Bisi Bele Bath | Bisi Bele Huli Anna (With Recipe for Bisi Bele Bath Masala Powder)
Bisi Bele Bath, also known as Bisi Bele Huli Anna, is a delicious and nutritious rice dish from Karnataka. This comfort food is a medley of rice, tuvar dal, vegetables and warming spices. While it is similar to Sambar Rice or Kadamba Sadam of Tamil Nadu, what sets Bisi Bele Bath apart is its use of Cinnamon and Marathi Moggu (a spice similar to Clove).Traditionally, Bisi Bele Huli Anna is served with a topping of Kara Boondi (Theeka Boondi) or then a side of papad.
Equipment
- Pressure Cooker (3 litre capacity)
- Large Kadai or Heavy Bottomed Vessel (2 litre capacity)
- Small Kadai (1/2 litre capacity)
- Small Plate
- Chopping Board and Knife
- Grinder
- Spoon
- Ladle
- Measuring Cups
Ingredients
- 1/2 Cup Rice
- 1/3 Cup Tuvar Dal
Vegetables
- 1/4 Cup French Beans (Cut into 1/2” pieces)
- 1/4 Cup Carrot (Cut into 1/2” pieces)
- 1/4 Cup Peas
For the Bisi Bele Bath Powder
- 1/2 tbsp Chana Dal
- 1 tsp Udad Dal
- 1/8 tsp Methi
- 1/2 tsp Khus Khus
- 1 tbsp Grated Coconut
- 1" Cinnamon
- 3 Cloves (See Notes)
- 2 Spicy Red Chillies
- 4 Bydagi Chillies
- 1/4 tsp Asafoetida
- 1/4 tsp Oil
For Tempering
- 1 tsp Ghee For vegan version, use oil
- 1/2 tsp Mustard Seeds
- A Few Curry Leaves
For Garnish
- 1 tsp Ghee
- 8 Cashews (Split into quarters; replace with 2 tbsp Peanuts, if required)
For Tamarind Pulp
- 3/4 tbsp Tamarind
- 1/4 Cup Water
Other Ingredients
- Water As Required
- Salt to Taste
Instructions
Cooking the Rice and Dal
- Mix together 1/2 cup rice and 1/3 cup tuvar dal well under running water.
- Add 1.5 cups of water and pressure cook for 4 whistles or till the rice-dal mix soft.
Extracting the Tamarind Pulp
- In 1/4 cup warm water, soak 3/4 tbsp tamarind for 5 minutes. This is a tamarind ball about the size of a small-sized lemon.
- After 5 minutes, mash the tamarind well and squeeze to extract the pulp.
Making the Bisi Bele Bath Masala (I do this while the rice-dal mix is cooking)
- Over medium flame, heat a heavy-bottomed kadai for 1-2 minutes.
- To the heated kadai, add 1/2 tbsp chana dal and dry roast for 1 minute. I do this because the chana dal needs more time to roast than udad dal.
- Now add 1/2 tsp of udad dal and dry roast the dals till they are golden brown.
- Transfer to a plate to cool.
- Next, dry roast 1" piece of cinnamon and 3 cloves in the kadai till the cloves get a whitish tinge, and then transfer to the plate with the roasted dals.
- Dry roast 1 tbsp coriander seeds and 1/2 tsp cumin seeds till they start to brown, and then add them to the plate with other Bisi Bele Bath masala ingredients.
- Now dry roast 1/8 tsp methi seeds till they change colour, and then transfer to the plate.
- Next, dry roast 1/2 tsp khus khus or poppy seeds till they start to change colour. Once again, transfer to the plate to cool.
- After the poppy seeds, dry roast 1 tbsp grated coconut till it turns brown. Add to the plate with the rest of the ingredients.
- Now add 1/4 tsp oil to the kadai, and then add to 2 spicy red chillies and 4 Bydagi chillies to it.
- Stir-fry the red chillies till they change colour. The spicy red chillies will start to swell.
- Transfer the roasted red chillies to the plate and immediately add 1/4 tsp hing on top of the chillies. The heat from the hot chillies is enough to release the aroma of the asafoetida.
- Once all the ingredients of the Bisi Bele Bath Masala cool, grind them to a coarse powder.
- Then add some water and grind to a smooth paste. This is an optional step; however, making a paste helps the masala blend well into the Bisi Bele Huli Anna.
Making the Bisi Bele Bath
- In a heavy-bottomed vessel or kadai, over medium flame, heat 1 tsp ghee. Use oil for a vegan version.
- Add 1/2 tsp mustard seeds and wait till they crackle.
- Now add a few curry leaves and stir-fry for a few seconds.
- Next, add 1/4 cup chopped French beans and 1/4 cup chopped carrot.
- Stir-fry for 1 or 2 minutes.
- Now add the tamarind pulp and 1/4 cup water.
- Cook covered for till the beans and carrots soften a bit.
- Now add 1/4 cup peas and cook covered for 5 minutes till the peas are cooked. This time I added Avarekalu or Surti Papdi which were in season.
- Add the bisi bele bath masala, salt as needed, and 1/2 cup water. Mix well.
- Cook for 2-3 minutes till the mix comes to a boil.
- While the Bisi Bele Masala and vegetable mix is cooking, use a ladle to mix the cooked rice-dal mix well and mash it a bit.
- Add the mashed rice-dal to the vegetable and masala mix and mix well.
- Now add some water so that the Bisi Bele Bath has a loose consistency.
- Cook the Bisi Bele Huli Anna for 5 to 7 minutes.
- Turn off the heat.
Adding the Fried Cashews
- In a tempering ladle, over medium heat, melt 1 tsp ghee. For a vegan version, use oil.
- Break 6 to 8 cashews into quarters and then add to the ghee.
- Stir-fry till the cashew pieces are brown.
- Add to the fried cashew pieces to the Bisi Bele Bath and mix well.
Serving Suggestions
- Serve hot Bisi Bele Bath with Khara Boondi sprinkled on top or with papad on the side.
Notes
- The traditional Bisi Bele Bath recipe uses Marathi Moggu. Replace it with cloves which is a spice of the same family.
- You can replace the cashews with peanuts. While neither cashews or peanuts are important in terms of the flavour, they do add a crunch to the otherwise soft texture.
- The Bydagi Chillies give this dish its lovely reddish brown colour while the spicy red chillies are there for the heat.
- Bisi Bele Huli Anna does not use pepper in the spice mix or onion as a vegetable.
Nutrition
Calories: 279 kcalCarbohydrates: 47 gProtein: 9 gFat: 7 gSaturated Fat: 3 gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1 gMonounsaturated Fat: 2 gCholesterol: 9 mgSodium: 803 mgPotassium: 210 mgFiber: 7 gSugar: 4 gVitamin A: 2246 IUVitamin C: 27 mgCalcium: 66 mgIron: 2 mg