Cranberry Puliodharai (Spiced Cranberry rice)

Category: Rice Varieties
Preparation Time: 10 mins 
Cooking Time: 15 to 20 mins
Servings: 3 servings

Eating Seasonally is healthier!  Seasonal eating means that we're eating fresh produce at a time of year when it's naturally ready for harvest. During Thanks giving season, we can get fresh cranberries in the markets. 

Cranberry Puliodharai

Cranberries are small, hard, round, red fruits with a flavor of both bitterness and sourness. I was never used to these beautiful cute fruits but I tried incorporating in our usual cooking.  I usually used them for preparing our South Indian dishes like sambar, rasam, pickle or a quick rice. 

I tried replacing tamarind with cranberry in our traditional puliodharai / Tamarind rice and it tastes great :) 

Ingredients:

• Rice - 1 cup

• Fresh / Frozen Cranberries - 2 cups (Adjust as per taste)

• Sesame Oil -  2 Tbsp

• Mustard seeds -  1/2 tsp

• Channa Dhal -  3/4 Tbsp

• Split Urad dhal -  1/2 Tbsp

• Raw Peanuts  - 3 Tbsp

• Curry leaves -  few

• Red chilly, broken -  1 (adjust as per spice level)

• Salt -  to taste

To roast & grind:

• Chana dal - 3/4 Tbsp

• Whole Urad dal - 3/4 Tbsp

• Red chillies - 3-4

• Coriander seeds - 3/4 Tbsp

• Methi seeds - 1/2 tsp

• Black pepper - 1/2 tsp

• Cumin seeds - 1 tsp

• White sesame seeds - 1 1/2 Tbsp

• Dry coconut - 1/4 cup

• Asafoetida - 1/4 tsp

Method:

• Rice: Wash and soak 1 cup of rice for atleast 30 mins and then cook as usual in such a way the grains are separate. Once its done, spread it in a plate and allow it to cool
• Grind the cranberries into a fine puree
• Roast & Powder: Heat a pan in medium flame, add the Chana dal, Urad dal and red chillies and roast for 2-3 mins until the dals turn golden. Then add the Coriander seeds, methi seeds and black pepper, saute for 1-2 mins. Finally add the cumin seeds, sesame seeds and dry coconut, saute in low flame until they smell good. Finally add the asafoetida and switch off. Allow them to cool down and grind to a powder

• Heat sesame oil in the pan, add the mustard seeds followed by Peanuts. Once the peanuts become roatsed add the channa dal, Urad dal, red chilli and curry leaves. Saute until the dals turn golden   

• Now add the cranberry puree, required salt and saute for 2-3 mins in medium flame  

• Once it started to boil, reduce the flame and cook for another 4-5 mins   

• Add the ground powder and mix well  

• Cook for 2-3 mins in medium-low flame  

• Then switch off; If we're not sure of the sourness, we can take 2-3 tablespoons of the cooked paste and keep aside. We can add it later as per the taste.
• Now add the cooked & cooled rice  

• Mix gently until it gets mixed
• It would be better if we could give some resting time before serving so that the flavors are well mixed with the rice. But it also tastes good even without any resting time :)