A - Z Karnataka Recipe Series ~ O for Oodhalina Bisibele Bhath

So far in my 'A - Z' Karnataka recipe series,
A - Akki Halbai
B - Biscuit Roti
C - Congress Kadalekayi
D - Davanagere Benne Dose
E - Ellu Pajji
F - Field Beans / Avarekalu Payasa
G - Girmit
H - Hitakida Avarekalu Huli
I - Iyengar Bakery Style Masala Toast
J - Jolada Vade
K - Kumbalakayi Idli
L - Limbe Hannina Gojju
M - Mysore Pak

N - Nuchinunde

'O' dishes / culinary terms in Kannada:
There are some traditional and popular recipe choices for the alphabet 'O' from Karnataka cuisine like obbattu, obbattu saaru, oralu chitranna, ottu shavige and open dose. 'O' also stands for 'oota' and 'outhana' which means a meal and a feast respectively. Anything dried is called 'ona' and the tempering / tadka is called oggarane in Kannada.

I opted to go with oodhalu which is barnyard millet in Kannada for today's post in spite of the 'O' choices I had. My A - Z Karnataka Recipe series appeared incomplete with out the inclusion of bisisbele bhath in it. I have already posted the standard version on my blog and I therefore decided to prepare it with oodhalu. Bisibele bhath is a rice - lentil dish in Karnataka cuisine that is both traditional and popular. The rice- lentil- vegetable mixture is leisurely cooked in a pot on stove top and then freshly ground spices are added which lend the characteristic, special flavor to the bhath. 

The words 'Bisi-Bele-Bhath' literally translate the essence of the dish in a nutshell. Bisi literally means hot in Kannada, temperature wise. The syllable 'bi' is pronounced as in the word 'Bin' while 'si' as in the word 'Sin'. Bhath is a term generally used for rice dishes. Now coming to the middle part of the name. Though not phonetically correct, somehow the accepted spelling is 'bele'. Now the syllable 'be' is pronounced as 'bay'. 'Le' is pronounced as 'lay'. (Actually English language doesn't have the la sound used here. You kind of roll out your tongue and say it). Here, the la used is the one that comes after the Indian alphabet 'ha'. Now bele refers to the lentils used in the dish. Bisibelebhath so literally means hot rice - lentil mixture.

Bisibele bhath is a nutritious and filling one pot dish that is delicious as it is but substituting millet for rice makes it more healthier. Don't let the long list of ingredients intimidate you. It doesn't take much time to cook this dish if pressure cooker is used and you have the spice powder handy. I always keep homemade spice powder handy and in fact I cook this dish when I am looking for a quick one pot meal. Store bought spice powder can be used in a cinch though home made spice powder tastes superior. Use equal quantity of spicy and byadai chillies in the spice powder ingredients. The latter add the hue to the powder. I have run out of byadagi variety chillies this time and that's why my bhath is lighter in color. Bisibele bhath is served as a special or festive meal at homes / functions and also as a breakfast / lunch option at restaurants. If you are looking for other variations, check these posts.

Bisibelebhath
Brown Rice Bisibelehulianna
Cracked Wheat Bisibele Huli
Oats - Masoor Dal Bisi Bele Huli
Poha Bisibelehuli
Quinoa Bisibelehuli

Ingredients: (Yield - 6 generous servings) 
3/4 cup barnyard millet / oodhalu
1/2 cup pigeon peas / yellow lentils / toordal
About 2 cups chopped vegetables (I used 2 small carrots, 2 small potatoes, 1 big sized tomato,  25 -30 green beans)
1/8 tsp. turmeric powder 
1 tbsp. tamarind puree 
Salt to taste 
Ingredients for bisibele bhath masala powder: 
1.5 tbsp. split chickpeas / chanadal 
1.5 tbsp skinned black gram / uradadal 
1 tbsp. coriander seeds
2 one inch cinnamon pieces 
4 pieces of moggu 
4 spicy red dried chillies
2 - 3 tbsp. grated dried coconut 
Ingredients for tadka: 
2 tbsp. ghee 
1 tsp mustard seeds
2 tbsp. cashews
A sprig of curry leaves

Directions:
* Wash millet and lentils thoroughly and drain the water. Add them along with vegetables, turmeric powder and about 2 cups of water to a pressure cooker directly and cook till they are done. Alternatively, they can be cooked in a sturdy pot. It needs intermittent stirring and the water needs to be added accordingly.
* Meanwhile add split chickpeas and skinned black gram to a sauté pan and dry roast them on medium heat. Add the remaining ingredients mentioned under 'the masala powder' list when they start to change their color. Toast until the coriander seeds start to turn a few shades darker and the split chickpeas and black gram had turned reddish. Turn off the heat and let cool the toasted ingredients. Once cool, grind them into a fine powder.
* When the valve pressure is gone, remove the cooker lid. Add the prepared bisibele bhath powder, salt, tamarind to the cooked millet- lentil mixture and mix well. Add water as neededto adjust the consistency (about 1 cup). Let the mixture come to a boil and then simmer the mixture for about 5 minutes.
* Meanwhile, heat ghee in a small sauté pan. Add the tadka ingredients and toast till the cashews turn golden brown. Remove from heat and add the tadka to the cooked bisibele huli and mix well.
* Serve with papads, chips or kara boondi.

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