ULLI CHORU (GARLIC RICE)

This rice is very good for breastfeeding mothers and I used to have it for lunch  for many days after my daughter was born. My neighbour's MIL , an elderly lady from Calicut gave me the recipe when she came to see the baby. It is a simple dish with minimum ingredients. I improvised and christened it "onion rice"and make it once in a while when there is left over rice and I am too lazy to make any curries.

INGREDIENTS

1. Rice - 1/2 cup (any type of rice is fine)
2. Salt
3. Small onion (chuvannulli/cheriya ulli, not sawala) chopped - 1/2 cup
4. Garlic chopped - 1/2 cup
5. Sesame oil (nallenna) - 2 tab spoon
6. Mustard seeds - 1/2 tea spoon
7. Curry leaves - 2 sprigs
8. Turmeric powder - 1/2 tea sp

METHOD

1. Cook the rice adding enough salt before draining the water. Spread on a plate and allow to cool.( Do not over cook)

2. Heat oil in a pan and splutter mustard seeds. To this add onion, garlic and curry leaves and saute till both onion and garlic turns brown.Add turmeric powder and switch off stove. Stir well.

3. Transfer the rice to the pan and mix well stirring carefully. The rice shouldnt get mashed.

This goes well with pappadam, mezhukku puratti, cutlet etc.

(For the improvised "onion rice" I add more onion and less garlic plus 1 green chilli chopped. Also after the mustards splutter, urad dal, chana dal and cashewnuts are fried. Ghee or coconut oil can be used instead of sesame oil)