Lemon Rice also referred to as Chitranna or Nimmakaya Pulihora is a crunchy, flavorful and tangy rice dish that is easy to make and tastes so good. Fresh lemon juice, fried nuts, fragrant herbs and spices combine perfectly to give this steamed rice an amazing spicy, tangy and nutty flavor.
Rinse rice grains a couple of times and soak in enough water for 20 to 30 minutes.
Then drain all the water from the soaked rice.
Stove-top pressure cooking
Cook rice in a 2-litre or 3-litre pressure cooker with salt and 1.75 to 2 cups water for 2 to 3 whistles or 8 to 10 minutes on medium to medium-high heat.
When the pressure settles down on its own in the cooker, remove the lid. Remove the cooked rice in a plate or in a bowl.
1 heaped cup rice will yield 3 to 4 cups rice. This will depend on the type and quality of rice.
Let the cooked rice become warm or cool at room temperature
Cooking rice a pan or pot
Take rice, salt and 2 cups water in a pan. Cover and simmer until all the water has been absorbed and rice grains are tender and fluffy.
Do keep a check when rice is simmering and if the water has dried leaving the rice grains undercooked, add some more hot water and continue to cook.
Place the cooked rice in a tray or bowl to cool it.
Instant pot method
Add rice, salt and 1 or 1.25 cups water (depending on rice type and quality) in the steel insert of a 6 quart IP.
Pressure cook for 5 minutes on high. Do a quick pressure release after 5 minutes.
Empty the cooked rice in a plate or bowl to cool at room temperature.
Frying nuts
In a small frying pan, heat 2 tablespoons sesame oil. First fry the peanuts until crunchy and then set them aside.
In the same oil, then fry cashews until golden. Remove and set aside.
Now add 1 tablespoon sesame oil in the same pan. Keep the flame to a low.
Add the mustard seeds and let them crackle. Once the mustard seeds begin to crackle, add the urad dal.
Fry until the urad dal turns golden. Fry everything on a low flame, so that the lentils do not burn.
Then add the red chilies, green chilies (chopped) and curry leaves. Sauté for a few seconds until the red chilies change color.
Switch off the heat and add the asafoetida and turmeric powder. Mix very well
Making lemon rice
Immediately pour this tempering mixture on cooked and cooled rice. Add the fried peanuts and cashews, lemon juice, salt. Mix very well.
Keep the bowl or pan covered for the flavors to blend for 4 to 5 minutes.
Then serve the lemon rice.
While serving you can choose to garnish chitranna with some chopped coriander leaves (cilantro).
Serving suggestions
Serve lemon rice with pappadums or with a side vegetable salad or even coconut chutney also goes great with this dish.
It can also be packed in the tiffin box. As lemon rice can be served at room temperature, it also makes a great picnic lunch item. It’s a light dish and you can have it as a light lunch or breakfast too.
Storing
Leftovers can be stored in the refrigerator for a day. Leftover rice is not good for health, so I suggest to finish the lemon rice in a day.
Video
Notes
Rice: Any non-sticky variety of rice can be added. If in case you overcook the rice and they become lumpy, then do not worry. Simply break the lumps when the rice grains are cooled. Leftover rice works excellently in the recipe. Add about 3 to 4 cups of leftover cooked rice.
Spices and lentils: Spices like mustard seeds and either dry red chillies or green chillies are essential. You can still let go of urad dal and asafoetida (hing) if they are not available to you. About 1 teaspoon of finely chopped ginger also add a good flavor to the chitranna recipe.
Herbs: Curry leaves add a unique aroma. If you find it difficult to procure them, then you can skip them. You can also add coriander leaves (cilantro).
Nuts: Both cashews and peanuts add a lot of texture and crunch in lemon rice. You can also just use one type of nut. Do not use nuts like almonds, pistachios, pecans, walnuts etc as the authenticity of the recipe will be lost.
Lemons: Use lemons or limes which are ripe and fresh.
Oil: The oil that is traditionally used in sesame oil made from wood pressed raw sesame seeds. This sesame oil, also known as gingelly oil is very different from the south-asian toasted sesame oil. If you do not have sesame oil, then simply use sunflower oil, peanut oil, avocado oil, grapeseed oil or any neutral oil.
Gluten-free version: To make a gluten-free lemon rice simply skip the asafetida or use a gluten-free asafetida.