Lemon Rice: A 10 Minute Dinner!

We all have those days where there is just no time left to make a decent dinner... or no time left to make any sort of dinner at all!  When these situations arise, I used to immediately reach for Kraft Mac & Cheese or Ramen Noodles, but now I reach for lemons instead and I end up with this:

Indian Lemon Rice!

 
In the same amount of time that it takes you to make a bowl of Mac & Cheese, you can make a delicious plate of lemon rice!  Lemon rice is quick, it's easy, and it's great on its own or as part of a larger meal.  Be advised that it's not that nutritious (as in, there are no veggies or protein in it)... but well, it's better for you than Ramen.  Much better.

This is what you need (makes enough for 2-3 people).  Note: I am measuring all of these ingredients approximately for 1 cup of rice.  If you make more rice, multiply the ingredients accordingly.

- 1 cup of cooked rice
- 1 lemon (or equivalent in lemon juice)
- Vagarne / Tadka which (approximately) includes
     ~ 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil
     ~ 1 - 1.5 teaspoons of mustard seeds
     ~ 1 teaspoon of udad dal & 1 teaspoon of channa dal
     ~ 1 teaspoon of cumin seeds
     ~ 1/2 teaspoon of turmeric
     ~ 1 inch of ginger (grated)
     ~ 2 small green chilis (finely chopped)
     ~ 3-4 curry leaves

This is what you do:

1. Cook the rice and keep it to the side 
2. Make the vagarne / tadka by:
1. I like to first keep all the vagarne / tadka ingredients measured and to the side 
2. Adding the oil to the tadka pan and let it heat up a bit.
3. Add the mustard seeds and once they begin to pop...
4. Add the rest of the vagarne / tadka ingredients listed above (be careful to not let any of the ingredients burn - they heat up very fast!).  Note: If you want an excellent way to grate the ginger, check out my post on the best ginger grater ever.
3. Turn off the heat on the tadka pan and add the vagarne / tadka to the cooked rice. 
4. Squeeze one lemon or the equivalent of one lemon in lemon juice over the rice and mix it together.  
5. You're done! 

The main part of making this dish is getting the vagarne / tadka right.  If you're serious about Indian cooking, arrange all these ingredients in a corner of your cupboard, because you usually will always end up reaching for the same things when you're finishing off a dish with a vagarne / tadka.  Again, you can read my explanation on what a vagarne / tadka is in one of my first posts.

And I should also add, that lemon rice is great for a summer snack or part of a summer picnic.  It's also a great potluck item (you're lucky if you can score the spot of making lemon rice, because your job is super easy).  Finally, I have to mention that my sweet husband is the one who usually makes lemon rice in our house - and he makes it well!     

Give it a try the next time you are strapped for time, or if you just feel like a citrus-y and delicious rice dish to go along with dinner.  Enjoy!