What happens when a family moves from India to Southern California? The kids get a taste for Mexican food. Then what happens when the family moves back to India? Mom makes Mexican food “Desi-style.” At least, that’s the story my friend tells me of how this Indian-Mexican fusion rice and beans recipe came to be. There are many culinary parallels between Mexican food and Indian food, at least in my opinion. Both, fundamentally, are rice and bean cultures heavy on the spice. It’s only the types of spices that differ. When the two come together – watch out. Deliciousness. The first time I tried this recipe, I failed to follow my friend’s directions, but it turned out so good that I never bothered to try it the “right” way.
Here’s my take on Desi-Style Rice & Beans
Serves 4
Ingredients
For the beans
- 1-2 Tbs vegetable oil
- 1 medium sized onion, chopped
- 1 tsp red chili powder
- 1 tsp coriander powder
- 1 tsp cumin powder
- 1 serrano chili (finely chopped if you can take the heat, or just slit down the middle for a milder version)
- 1 can pinto or black beans
- 4 Roma tomatoes, boiled + 2 roma tomatoes, fresh cut lengthwise like french fries
- salt to taste
For the rice
- 1 Tb vegetable oil
- 1 medium sized onion
- finely chopped 2 cardamom pods
- 1 bayleaf [Indian bayleaf, “tej pata,” is actually the leaf of the cinnamon tree and the flavor is a little milder]
- 4 pepper corns
- 2 cloves
- 1/2″ cinnamon stick
- 3 cups prepared Basmati Rice
- 1 serrano chili pepper
- 1/2-3/4 tsp red chili powder
- 1/4tsp or even lesser i.e. barely a pinch of turmeric powder (this is bitter and a little goes a long way)
- 1 roma tomato – cut lengthwise (like french fries)
- Salt to taste
For the beans, saute the onion in oil until almost caramelized, then add the spices, Serrano chili pepper, canned black beans, and boiled tomatoes. Stir until heated thoroughly and let simmer to meld the flavors. Then add the fresh cut tomatoes and salt to taste.
For the rice – start by preparing 1 cup uncooked basmati rice according to package directions (should come out to about 3 cups cooked). Set aside. In a deep pan, saute the onion until it’s almost caramelized, then add cardamom pods, bayleaf, pepper corns, cloves, and cinnamon stick. Stir until all spices are fragrant. Make sure the oil doesn’t burn at the bottom. Add the Serrano chili pepper and saute lightly. Pick out the bayleaf and cinnamon (they’ve flavored the oil, but you don’t want to eat them), and toss in the rice, coating with the now flavored oil. Add a pinch of turmeric for color, salt to taste, and garnish with fresh cut tomato.
Serve topped with jack cheese, or – my favorite – pile on top of tortilla chips and call it Indian nachos! I’ve also made this into a layered dip, and eaten it as a burrito (dosa? – who’s counting?!). Next time, I’m going to try this with a side of grilled plantain.
What’s your favorite Fusion? Tell me in the comments, and welcome to the link party that is WanderFood Wednesday!
Top photo by WanderFood, bottom photo via Flickr Creative Commons. Recipe inspiration courtesy of SpiceMonkey.