How to make Mango rice

 This mango rice recipe is a spiced, tempered and tangy rice dish made from raw mangoes.

Tempered rice made from raw mangoes are popular in Andhra, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu cuisine. This recipe is inspired by the Raw mango rice that is made in Karnataka cuisine, also known as Mavinakayi chitranna. this is how I make this rice with my own variations. I also make the Andhra style mamdiyaka pulihora in the mango season.

The tartness of the unripe mangoes, the subtle sweetness of fresh coconut and the heat of the red chilies balance very well in this dish. The tempering of curry leaves, mustard seeds and asafoetida perks up the flavors in the rice.

Raw mango rice can be served with some papads or chips. You can also serve it as a side dish with the main course South Indian meal.

How to make mango rice

Cooking rice

1. First soak 1.5 cups rice in water for 20 minutes. Use any regular rice. I used this particular organic basmati rice which gave me troubles later. Drain the rice after 20 minutes.

2. Then pressure cook the rice with 2.5 cups water, ½ tsp salt and ½ tsp oil for 2 whistles on high flame. You can also cook the rice in a pot. If cooking in a pot, then you may need to add more water.

3. When the pressure settles down on its own, spread the rice on a large plate/thali or tray. Keep aside and allow the rice to cool completely. Cover and keep so that the rice grains do not dry out. The cooked rice grains should be separate. The trouble I had was that this rice was sticky. No matter one soaks the rice grains less or more or cooks them less or more. When the rice grains got cooled down, the stickiness did reduce somewhat. So use rice which is not sticky 

4. When the rice is cooking, rinse, peel and chop 1 large green mango. 250 grams mangoes or 1.5 cups chopped raw mango. Proportion is important here, so if you don’t know the weight of the mangoes, then use the cup measurement.

5. In a grinder jar, add the chopped mangoes along with 3 to 4 dry red chilies (broken and deseeded), 1 green chili (chopped), 1 tsp sesame seeds, 2 tsp peanuts, ½ cup grated coconut and 1 tsp powdered or grated jaggery. I added jaggery to balance the sourness of the mangoes. If you don’t have dry red chilies, then add green chilies. Add about 2 to 3 green chilies overall. I used byadagi red chilies which are not very hot. If using a hotter variety of red chilies, reduce the amount to 1 or 2.

6. Without adding any water, grind to a semi-fine paste. Don’t make a fine paste. Keep aside.

7. In a pan, heat 3 tbsp oil and add 3 to 4 tbsp peanuts. I add the peanuts before so that they cook well and do not have any rawness inside.

8. On a low flame, saute the peanuts till they change color. About 2 to 3 minutes on a low flame.

9. Then bring them to the sides of the pan and add 1 tsp mustard seeds in the center. Let the mustard seeds crackle. You can also add 1 tsp each of chana dal and urad dal at this step. If adding chana dal or urad dal, allow them to turn golden before you proceed to the next step.

10. When the mustard seeds crackle add 12 to 15 curry leaves and 1 or 2 dry red chili. Stir and saute till the red chilies change color.

11. Then add a pinch of asafoetida/hing and ¼ tsp turmeric powder. Stir well.

12. Now add the ground raw mango-coconut-spices paste.

13. Stir and saute for 3 to 4 minutes on a low flame.

14. Then season with salt.

15. Stir very well again. Remove the pan from stovetop and keep aside.

16. Now to the cooked rice, you add the sauteed mango coconut paste. You can mix in batches or at once. The rice has to be at room temperature before you start mixing.

17. Now with your hands gently mix the rice with the raw mango coconut masala. I mixed both the cooked rice and the masala in batches in a bowl.

Serve mango rice with some fried papads or chips. You can also serve with some curd/yogurt or a pickle. While serving mango rice, you can also garnish with chopped coriander leaves if you want.