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South Indian Coconut Rice - Thengai Sadam

Published: Nov 12, 2022 by Manju · This post may contain affiliate links · Leave a Comment

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A savory, lightly spiced and delicious Coconut Rice made the South Indian way. This Thengai Sadam is easy to make and is perfect for a weeknight meal.
Prep 5 mins
Cook 5 mins
Jump to Recipe Print Recipe
a blue bowl with coconut rice in it

South Indian Coconut Rice is a lightly spiced but extremely flavorful rice dish made with rice, fresh coconut, curry leaves, and asafetida. The crunchy lentils like urad dal and chana dal, and the cashew nuts pack in lots of extra flavor and crunch.  It is also called Thengai Sadam in the Tamil language.

This South Indian Coconut Rice recipe is vegan and gluten free (look for gluten free hing or skip it). It is ideal for those busy days when looking for a quick, non-fussy meal.

In South Indian households, this coconut rice is made for special occasions like Pongal and Aadi Perukku along with other variety rices like lemon rice, tamarind rice etc. The Tamil name for this kind of “variety rice” is called kalanda sadam. It is also great to pack in a lunch box.

A clay platter with clay bowls of different kinds of rice

Coconut rice is usually made with Ponni rice, but you can use any medium grained rice like Sona Masoori. This rice dish is especially easy to make if you have leftover rice. I sometimes make some extra rice when I make it, just so I have some leftovers to make this delicious coconut rice, lemon rice, tamarind rice, curd rice, tomato rice, or turmeric raw mango rice. It literally takes only 10 minutes, if you already have the rice ready.

Why you will love this coconut rice recipe

  • It is so very easy to make but is also bursting with flavors
  • It is vegan and gluten free
  • It is a great recipe to make with any leftover rice you may have

Ingredients 

The ingredient list for this South Indian coconut rice recipe is very simple. 

  • Rice - any short grained rice will do. Ponni rice is the most commonly used one, though Sona Masoori rice can also be used. In a pinch, basmati rice can also be used, but basmati is very fragrant and it may take away from the subtle flavors of this coconut rice.
  • Oil - coconut oil is highly recommended for this as it adds so much to that coconut flavor. But any other neutral cooking oil like avocado oil can be used.
  • Tempering ingredients - the base flavors of this coconut rice comes from the tempered seasoning. Urad dal, chana dal, dried red chillies, hing / asafetida, and curry leaves are added to the hot oil. Some recipes use black mustard seeds and green chillies too.
  • Nuts - cashews are the typical nuts used in south indian coconut rice recipe. You can add peanuts if you don't have cashews or can skip it completely in case of any allergies or restrictions.
  • Coconut - the main ingredient is of course coconut. Freshly grated coconut is what is used in this recipe. I usually use fresh grated coconut that is frozen. Just zap it in the microwave for about 30 secs for a cup of the frozen coconut and it is as good as new. I will not, however, use dry or desiccated coconut in this recipe.

South Indian Style Coconut Rice / Thengai Sadam recipe method

lentils in coconut oil in a pan
lentils and red chillies in a pan
nuts, lentils and curry leaves in a pan

Cook the rice

  • To cook the rice, you can use a pressure cooker, rice cooker, an Instant Pot or you can cook it in a saucepan on the stove top. Any method that you use to cook rice regularly will work. For 1 cup of Ponni rice, use 2 cups of water. It is ok if the rice is a little undercooked, we don't want it overcooked and mushy.
  • Once cooked, spread it out on a large plate or a sheet pan and allow it to cool down to room temperature. You can add a teaspoon of any neutral oil like avocado oil to keep the rice grain separate. Cooling it down completely is necessary to make the rice non sticky or mushy when mixing it with the other ingredients. This is where leftover rice works wonders.

Tempering

  • For the tempered seasoning, heat coconut oil in a pan large enough to hold all of the cooked rice as well. Keep it on medium heat. Add the chana dal / bengal gram dal, urad dal and the cashews first. Once they start to become golden brown, add the dried red chillies, green chilies (if using), curry leaves and hing. Give it a quick stir.

Roasting the coconut

  • Now add in the fresh grated coconut and while keeping the pan at low heat or low to medium heat, roast the coconut along with the other flavorings, till the coconut becomes golden brown along the edges and starts to turn a little crispy. Turn off the heat.

Adding the rice

  • Add salt and the cooked rice and mix it in gently. Check for salt and adjust if necessary.
  • Some add chopped cilantro / coriander leaves at this stage, but I usually leave it out.
coconut and nuts in a pan
toasted coconut and nuts in a pan
coconut rice in a pan

Serving Suggestions

Coconut rice is usually served with spicy potato roast or any other dry side dish and / or papaddam or appalam.

