MAVINKAI CHITRANNA (RAW MANGO RICE )

Brief Description About Cuisine Of Karnataka: Karnataka is a densely populated south western state of India. Karnataka is not only famous for its rich culture and heritage but also for the passion kannadigas(people of Karnataka) have for their food.This Cuisine traces its origin to Iron Age and is one of the oldest surviving cuisines. This Cuisine has also been mentioned by great poets, writers like Pampa Maha Kavi, sushrutha, etc in their historical works.

Some of the famous dishes from Karnataka are benne dosa,raggi rotti,akki rotti, bisi bele bhath, chitranna, jolad rotti, happla, kosambri, raggi mudde, vangi bhath, paddu, upittu, sambar, avare kai saru, idli-vada sambar, mangaluru bajji. Some of the famous sweet dishes are Mysore Pak,Kesari Bhath, chiroti, kunda, dharwad peda.

Classification: The Kannada Cuisine is mainly divided into two diff types Based on the types of crops grown in a particular region:

North Karnataka Cuisine: This cuisine is primarily found in northern parts of Karnataka like Bijapur, Belgaum, Dharward, Gulburga etc. The Primary cereals grown here are jowar and rice. Based on the crops grown the local cuisine mainly has dishes like jowar roti, muddi palya(spinach with lentils), badnikai palya(eggplant masala), shenga undi(sweet made of dry peanuts),rice and jhunka( curry made from channa daal powder) etc.

South Karnataka Cuisine: This Cuisine is primarily found in southern parts of Karnataka like mysore, Tumkur, Bangalore, Kolar, Mandhya region. The primary crops grown here are ragi and rice. Based On the crops grown the local cuisine mainly has dishes like raggi mudde(raggi ball), avare kai sar(spicy hyacinth bean curry) mutton sar, bisi bele bath(spicy lentil and rice), chitranna(mixed lemon, mango rice), puliogre(tamarind rice) etc.

Coastal Karnataka Cuisine : This cuisine is primarily found is coastal parts of karnataka like Mangalore, Udupi, uttara Karnataka. Coconut milk, Fresh ground coconut, mutton, sea food, poultry,rice, jack fruit are widely used in this cuisine. Some of the dishes of this cuisine are neer dosa, coconut chutney, tumbuli, fish curry, jackfruit dishes etc. Coastal Krnataka cuisine again has been classified into Mangalorean cuisine, Malnad cuisine, Navayath cuisine, Udupi cuisine.

I will be writing about Mavinkai chitranna(raw mango rice), which is one of the most easiest dish which hails from Southern Karntataka itself and can be also be prepared with very simple locally available ingredients like boiled rice, grated raw mango and some spices.

Mavinkai Chitranna:

Basic information:

• Cooking time:10 mins
• Prepartion time:5 mins
• Servings: 2

Ingredients Required:

• Oil- 2 Tablespoon
• Mustard seeds- 1 Teaspoon
• Bengal Gram(Chana Daal)- Half Teaspoon
• Split black lentil(split urad daal)- Half Teaspoon
• Peanuts- One Tablespoon
• Dry red chili- 2 or 3 Broken into Half
• Curry leaves- 5-6 Leaves
• Green chilies- 2 Finely chopped
• Grated Ginger- 1 teaspoon
• Turmeric powder- 1 teaspoon
• Fresh grated Coconut- 2 table spoon
• Raw green mango(grated)-1 cup
• Cooked rice- 2 cups
• Asafoetida(hing)- 1 pinch
• Salt to taste

Ingrediants to garnish:

• Coriander leaves- 5-6 leaves (finely chopped)

How to make:

• Wash the rice, pre-soak it and boil it until its fully cooked. Keep it aside for it to cool.Previously Left over cooked white rice can also be used for this recipe. If you are a health buff you can also replace the white rice with cooked brown rice.
• Simultaneously while the rice cooks, wash the raw mango,peel it, grate it and measure up to 1 cup.
• Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a pan on medium heat. Add mustard seeds once oil is hot, to let them pop.
• Once you hear the popping sound add bengal gram,split black lentils,peanuts.
• Stir Continuously until they roast and turn golden brown.
• Add Curry leaves and dry red chilies and fry for few seconds.
• Add the turmeric powder, ginger and green chilies and saute for few more seconds. Make sure its on low flame.
• Add Asafoetida then immediately add raw grated mango and salt.
• Mix well and cook until the raw mango is tender and partially cooked(ensure its not over cooked to avoid making it into a paste).
• Add grated coconut to this mixture and stir well.
• Add cooked rice and mix very gently to avoid breaking of rice grains(in order to avoid it being a paste).
• Cover the pan and cook for 2-3 minutes until the rice heats up and the raw mango mixture is well mixed with the rice.
• Turn off the stove and its ready to be served.
• It can be garnished with chopped coriander leaves.
• It goes best with potato chips, pickles and curd.

Conclusion: Hope you enjoy cooking and serving this authentic south Karnataka dish to your family and friends. Keep watching this space for more easy authentic Karnataka recipes from my kitchen to yours.