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    Home » By Category » Rice Varieties » Other Varieties

    Published: Apr 13, 2014 · Modified: Jul 21, 2020 by Usha Rao

    Bisi Bele Bath from Karnataka

    Karnataka is one of the four South Indian States. It is surrounded by the three southern states on the east & the south. To the north of Karnataka is Maharashtra, to the east is Andhra Pradesh, south east is Tamil Nadu, south west is Kerala, to the west are Arabian Sea and Laccadive Sea (Lakshadweep Sea), and Goa on the North West.   Karnataka was originally known as State of Mysore and renamed in 1973. Mysore is the cultural city and has a long history. Mysore was the capital of Mysore Kingdom for centuries and has a rich heritage and culture, and the city is known for its Dasara celebrations. Capital city Bangalore or Beguluru is the Silicon Valley of India.

    Growing up I associated Karnataka with its capital Bangalore, the city of Mysore, Mysore Sandal soap and sandalwood. Bangalore & Mysore was one of the few school trips I went on. This was over 30 years ago and that was the only time I visited Mysore. All I remember about that trip is Maharaja Palace in Mysore, Brindavan gardens few kilometers from the city of Mysore and Mysore sandal soap factory in Bangalore.

    Sambar Rice, Karnataka Cuisine, Blogging Marathon

    Cuisine of the state varies from region to region and is influenced by neighboring states. Rice and ragi are staple in the south, shorgam (jola) and rice in the north. Some of the popular dishes from the state are bisi bele bath, vangi bath (eggplant~brinjal rice), ragi rotti (finger millet pancake), akki rotti (spicy rice flour pancake), idly vada sambar, kesari bath, Mysorepak. Mysore masala dosa has its traces to Udipi, a town in the southwestern part of the state. Kodagu or Coorg region is famous for its pork curry and coastal region has many seafood specialties. And that pork curry is on my to try list and have also bookmarked couple of recipes.

    Sambar Rice, Karnataka Cuisine, Blogging Marathon

    Although ingredients and cooking styles vary depending on the region, a typical Kannadiga meal (oota) includes kosambari, pickle, palya, gojju, raita, dessert, thovve, saaru, majjige huli, chitranna and rice. The traditional dessert served is paaysa. All the information about the cuisine is from wiki and more I read about the different food, the more confused I got. I called up one of my Kannadiga friends and she explained the difference. Palya is a vegetable stir fry, with simple tadka and spice powder such as vangi powder is sprinkled for additional flavor. Gojju is a sweet and sour tamarind based curry, similar to pulusu from Andhra cuisine. Huli is sour gravy with vegetables and lentils, similar to sambar. Huli is also prepared with yogurt or buttermilk and is called majjige huli and, only vegetables are used in this and no lentils. Saaru is rasam. Coconut is used in almost all the preparations and it can be fresh or dry coconut, although fresh is preferred. Little bit of jaggery is added to almost all the preparations such as to saaru, huli and gojju, especially in the Mysore region. Oh, I forgot to mention kosambari is a salad.

    Sambar Rice, Karnataka Cuisine, Blogging Marathon, One pot Meal

    To showcase the cuisine of this state I chose bisi bele bath (BBB), a classic dish from Karnataka. BBB always reminds me of the BBB that I ate at my cousin's place some 19+ years ago. During that visit, my cousin's co-sister prepared this delectable BBB that I can never forget. After that, nothing matched her BBB. It was so long ago and now I don't remember how it tasted except for the fact that it was the best BBB I had ever eaten. When I was looking a dish for this state, I could not make up my mind. One day as I was casually searching for Kannidaga cuisine, I landed up on Vani's blog. In one of her posts, she mentioned that her BBB is the most popular post on her blog. So it was decided, BBB from Vani's blog it is, for Karnataka!

    If you noticed my BBB photos, you might have already guesses first two were taken on one day & the last two on another day. Yes, I made it twice and loved it both the times. The first time I made it, I cooked BBB for 5 whistles in a pressure cooker and it was too soft, even the vegetables were overcooked but it tasted awesome. The second time I made it, I followed the directions and cooked it for only 3 whistles. Yet, my BBB didn't look the BBB in Vani's pictures. I used basmai rice and wondered if that had anything to do with it. It did cross my mind when I was preparing it but that is the only rice I use everyday and I went ahead with it. I left a comment to Vani and she replied back that regular rice is to be used and not basmati rice. Next time I will cook it with regular rice. Nonetheless, this recipe is a keeper. And Mr.U who doesn't really like any other rice preparations except biryani, pulao and fried rice liked the BBB both the times I prepared it.

