Unquestionably, one of India’s favorite primary dishes is rice. It is widely enjoyed nationwide, along with different regional cuisines. Whether sweet or sour, rice always appears at the dinner table.
You can experiment in the kitchen to create a variety of mouthwatering cuisines thanks to the market’s wide selection of types, each of which is distinctive in shape, size, flavor, and aroma. Here is a list of the top 5 rice-based Indian meals you must taste.
Popular Dishes with Rice
Mughlai biryani
The Mughal Emperors are thought to have enjoyed Mughlai biryani, a type of Indian biryani, in the past. The recipe calls for flavorful rice, chunks of seasoned and browned meat (often lamb), fried onions, sultanas, and dry fruits like almonds. These ingredients are piled in a pot and cooked to produce a scented treat suitable for a king.
The rich and potent flavor of the biryani is enhanced with a substantial number of aromatic spices, including saffron, nutmeg, cardamom, cumin, and cinnamon, making it ideal for celebratory occasions and religious holidays like Eid. Warm Mughlai biryani is often eaten by itself or with raita on the side.
Khichdi
A rice and lentil meal from South Asia, khichdi gets its name from the Sanskrit word, which also refers to a rice and legume dish. Khichdi is a typical comfort food eaten as a main course throughout the Indian subcontinent, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, and Pakistan. It is also among the first solid foods babies in Indian culture eat.
The dish’s flavors are enhanced with various spices, including cinnamon, cloves, bay leaves, and peppercorns. The word is thought to have been created in India during the Middle Ages. It was first mentioned in a travelogue by Russian explorer and adventurer Afanasiy Nikitin in the 15th century.
Pilaf
Pilaf is a common ingredient in Middle Eastern cooking, which can be made with bulgur, couscous, cracked wheat, or rice. The most popular component, however, is rice, blended with meat, vegetables, dried fruits, and spices and cooked in a flavorful broth.
Pilaf can be a side dish and the main meal in Turkey when served with a salad and yogurt on the side. However, some regard Tahdig as the best component of a pilaf. The phrase “bottom of the pot” alludes to the golden rice crust that develops on the bottom of the cooking pot.
Pulihora
In Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, and Karnataka, you can readily get the famous south Indian cuisine called plethora. It contains rice, ginger, coriander, curry leaves, tamarind, turmeric, and green chilies. Additional ingredients such as mustard seeds, yellow lentils, and roasted sesame seed powder can intensify the dish’s complex flavors.
It is frequently cooked for festivals and is colored yellow with turmeric, which is revered in Hinduism and represents celebratory times. The term “puli” in its name, which denotes sourness, accurately describes the dish’s tart flavor. However, the tart tamarind perfectly offsets the dish’s other spicy and salty qualities.
Pongal
Pongal, a sweet rice dish, is typically consumed in Sri Lanka during special or ceremonial events. It is often prepared over an open flame in a clay pot. First, milk and water are boiled; in Tamil culture, the family will be blessed with luck and prosperity if the mixture pours over the pool.
Because each family member ceremoniously adds a handful of rice to the pot, Pongal is a family event. The remaining rice, mung beans, cane sugar, and ground cashews are added to the meal. The family prays to the Sun god before eating Pongal, served on banana leaves.
