Easy Indian Lemon Rice Recipe (Chitranna)

In Chitranna recipe, you can use precooked or leftover long-grain variety like Basmati, or short-grain varieties such as Sona Masuri or Surti Kolam. Brown Basmati works well too. The key is that the grains should not be sticky or lumpy — they should stay separate and fluffy.
When making South Indian Lemon Rice as prasadam or neividhyam (food offered to God) for a festival or temple offering, it’s best to cook the chawal fresh and cool it completely before mixing in the spices and lemon juice. Traditionally, leftovers from the previous day is not used for prasadam or religious occasions.

The traditional South Indian temple-style Lemon Rice recipe is made without onions or shallots, but adding them can bring a nice depth of flavor. Feel free to customize the recipe by adding or skipping vegetables according to your taste.
To boost the nutrition, try adding cooked chickpeas or other beans. Vegetables like grated carrots or chopped bell peppers work well for extra color and crunch. Instead of peanuts, you can use cashews or sunflower seeds for a different nutty twist.
For a little extra zing, add half a tablespoon of ginger paste while sautéing the spices. This recipe is very flexible — you can easily omit ingredients if you don’t have them on hand.
For a refreshing twist, garnish with torn mint leaves for a minty flavor burst, similar to the popular Pudina Pulao recipe.

You can try alternatives like vermicelli, rice noodles, or sevai to make a dish called Lemon Sevai (like Paruppu Sevai). Other great substitutes include riced cauliflower, couscous, millets, or quinoa for a low-carb or gluten-free option.

To make an easy Chitranna recipe in the Instant Pot, start by rinsing the chawal well—there’s no need to soak it beforehand. Turn on the Instant Pot to sauté mode and heat some oil. Once hot, add mustard seeds, urad dal, and chana dal, and sauté until the lentils turn light golden. Next, add fresh curry leaves and dried red chilies, cooking for about 10 seconds.
Then add chopped green chilies and onions, sautéing until the onions turn translucent. Add the rinsed chawal, followed by water, turmeric powder, and salt. Turn off sauté mode, close the lid, and seal the valve. Cook on pressure/manual mode for 4 minutes.
While it cooks, squeeze fresh lemon juice. Once the Instant Pot beeps, allow natural pressure release for 10 minutes before carefully releasing any remaining pressure. Finally, open the lid and mix in the freshly squeezed lemon juice and chopped cilantro for a flavorful finish.

Another simple way to make Elumichai Sadam is to cook the chawal as usual and let it cool. Once cooled, mix in fresh lemon juice and turmeric powder until evenly combined. Then prepare a flavorful tempering with mustard seeds, lentils, curry leaves, chillies, and peanuts, and pour it over the lemon-infused chawal. Toss everything gently, garnish with chopped cilantro, and serve.

Leftover Chitranna keeps well in the refrigerator for 2 to 3 days. You can also prepare it ahead of time and store it chilled until ready to serve. In these cases, it’s best to add the fresh lemon juice after reheating and just before serving to retain its bright flavor. For longer storage, freeze the Chitranna in an airtight container. When ready to eat, thaw completely and gently reheat on the stove or in the microwave.