Tomato Rice

S and I watched a movie called Today's Special this afternoon, which is about a Sous Chef in New York who finally ends up as the Chef in his father's Indian restaurant. The nostalgic factor was pretty high in the movie with one of the older lead characters listening to the old & classic hindi songs all the time. Anyways, it brought back memories of some of the comfort food that my mom makes. The beauty of these dishes that I generally think of as comfort food is that they are simple. Easy to make, doesn't take too much time and makes you want to lick your fingers at the end of the meal :) 

The tomato rice is one such quick fix recipe in my mom's kitchen, and it has taken me multiple attempts to bring back the taste I remember from my school days! The trick is in letting everything simmer for a while. I find that when I am crunched for time, I seem to turn off the heat too soon. And these days I seem to appreciate the simmering similar to learning to appreciate negative spaces in a painting :)

Ingredients: Tomatoes - 3 (chopped); 1 medium onion - sliced; Green Chili - 2 sliced; turmeric - 1/2 tsp, Cayenne pepper - 1/2 tsp, mustard seeds & cumin & lentils - 1/4 tsp for tempering; Curry Leaves - few; Asafoetida - a pinch.

• In a pot, add olive oil and once hot, temper the mustard & cumin seeds & lentils, add the sliced onions, green chili and saute till translucent
• Add the curry leaves, tomatoes & let it cook for a couple of minutes
• Add the cayenne and turmeric, season with salt & pepper. Let it cook for about 5 minutes
• Add water as needed, cover and simmer for about 5 minutes or so. Add the asafoetida and mix well.
• Thicken the sauce if needed. 
• Cook rice separately and mix with the cooked tomato sauce.
• Serve hot with a dash of ghee!

I am sending this to the Favorite Recipes Event (Vegetarian Recipes) hosted by the Zesty South Indian Kitchen.