This south Indian tomato rice recipe is my go-to meal on hurried weeknights. It is ready in minutes, needs mostly pantry ingredients, and it is loaded with flavor and nutrition.
Table of Contents
What is south Indian tomato rice?
Tomato rice (thakkali sadam in Tamil) is a south Indian dish of tomatoes cooked with nuts, curry leaves and sambar powder, then mixed into cooked basmati rice. It takes just minutes to make and is often served for a quick dinner or lunchbox meal.
This is a very distinct dish from Mexican red rice, arroz rojo, which is also made with rice and tomatoes.The seasonings might remind you of other Tamil rice dishes like lemon rice, turmeric rice, coconut rice and tamarind rice (puliyodharai). Tomato rice is just as delicious as any of these, but very differently so.
What I love most about this dish is the interplay of flavors and textures: it's at once spicy, sweet, tangy and salty. Hing or asafetida adds a bit of umami. The nuts and urad dal lentils add welcome crunch and cilantro, sprinkled over the rice at the end, adds a pop of freshness.
If you often find yourself looking for an easy weeknight dinner that's also nourishing you can't go wrong with this tomato rice recipe. It is a guaranteed kid-pleaser, has healthy protein from the rice and nuts, and it's gluten-free and soy-free. Leave out the nuts if you want to make it nut-free.
Recipe card
Tomato Rice
Ingredients
- 3 cups cooked basmati rice
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil
- 1 teaspoon mustard seeds
- 1 teaspoon urad dal (black gram lentils)
- ¼ teaspoon asafetida or hing (optional)
- 2 green chili peppers (minced. Outside India you can use any spicy pepper like serrano, jalapeno, arbol. Use only 1 if sensitive to heat, and be sure to deseed the peppers.)
- ¼ cup raw cashews (or cashew pieces. Skip if nut-free and use a tablespoon of urad dal instead)
- 2 sprigs curry leaves
- 1 medium onion (finely chopped)
- 2 pounds tomatoes (finely chopped)
- ½ teaspoon turmeric
- 1 heaping tbsp sambar powder (or curry powder)
- Salt to taste
- 2 tablespoons cilantro (chopped)
Instructions
- Heat coconut oil in a wok or large skillet over medium high heat. Add to it the mustard seeds and as soon as they begin to crackle, add the asafetida, if using, urad dal, chili peppers, cashews and curry leaves.
- Saute until the curry leaves begin to get crisp and the urad dal and cashews are lightly golden, about a minute or two. Add the onion and saute for a couple of minutes until translucent.
- Add in the tomatoes along with the turmeric and sambar powder and mix. Cook the tomatoes until they have expressed all their juices but don't wait for the juices to evaporate. You want that goodness to soak into the rice and you also want the tomatoes to retain their sweetness, not turn too tangy, as they would if they cook down further.
- Add the rice to the wok or skillet and mix gently, making sure all rice grains are coated with the tomato juices. Cover the wok and turn heat to the lowest setting. Cook for five minutes, undisturbed, so the rice absorbs the amazing flavors of the spiced tomato juices.
- Turn off the heat and let the rice stand undisturbed for another 10 minutes. Garnish with cilantro and serve hot.
Notes
Ingredient notes
- Rice. I love basmati rice for this recipe although any long-grain variety will work just fine. A cup of dried rice will yield three cups of cooked rice.
- Oil. Unrefined coconut oil has the perfect flavor for this dish but you can substitute with any other neutral oil.
- Green chili peppers. Use serrano, jalapeno or green arbol peppers, depending on availability and your preference for heat. Use only one pepper if sensitive to heat, and be sure to remove the seeds. You can also use red chili powder, like cayenne, instead of fresh chili peppers.Â
- Nuts. Peanuts or cashew nuts will both work for this recipe.
Nutrition Information
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How to make South Indian tomato rice
- Heat coconut oil in a wok or large skillet over medium high heat. Add to it the mustard seeds and as soon as they begin to crackle, add the asafetida, if using, urad dal, chili peppers, cashews and curry leaves.
- Saute until the curry leaves begin to get crisp and the urad dal and cashews are lightly golden, about a minute or two. Add the onion and saute for a couple of minutes until translucent.
- Add the diced tomatoes along with the turmeric and sambar powder and mix. Cook the tomatoes until they have expressed all their juices but don't wait for the juices to evaporate. You want that goodness to soak into the rice and you also want the tomatoes to retain their sweetness, not turn too tangy, as they would if they cook down further.
- Add the cooked rice to the wok or skillet and mix gently, making sure all rice grains are coated with the tomato juices. Cover the wok and turn heat to the lowest setting. Cook for five minutes, undisturbed, so the rice absorbs the amazing flavors of the spiced tomato juices.
- Turn off the heat and let the rice stand undisturbed for another 10 minutes. Garnish with cilantro and serve hot.
Tomato rice FAQs
Yes, cooked brown rice -- especially cooked basmati rice -- will work very nicely in this tomato rice recipe.
You can use a good south Indian style curry powder instead of sambar powder. You can use garam masala if you don't have either, but the flavors won't be quite as true to an authentic tomato rice.
Curry leaves add authentic flavor to south Indian cooking, especially when paired with coconut oil. They can be hard to find outside India, however, unless you have a plant or an Indian grocery store nearby. If you can't use curry leaves, add 2 tablespoons cilantro instead, in addition to the cilantro used for garnish.
Tomato rice is a fantastic and filling meal on its own. To eat it as a south Indian would, serve it with just poppadum for a light lunch or dinner. Desi, my resident Tamilian, says his family would eat it with potato chips or banana chips.
You can serve the tomato rice as the grain element in a veggie bowl with Indian flavors, like this curried chickpeas bowl.
Store leftovers in the fridge for three days. if you plan on freezing it, flash freeze it first by spreading the tomato rice in a single layer on a baking sheet and freezing it for a couple of hours. Then scoop into a freezer safe bag or container and freeze for up to three months. Reheat the frozen rice in a microwave or saucepan, adding a tablespoon of water for each cup of rice.
Nisha says
My south Indian mil would make this for us so decided to give it a try. The flavors are so yummy, just like she made it. My husband had seconds and thirds. Thanks Vaishali.
Vaishali says
So happy to hear, Nisha!