    Sambar Rice, Karnataka Cuisine, Blogging Marathon. One Pot Meal

    Huli Powder
    Source: Mysoorean
    Ingredients:

    • ½ cup Coriander Seeds
    • ⅓ cup Dry Red Chilies OR 12 – 13 Red chilies broken into 2-3 pieces or about 1 ½ - 2” pieces (1:3 ratio Guntur hot chilies to byadagi chilies are recommended but I used regular red chilies)
    • ½ - 1 tbsp. Chana Dal (this about 1/16 cup)
    • ¼ teaspoon Methi Seeds ~ Fenugreek Seeds
    • 1" Cinnamon Stick ~ Dalchini
    • ⅛ tsp. Hing ~ Asafetida
    • ½ twig or 8-10 Curry Leaves

    Preparation:

    • Heat ¼ teaspoon oil on medium low heat, fry coriander seeds and curry leaves until curry leaves are crisp and coriander seeds are roasted. Keep aside. This will take about 3-5 minutes.
    • Add another ¼ teaspoon of oil and fry the red chilies on low heat until chilies are roasted and seeds turn red. This will take another 3-4 minutes. Remove the chilies and keep aside.
    • Fry chana dal on low heat until slightly red and keep aside. This will take about 2 minutes.
    • Add ⅛ teaspoon oil and fry cinnamon and hing for a minute. Then add methi seeds and fry until slightly brown and keep them aside.
    • Once all the spices cool, grind all the spices together to make a powder.
    • Store the powder in an air tight container.

    Bisi Bele Bath
    Source: Vani from Mysoorean
    Total Time: 25 - 35 minutes (excludes cooling time of the pressure cooker)
    Preparation: 10 - 15 minutes
    Cooking Time: 15 - 20 minutes
    Serves: 5 - 6

    Ingredients:

    • 1 cup Rice (Recommended regular rice although I used basmati. I used regular measuring cup and NOT the rice cooker cup)
    • ¾ cup Toor Dal
    • 4 big Pearl Onions
    • 8 - 12 Green Beans
    • ½ - 1 Carrot
    • 3 baby Potatoes or 1 medium to large Potato
    • ½ cup chopped Spinach or handful of Spinach Leaves
    • 1 tbsp. Homemade Tamarind Paste
    • 3 - 4 tsp. Salt (adjust to taste)
    • Bisi Bele Bath Masala (ingredients for masala mentioned below tadka ingredients)

    Tadka

    • 4 – 5 tbsp. Oil (I used 4 tbsp.)
    • 8 – 10 Curry Leaves
    • 3 – 4 long Dry Red Chilies
    • 1 ½ tsp. Mustard Seeds
    • ⅛ – ¼ tsp. Asafetida ~ Hing (I am not used to using hing in my coking so used only a pinch (⅛ tsp) of it)
    • ½ - 1 tsp. Turmeric Powder

    Bisi Bele Bath Masala:

    • ⅓ – ½ cup chopped Dry Coconut (I used ⅓ cup)
    • 2 tsp. Huli Powder or Sambar Powder (I used huli powder)
    • 2 tbsp. Coriander Seeds
    • 1” Cinnamon Stick (if using sambar powder use 3-4 sticks)
    • 3 – 4 Cloves
    • 2 – 3 Cardamoms
    • 1 tsp. Poppy Seeds ~ Khus Khus
    • ¼ tsp. Asafetida ~ Hing
    • 6-8 Curry Leaves

    Preparation:

