During my days as a paying guest in Bangalore, my room-mates who were from Coimbatore used to make this simple one pot meal ever so often. The beautiful fragrance of this rice dish invites everyone around to take a spoon and simply dig in. Arisi Paruppu Sadam literally means a Meal of Rice and Dal. Though I did not remember tasting anything close to this, but on describing the dish to Amma, she mentioned that it used to be my favorite when I was small. Intrigued, I set out to make it once at home and ever since, it’s been one of my most favorite comfort foods. It hardly takes 10 mins to put everything together and you can relax while the pressure cooker does its task. Usually, I love it with something crunchy to go with – like appalam or papad. The husband is a potato chips lover and strongly insists on this combo 🙂
Traditionally, this is made from shallots for the authentic taste but as I had only onions, I ended up using them. For the added flavour, I always add a teaspoon of Sambar Powder – adds to the color as well as the taste. However, it is optional. One can just have green chillies for the spiciness. The beauty of this dish is its simplicity – it’s quite flavorful with beautiful aroma coming up from a tempering of curry leaves, mustard and cumin. Tastes wonderful with a dollop of ghee on top.
How to make Arisi Paruppu Sadam
📖 Recipe
Recipe Notes
For the mushy consistency of the rice, I use three cups of water for ¾th cup of rice and ¼th cup of dal. Adjust according to your preference. Amma makes it slightly dry and hence uses less water. Green chillies are optional. So is sambar powder. Use either one or both. Frying the toor dal with the mixture helps cook it faster. For the flavour of this dish, curry leaves are important. Use shallots if available. A handful of peeled shallots should be enough. Chop them up roughly before using.
