
Give your regular old plain rice a break with this flavor packed rice with tomatoes and freshly ground spices.
A side of raita or even just plain yogurt with this Tomato Rice and your meal is set!
I first read this recipe years ago in a blog ( which unfortunately does not exist now) and this has been my go-to recipe for Tomato Rice ever since. I have made this for everyday meals, for guests, for parties, even taken it for potlucks and every single time, every one has raved about it. And every single time, every one expects a plain something rice, only to be surprised by the flavor brought in by all the fresh spices and how they complement the flavor of the tomatoes.
This is especially a great recipe to make if you have some leftover cooked rice and need to make something a little special out of it. All the ingredients in it are fairly simple , that you will find in any Indian pantry. If you don’t have a full fledged pantry, they are all available in most stores or international grocery stores or online stores. I have linked the ingredients to where you can buy them. ( they are affiliate links though, which means you don’t pay anything extra but I get a little commission if you buy through the link. So, thanks
Here are a few popular rice recipes:
- Spinach Chickpeas Brown Rice Pulao
- Cauli Rice Peas Pulao
- Turmeric Raw Mango Rice
- Paneer Methi Pulao
- Chicken Pulao
- Keema Biryani
📖 Recipe

Tomato Rice
Ingredients
- 1 cup long grained rice
- 3 medium sized tomatoes
- 1 onion
- 2 green chillies
- ½ teaspoon turmeric powder
- salt to taste
- cilantro for garnish
For the Masala ( to be ground into a paste)
- 5 - 6 dry red chillies
- 1 ½ teaspoon coriander seeds
- ¼ teaspoon fenugreek seeds
- 2 tablespoon chana dal
- ½ teaspoon asafetida
- ¼ cup grated coconut
For the Tadka
- Oil
- 1 teaspoon brown mustard seeds
- few curry leaves
Don't forget to check out Step-by-step instructions with photos in the body of the post above
Instructions
- Cook the rice and keep aside.
- Heat a little oil in a pan, add the ingredients for the masala and fry them for a few minutes. Let them cool. Grind them to a coarse paste and keep aside.
- In the same pan, heat some more oil, add the tadka and let the mustard seeds splutter. Add the onions, green chillies, turmeric powder and saute for a while. Add the chopped tomatoes to it.
- After a while, add the ground paste to it and let it fry for a while. Add salt to taste and finally add the rice and mix well.
- Garnish with chopped cilantro leaves, get some curd n papad and you are all ready to enjoy the most delicious tomato rice ever.
Silpa says
Delicious recipe.. impressed with detailed procedure. Love your photography..
Manju says
Thank you Silpa