Matki Bhaat

Bhaat is rice in and Matki is moth (मोठ ) ..basically this is a rice recipe with sprouted matki beans,handed over to me by my sweet Maharashtrian (ex)neighbour who is a cook par excellence in so many ways. I have learnt a lot from her and I now don't meet her so often as I have shifted homes and so the exchange of recipes (and bowls full of each other's respective regional treats ) has become very limited :(( 

I buy readymade sprouts but you can make the sprouts at home yourself. Just soak the beans in a wet muslin cloth , tie the cloth and leave in a strainer and you will have sprouts ready in less than a full 24 hours, maybe the heat here speeds up things . You can substitute the matki with any other sprouts but the taste of matki is unmistakable :) Have a close look at the picture below to identify what matki looks like..

Ingredients

2 cups matki sprouts

1 cup rice (long grain)

1 teaspoon roasted jeera powder

1 teaspoon roasted coriander powder

1 onion, finely chopped

1 green chilli, finely chopped

1 teaspoon mustard seeds (rai)

pinch heeng

1/2 teaspoon haldi

2 tablespoons oil

1/2 teaspoon garlic paste

1/4 cup chopped corainder

2 cups water

Salt

Lemon wedges

Fried onion, to garnish

1.Soak the rice for 15 minutes in water

2.Heat the oil in a pressure cooker. Add the heeng and the rai seeds. When they splutter, add the onion and green chilli and cook till onion is soft on a medium flame.

3. Then add the garlic paste (don't add this earlier) and cook for 15-20 seconds. Add the jeera powder, coriander powder, haldi, salt and fry for 30 seconds. 

4. Add the sprouts and toss in the mixture and cook for a minute. 

5. Add the chopped coriander, salt, water on a high flame.

6. Drain and add the soaked rice. Cover the pressure cooker.

7. After first whistle, reduce to a slow flame and leave on sim for 5-6 minutes. Turn off the gas and wait for the steam to release.

If you are cooking in a pan and not a pressure cooker, then add the rice after the water is added and begins boiling. Cover slightly with a lid and leave to cook on a slow flame. When all the water is soaked, cover with a tight lid and turn off the gas. Leave the rice to cook in the steam and open only after 15 minutes.

In either case, serve hot hot with the garnish (lemon and fried onions) and with my standard rice accompaniments - papad and curd :)