grind it or fry it in oil along with peanuts.
• You can add jaggery powder instead of regular brown sugar if available to you.
• After you add the rice, you need not cook it for long. Just toss it all together till the rice coats with the masala. Cook for a minute and take it off the flame.
• Always eat this rice hot or warm. 

Nutrition

Calories: 318.02kcal | Carbohydrates: 48.5g | Protein: 6.68g | Fat: 11.28g | Saturated Fat: 5.9g | Sodium: 104.79mg | Potassium: 180.56mg | Fiber: 2.5g | Sugar: 8.25g | Vitamin A: 179.69IU | Vitamin C: 26.45mg | Calcium: 38.54mg | Iron: 1.64mg

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