Lemon rice or Chitrannam or Chitranna is a delicious south Indian dish made with steam/plain rice and flavored with the tanginess of Lemon juice giving an amazing tangy flavor and freshness to the rice. It a quick and easy rice recipe with distinct flavors of lemon juice, curry leaves, turmeric, whole chilies, and mustard seeds.
Lemon juice giving an amazing tangy flavor and freshness to the rice. You can customize the strength of the tangy lemon flavor by adding as much or as little fresh lemon juice after cooking so everyone can enjoy their own perfect bowl of Lemon Rice.
When you have leftover rice, you need just 5 minutes to make this South Indian lemon rice. No unnecessary ingredients or spices needed. It’s wonderfully easy and so good you will be eating straight from the pot.
My Son just loves this recipe, so whenever I am out of any idea of what to make, this recipe comes first in my mind. A few simple ingredients transform regular old white rice into a brightly flavorful pot of lemon rice, which makes a lovely, savory side dish.
This delicious South Indian rice dish is the best option to make when you are in a hurry, as you can make it using leftover rice. It’s quick, hassle-free, and also makes a great meal to be served in lunch box.
To make Lemon Rice follow the detailed step by step recipe posted below.
Do try other similar recipes :
- Mushroom Fried Rice
- Air Fried Stuffed Mushrooms
- Garlic Fried Rice
- Restaurant Style Sambar
- Mini Uttapam
- Paniyaram
- Instant Rava Uttapam
- Bread Uttapam
- Egg Fried Rice
- Egg Dum Biryani
- Drumstick Sambar
Preparation Time: 2mins ∏ Cooking Time: 5mins ∏ Servings: 1-2 person
Level: Beginners (Easy) ∏ Measurement: 1 Cup ≡ 250 ml ≡ 250gm
Ingredients Checklist:
How to make Lemon Rice:
Step1: Heat a skillet or pan over a low-medium flame. When the pan is hot, add the oil. Once the oil is shimmering, add 1 teaspoon mustard seeds, 1/2 teaspoon urad dal, 1/2 teaspoon chana dal. Reduce the heat to low and cook until seeds pop.
Step2: Now add 2 tablespoon peanut and 7-8 cashew. Saute them well on low-medium flame for 2-3 minutes.
Step3: Then add chopped ginger, dried red chili, green chilies, and curry leaves along with a pinch of asafoetida. Saute for 30 secs until the curry leaves are fragrant.
Step4: Now add 1/4 teaspoon turmeric powder, 2 tablespoon lemon juice (or as required) along with salt as per taste. Turn off the flame.
Step5: Further, add 2 cups of cooked rice. Try not to use the fresh hot rice, otherwise, it will break into pieces while mixing it.
Step6: Turn on the flame and keep it on low-medium heat. Using a spoon mix well making sure everything is well combined. Cook until rice is warm.
Step7: Adjust salt and lemon juice to taste at this point. Add chopped fresh coriander leaves. Then turn off the flame.
Step8: Lemon rice is ready. Serve it with papad or pickle of your choice.
Watch this video for making Easy Lemon Rice Recipe
Tips:
- Adjust the amount of lemon juice and chili as per your taste.
- For best result try to use leftover rice. Do not use fresh warm rice otherwise it will turn mushy.
- Do not boil the lemon juice. It makes the dish bitter. So be careful to remove the pan from heat once you added lemon juice.