Recipe tips

  • 1 cup of raw ponni rice (or most other rice also) yields about 3-4 cups of cooked rice. Since the recipe measurement is for 1 cup of raw rice, you may need to adjust the salt and chillies according to taste. Less is always better, you can add more later. This recipe is generally forgiving, so you won't really have to make a lot of adjustments anyway.
  • As I said before, leftover rice is ideal to make this recipe. Making rice ahead is especially helpful when you don't have much time to cook and cool down the rice, like when you are making this to pack in a lunch box.
  • Instead of rice, you can use millets or even quinoa in this recipe. Make 3 ½ cups cooked grains to be used in this recipe. I will not use brown rice in this recipe though. I think it is too dense and the flavors in this recipe are too subtle to handle that denseness.
a blue bowl with coconut rice in it

Frequently asked questions

What is coconut rice made of?

The South Indian Coconut Rice is made of rice, coconut and a variety of spices.

Is Indian coconut rice the same as coconut milk rice?

No. This Indian style coconut rice uses freshly grated coconut and the rice is cooked in plain water, whereas in the coconut milk rice or coconut black bean rice, the rice is cooked in coconut milk which adds more sweetness to the rice dish.

What goes well with coconut rice?

Coconut rice is usually served with spicy potato roast and / or papaddam or appalam.

Does coconut rice taste like coconut?

The coconut rice does have a subtle flavor of coconut but it tasted more nutty than coconut-ty. It is because the coconut is toasted well and the addition of the lentils and cashews lends a nutty taste to it.

South Indian Coconut Rice - Thengai Sadam

A savory, lightly spiced and delicious Coconut Rice made the South Indian way. This Thengai Sadam is easy to make and is perfect for a weeknight meal.
Print Pin Rate
Course: Main
Cuisine: Indian - South Indian
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 5 minutes
Time to cook rice and to cool it: 30 minutes
Total Time: 45 minutes
Servings: 6 servings
Calories: 330kcal
Author: Manju
[recipe_key]

Ingredients

  • 1 cup uncooked rice I used Ponni rice
  • 2 cups water to cook the rice
  • 2 ½ tablespoon coconut oil divided
  • 1 teaspoon chana dal
  • 1 tsp urad dal
  • 3-4 dried red chillies
  • 8-10 curry leaves
  • ½ cup cashews
  • 1 cup grated coconut freshly frozen is fine or grate some fresh coconut
  • ½ teaspoon hing / asafetida
  • 1 ½ teaspoon salt

Instructions

Cook the rice

  • To cook the rice, you can use a pressure cooker, rice cooker, an Instant Pot or you can cook it in a saucepan on the stove top. Any method that you use to cook rice regularly will work. It is ok if the rice is a little undercooked, we don't want it overcooked and mushy.
    1 cup uncooked rice, 2 cups water
  • Once cooked, spread it out on a large plate or a sheet pan and allow it to cool down to room temperature. You can add a tablespoon of any neutral oil like avocado oil to keep the rice grain separate. Cooling it down completely is necessary to make the rice non sticky or mushy when mixing it with the other ingredients. This is where leftover rice works wonders.
    2 ½ tablespoon coconut oil

Tempering

  • For the tempered seasoning, heat coconut oil in a pan large enough to hold all of the cooked rice as well. Keep it on medium heat. Add the chana dal / bengal gram dal, urad dal and the cashews first. Once they start to become golden brown, add the dried red chillies, green chilies (if using), curry leaves and hing. Give it a quick stir.
    2 ½ tablespoon coconut oil, 1 teaspoon chana dal, 1 teaspoon urad dal, 3-4 dried red chillies, 8-10 curry leaves, ½ cup cashews, ½ teaspoon hing / asafetida

Roasting the coconut

  • Now add in the fresh grated coconut and while keeping the pan at low heat or low to medium heat, roast the coconut along with the other flavorings, till the coconut becomes golden brown along the edges and starts to turn a little crispy. Turn off the heat.
    1 cup grated coconut

Adding the rice

  • Add salt and the cooked rice and mix it in gently. Check for salt and adjust if necessary.
    1 ½ teaspoon salt
  • Some add chopped cilantro / coriander leaves at this stage, but I usually leave it out.

Notes

  • 1 cup of raw ponni rice (or most other rice also) yields about 3-4 cups of cooked rice. Since the recipe measurement is for 1 cup of raw rice, you may need to adjust the salt and chillies according to taste. Less is always better, you can add more later. This recipe is generally forgiving, so you won't really have to make a lot of adjustments anyway.
  • As I said before, leftover rice is ideal to make this recipe. Making rice ahead is especially helpful when you don't have much time to cook and cool down the rice, like when you are making this to pack in a lunch box.
  • Instead of rice, you can use millets or even quinoa in this recipe. Make 3 ½ cups cooked grains to be used in this recipe. I will not use brown rice in this recipe though. I think it is too dense and the flavors in this recipe are too subtle to handle that denseness.

Nutrition

Serving: 1cup | Calories: 330kcal | Carbohydrates: 34g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 20g | Saturated Fat: 14g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 3g | Sodium: 596mg | Potassium: 265mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 265IU | Vitamin C: 59mg | Calcium: 30mg | Iron: 2mg
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