Thayir Sadam – Curd or Yogurt Rice
There has been so much happening the past several days. I automatically gravitated towards making Thayir Sadum or Curd Rice. Kitchen and stove replacement, house being painted and work transition. All good, but a little disruptive here and there. That combined with the hot weather, made me dig up this simple classic. Curd or Yogurt Rice, known as Thayir Sadam is a classic South Indian recipe. Simple, practical, and very flavorful. Just what is needed to beat the heat.
My Thayir Sadum Story
I find that I can easily get a good rice texture using the instant pot. But, honestly, as long as you have leftover rice and yogurt around, you can make this any way you want.
My version is a little brighter with the addition of pommegranate seeds. And, our favorite accompaniment is some potato chips. There is something magical about salty potato chips and tangy flavorful rice. This is adapted from the Instant Indian cookbook.
This is a popular lunch box dish as it served at room temperature. And you can make your own instant pot yogurt, just like I do.
About Thayir Sadum
This simple dish originates from Southern India. One of the many one pot dishes like Bise Bile Bath. Thayir Shadum is a little bit more, it is almost an emotion. It meshes two essential ingredients on the South Indian table yogurt and rice. It is a soothing staple on hot days, it travels well and is something that is omnipresent across South Indian meals.
A few tips and tricks
There are a few essentials to get the texture right,
- The rice should be soft or mashed to ensure softness. If I am making it for this dish, I cook it for 6 minutes of pressure in the instant pot.
- Ideally a short grained neutral tasting rice will get you better results something like Basmati rice.
- You can add in some milk to get a looser creamier texture, but, I find just adding a generous amount of yogurt works well too.
- Keep the seasonings simple – chilies, asafetida, ginger and mustard seeds. Why mess with perfection?
- There are variations with diced mangoes, along with or in addition to the pomegranate seeds.
- A good Indian pickle is also a good accompaniment to this dish.
Fun fact: This is a staple from my husband’s bachelor days. Seeing this resurface after a while made is so happy that he polished off most of this with extreme delight.
And on today, the last day of July, our 22nd wedding aniversary I want to try a month of gratitude. Yes, the kind you do in November, except I want to try it in August.
If you like this recipe and want more ideas, do join my Indian Instant Pot Facebook group. Of course Instant Indian my Indian Instant Pot Cookbook is ready for order, joining its siblings The Bengali Five Spice Chronicles and Spices and Seasons.
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Thayir Sadum or yogurt rice is a great summer dish from South India.
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup rice
- 1 and 1/2 cups whole milk yogurt
- 1 and 1/2 teasppoons salt
- 1/4 teaspoon hing or asafetida
- 1 tablespoon oil
- 1 teaspoon black mustard seeds
- 1/2 teaspoon fenugreek seeds (methi) (optional)
- 1 teaspoon minced ginger
- 2 dried whole chilies
- 8 to 10 fresh curry leaves
- 1/2 cup fresh pomegranate seeds
- 1 tablespoon chopped cilantro
Instructions
- Place the rice in the instant pot with 1 cup of water. Set to 6 minutes of pressure and allow a natural release. Alternately cook on the stove top until very soft.
- Remove the lid, and mix the rice well. It should have a very soft consistency.
- Beat the yogurt well with the salt and set aside.
- In a large pan heat the oil and add in the asafetida and mustard seeds and allow the mustard seeds to pop. Add in the fenugreek seeds if using, stir in the ginger, curry leaves, and whole chilies.
- Add in the rice and mix into the spices.
- Gently add in the yogurt mixing well. Allow it to cook for about 2 minutes, enough to get warm but not come to a simmer.
- Turn off the heat.
- Stir in the pomegranate seeds.
- Garnish with chopped cilantro and serve.
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