Heralekai Chitranna | Citron Lime Rice with step by step pictures and short video . Citron Lime referred as Heralekai in Kannada, Narthangai in Tamil is used to make this delicious and tasty rice preparation . Basically , lime rice is a temper rice with additional lime juice into it . But in this recipe Heralekai Gojju / Citron Lime Masala Paste is used , to make Heralekai Chitranna .
Heralekai Gojju / Masala Paste has a shelf life of 15 -20 days , when refrigerated. So whenever I will be out of home for a week or more , I prepare this Gojju and refrigerate . So that men at home can make their own Heralekai Chitranna , just by adding rice and hot oil . Also according to season , I do Mavinakayi Chitranna Gojju | Raw Mango Rice , Nimbehuli Chitranna Gojju | Masala Lemon Rice and Puliyogare Gojju | Tamarind Rice to make it easier for men at home to cook their own food when I am out of town. Just sneak – peek into the above recipes and help your husband to cook their own food when needed.
Heralekai chitranna is a delicious rice with spice, tang and hint of bitterness from Citron. Though procedure to make Heralekai Chitranna is same as any other Chitranna gojju / masala paste , ingredients list significantly varies and so is the taste. Citron Lime is used as one of the best home remedy for ” Pitta Dosha “. Hence , addition of groundnuts are not used in this Citron lime rice , has it may not be effective for health benefits.
Health Benefits of Citron
Citron lime juice is a wonderful natural remedy to balance the acid secretions in the gut. Problems like flatulence, bloating, nausea and constipation can be overcome with citron juice. Also the strong anti-inflammatory and analgesic properties of citron work well to lower any acute or chronic pain in the body. As Citron belongs to Citrus family its undoubtedly rich in Vitamin C and boosts immune system. And also its rich potassium levels adds on to stabilize blood pressure and improves heart health . What more you need from a seasonal fruit than this , to add it in your diet?????
As its season of this wonderful citrus fruit , I try to incorporate into my diet. Whenever Citron Lime is available I make sure , I make this chitranna , Sweet & Salt Citron Lime Juice and Citron Lime Pickle. I am literally drooling now as I mentioned , Citron Lime Pickle. Because it’s one of the tastiest pickle with tang , spice and bitterness. I totally love it , going to share the recipe soon , stay tuned on my Facebook and Instagram for updates on this.
Other Karnataka Style Tempered Rice Recipes on blog are :
RECIPE CARD FOR HERALEKAI CHITRANNA | CITRON LIME JUICE
Heralekai Chitranna | Citron Lime Rice Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 -3 No's Citron Lime or 1/2 cup Citron Lime Juice
- 1 no Onion sliced ,large
- 1 1/2 Tsp Salt or as required
To Dry Roast
- 8 no's Kashmiri Red Chilli
- 1 Tbsp Coriander Seeds
- 1 1/2 Tbsp Cumin / Jeera Seeds
To Blend
- 1/2 cup Fresh Coconut grated
- 10-12 no Garlic cloves or 1 Garlic pod
- 1/2 Tsp Turmeric powder
- 1/2 inch Cinnamon stick
- 1 no Clove ,small
- Above dry roasted spices
To Temper
- 4 Tbsp Sesame Oil or any cooking oil
- 1/2 Tsp Mustard Seeds
- 1 Tbsp Chana Dal
- 2 Tbsp Urad Dal
- 1 spring Curry Leaves
- 1/2 Tsp Asafoetida
To mix with rice
- 1 cup Cooked Rice
- 1/2 Tbsp Hot oil
- 1/2 Tsp Salt
Instructions
- In a pan , add 8-10 red chillies , 1 Tbsp Coriander seeds and dry roast until there is a pungent smell.
- Add Cumin seeds and roast on low heat , till it starts to splutter.
- Turn off the heat , allow it to cool.
- In a small mixer jar /blender , add fresh grated coconut ,garlic , above roasted spices , turmeric powder , cinnamon and cloves.
- Blend to a coarse paste without adding water.
- Whilst , cut open citron lime , squeeze to release juice. Pass juice through mesh filter and discard seeds and set juice aside.
To prepare Masala Paste / Gojju
- Heat 4 Tbsp of sesame oil in a pan.
- Add 1/2 Tsp mustard seeds , allow it to crackle.
- Add 1 Tbsp of Chana dal , 2 Tbsp of urad dal and 1 sprig curry leaves.
- Saute till it dal turns golden in colour , add asafoetida
- Now add in sliced onions and saute till it turns translucent.
- Add the above blend masala , mix well.
- Cook for 6-8 minutes till masala blends well with onions and starts to release oil at corners.
- Add 1 1/2 Tsp of salt and mix well.
- Add citron lime juice and cook for 4-5 minutes on low heat.
- Turn off the heat , Heralekai Gojju / Citron Lime Masala paste is ready . Once it is cool , store it in a dry glass jar.
To prepare Hereralekai alekai Chitranna
- Take 1 cup cooked rice on a plate.
- Add 2-3 Tbsp of Heralekai Gojju / Heralekai Masala Paste to cooked rice.
- Add 1/2 Tbsp of hot oil
- Mix rice well with gojju using hands.
- Add 1/2 tsp of salt mix well ,taste and adjust it by adding more gojju or salt , if required.
- Heralekai Chitranna is ready to serve.
Video
Notes
- Here I have use only 1 cup of rice for serving . With this gojju / masala paste you can make Chitranna upto 7-8 plates of cooked rice.
Step by Step Directions to make Heralekai Chitranna | Citron Lime Rice
In a pan , add 8-10 red chillies , 1 Tbsp Coriander seeds and dry roast until there is a pungent smell.
Add Cumin seeds and roast on low heat , till it starts to splutter.
Turn off the heat , allow it to cool.
In a small mixer jar /blender , add fresh grated coconut ,garlic , above roasted spices , turmeric powder , cinnamon and cloves.
Blend to a coarse paste without adding water.
Whilst , cut open citron lime , squeeze to release juice. Pass juice through mesh filter and discard seeds and set juice aside.
To prepare Masala Paste / Gojju
Heat 4 Tbsp of sesame oil in a pan.
Add 1/2 Tsp mustard seeds , allow it to crackle. Add 1 Tbsp of Chana dal , 2 Tbsp of urad dal and 1 sprig curry leaves.
Saute till it dal turns golden in colour , add asafoetida
Now add in sliced onions and saute till it turns translucent. Add the above blend masala , mix well.
Cook for 6-8 minutes till masala blends well with onions and starts to release oil at corners.
Add 1 1/2 Tsp of salt and mix well.
Add citron lime juice, mix well and cook for 4-5 minutes on low heat.
Turn off the heat , Heralekai Gojju / Citron Lime Masala paste is ready . Once it is cool , store it in a dry glass jar.
To prepare Hereralekai alekai Chitranna
Take 1 cup cooked rice on a plate. Add 2-3 Tbsp of Heralekai Gojju / Heralekai Masala Paste to cooked rice. Add 1/2 Tbsp of hot oil .
Mix rice well with gojju using hands.
Add 1/2 tsp of salt mix well ,taste and adjust it by adding more gojju or salt , if required.
Heralekai Chitranna is ready to serve.