    • Masala Paste: Heat ¼ - ½ tsp. oil in a pan to dry roast the bisi bele bath masala ingredients. Roast all the ingredients except coconut and huli powder. Once the spices are roasted, transfer to a plate and let cool. Grind the roasted spices, coconut and huli powder with little water to make a paste. I used about ¼ - ⅓ cup of water to make the paste.
    • Bisi Bele Bath: Wash rice and dal, and soak it in water until ready to use.
    • Cut the vegetables to desired size. Peel and cut each baby potato into 8 pieces. Cut the tips of the beans and cut into 1” pieces. Peel and cut carrot to 1” piece. Chop spinach. Cut mixed vegetables were 2 – 2 ½ cups.
    • I used a 4 quart or 4 liter pressure cooker and recommend using at least this size cooker. Heat oil in the cooker for the tadka. Add red chilies, mustard seeds, hing if using, curry leaves and let the mustard seeds splutter. Add turmeric powder and stir.
    • Add vegetables and give it a good stir.
    • Drain the water and add rice and dal. Roast for a minute or two.
    • Add 6 cups of water, tamarind paste, bisi bele bath masala, salt and give it a good stir.
    • Close the pressure cooker and cook for 3 whistles. Vani says "It is a whistle more than when you cook plain dal. Once cooled, mix well."
    • Let the pressure cool down and open the cooker. It took almost 20 minutes for the pressure to cool.
    • Give it a good stir and serve hot. Bisi bele bath is usually served with potato chips, rice papad and/or raita. The first time I served it with fryums, sadudana chips, potato chips and raita. The second time I made it, I served it with some fried fish and yogurt.

    Note:

    • I used potatoes, beans, carrots, onions and spinach. Peas, corn and vegetables of one’s choice can be used.
    • The first time I cooked it for 5 whistles on high and 1 ½ minute on low. the rice and vegetables were over cooked. The taste was good and tasted great when hot. But after it cooled, it like spicy baby food. So please make sure not to over cook it. The rice in bisi bele bath is usually little over cooked but make sure not to make it too soft and mushy. The second time I cooked for 3 whistles. Blue bowl bisi bele bath is in blue bowls.

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    1. PJ says

      June 02, 2014 at 9:08 am

      Both the preparations look yum Usha. This has recently become my fav and I follow my grandmoms recipe.

      Reply
    2. Manjula Bharath says

      May 28, 2014 at 1:06 am

      My most fav dish from karnataka 🙂 I just love to have them with papadams .. your looks very inviting and tempting usha 🙂 again a fabulous piece of photography !!

      Reply
    3. Suma Gandlur says

      May 08, 2014 at 5:01 pm

      Love the clicks. My all time favorite dish..

      Reply
    4. themadscientistskitchen says

      May 01, 2014 at 7:03 am

      Such tempting pictures. I love this BBB wanna dip in the screen.

      Reply
    5. Pavani says

      April 27, 2014 at 5:25 pm

      Lovely clicks Usha. BBB is a favorite in our house because it's filling and hearty.

      Reply
    6. harini says

      April 21, 2014 at 3:59 pm

      Beautiful pictures Usha. The classic representation of a Kannada Classic!!

      Reply
    7. Jayanthi says

      April 17, 2014 at 10:14 am

      such pretty bowls.. bisibele bath looks delicious

      Reply
    8. nalini says

      April 16, 2014 at 9:37 pm

      My all time favorite,looks flavorful and delicious..nice to read about your memories...

      Reply
    9. Gayathri Kumar says

      April 15, 2014 at 9:20 am

      We have it topped with kara boondhi. It tastes wonderful. Awesome looking BBB>..

      Reply
    10. Varada says

      April 14, 2014 at 8:21 pm

      Lovely pictures! Looks like you nailed the flavor. It is weird how we can remember such details from 19 years ago.

      Reply
    11. Vaishali Sabnani says

      April 14, 2014 at 7:47 am

      the BBB looks so tempting..very well captured..love the background..super!

      Reply
    12. cookingwithsapana says

      April 13, 2014 at 12:26 pm

      Bisi bele bhaat looks so delicious , loved your clicks....

      Reply
    13. Sowmya says

      April 13, 2014 at 9:57 am

      can I grab that bowl of Bisi Bela Bath??? looks super tempting!!

      Reply
    14. Priya says

      April 13, 2014 at 9:49 am

      I want that bowl of BBB,soo tempting and seriously hard to resist, same here all i remember about Bangalore is its Palace, brindavan garden and mysore sandal soap factory, seriously i never tried to plan a trip to Bangalore after that.

      Reply
    15. brijupb says

      April 13, 2014 at 9:19 am

      Lovely pictures, looks tempting

      Reply
    16. Srivalli says

      April 13, 2014 at 9:15 am

      Such beautiful pictures Usha..and very nice reading about your growing up time..BBB is always the best!..:)..loved both the pictures and good that you already made it twice..

      Reply

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