What is Bisi Bele Bath
Also known as Bisi Bele Huliyanna, Bisi Bele Bath is essentially a spicy dish made with rice, lentils and vegetables that is tempered with typical South Indian spices and nuts. A special spice blend called the Bisi Bele Bath powder is also added to it, which gives it the authentic taste. If you break down the words, in Kannada language, ‘Bisi’ means hot, ‘Bele’ refers to lentils and ‘Bath’ means rice. Hence these three Kannada terms literally mean – Hot Lentil Rice. The first time I tried the traditional Bisi Bele Bath was at an MTR eatery in Bengaluru (earlier Bangalore), Karnataka. This was also because my husband had recommended it as this unique dish is one of his favorite. And to be honest, even I fell in love with this specialty, in the very first bite. Along with the unique masala powder and the Marathi moggu (kapok buds) that goes in the tempering, the Bisi Bele Bath Recipe also has tamarind which contributes to the dish’s distinctiveness. Sometimes, a personalized or customized recipe of this dish may also have about 30 ingredients! Since the typical spice mixture is an integral part of the Bisi Bele Bath Recipe, you should have it handy at home. The best thing to do is to use the homemade blend versus a readymade one from the market. For this reason, you can refer to this easy DIY Bisi Bele Bath Powder recipe of mine. Making the Bisi Bele Bath Recipe is a long process. You have to cook the rice, lentil and the veggies separately and then mix everything. Well, it’s not just mixing where you stop. There is definitely more.
About This Bisi Bele Bath Recipe
The Bisi Bele Bath is so popular that you easily get it in almost all South Indian restaurants in Karnataka as well as outside this state. Whilst living in Bengaluru too, it was a must for us to order a portion of this wholesome dish whenever we would visit an MTR chain of restaurants. Since then, the dish literally grew on me. So much that I had to learn and share its recipe on my blog too. I happened to discover Pratibha’s Blog, from where I have loosely adapted my Bisi Bele Bath Recipe too. The flavors make all the difference, which essentially comes from the Bisi Bele Bath Powder and the tempering towards the end. This special masala mix gives a lot of depth and flavor to the dish on the whole. As I have mentioned earlier, it is apt to use your own homemade batch of this spice blend. Just in case you can’t, then go for a good quality store-bought one. Also, you can cook the dal first. Then, add the rice, vegetables in it and cook them together in the pressure cooker. Sometimes, I do it this way too, to cut down on the time and steps. In this post, I have shown the traditional way of cooking everything separately. The veggies that can be added in this recipe are carrots, turnips, green peas, brinjal (eggplant or aubergine), French beans, kohlrabi (ganth gobi), capsicum (green bell pepper), chayote squash (chow chow). I have added some of these in my recipe. You can also add your own choice of vegetables.
How to make Bisi Bele Bath
I have divided the entire recipe into 4 steps for ease of understanding and making.
Step 1 – Cooking riceStep 2 – Cooking lentils and vegetablesStep 4 – Making Bisi Bele BathStep 4 – Tempering Bisi Bele Bath
Cook Rice
1. Rinse 1 cup rice and ¼ cup raw peanuts first. Another option is too skip the peanuts at this step and fry them in the tempering and then add. 2. Add 2.5 cups water. 3. Soak both rice and peanuts for 20 to 25 minutes in the water. 4. Add ¼ teaspoon edible rock salt or regular salt. Keep on the stovetop and cook the rice. No need to cover the pan with the lid. While I have cooked the rice in a pan, feel free to cook in a stovetop pressure cooker (add 2 cups water) or the Instant Pot (add 1.5 to 2 cups of water). 5. Simmer till the rice grains are tender and cooked well. The peanuts will also cook nicely. Cover and set aside.
Cook Lentils and Vegetables
- Soak 1 tablespoon tightly packed tamarind in ½ or ⅔ cup warm water for 25 to 30 minutes. 7. Later squeeze and extract the tamarind pulp in the soaked water. Strain and keep aside. 8. In a 3 litre stovetop pressure cooker, add ¾ cup rinsed pigeon pea lentils (tuvar dal), ½ teaspoon turmeric powder and 2 cups water.
- Pressure cook the lentils on high heat for 8 to 9 whistles. 10. Once the pressure settles down naturally on its own in the cooker, then only open the lid. Mash the lentils with a spoon or whisk and set aside. 11. In another pan, take the chopped vegetables and sprinkle ¼ teaspoon edible rock salt or regular salt. The vegetables I have added are:
1 medium-sized carrot, chopped18 to 20 french beans, chopped½ cup green peas – fresh or frozen3 to 4 small brinjals or baby brinjals (small eggplants), chopped1 medium-sized onion or 2 to 3 shallots, chopped1 medium-sized tomato, chopped
12. Pour 2 cups water and stir to combine. 13. Cover pan with lid and cook the vegetables till fork tender and cooked well, yet still retaining their shape.
Make Bisi Bele Bath
14. Now, in the cooker with the mashed lentils, add the cooked rice and peanuts. 15. Then, add the cooked vegetables together with the stock. 16. Stir lightly. 17. Add 1 cup water or as needed. 18. Add the prepared tamarind pulp. 19. Mix everything gently, taking care the rice grains do not break. 20. Now, in another pan or bowl, take 3 tablespoons Bisi Bele Bath masala and 1 cup water. 21. Stir and mix very well. The masala tends to stick to the back of the spoon while stirring, so scrape it off and add to the mixture. 22. Now add this Bisi Bele Bath masala solution into the cooker filled with the cooked rice, lentils and vegetables. 23. Add 2 tablespoons unsweetened desiccated coconut. 24. Stir and mix well. Also, add salt as required, keeping in mind that we have added salt to the vegetables and rice too. 25. Keep the cooker without the lid on the stovetop and simmer on low heat for about 15 to 20 minutes. Add more water, if required. Stir often so that the Bisi Bele Bath does not burn at the base. The raw aroma of the tamarind has to go away and the flavors should be blended well. Cover and keep aside, once done.
Temper Bisi Bele Bath
26. In a small tempering (tadka) pan, heat 3 to 4 tablespoons ghee or oil. Crackle 1 teaspoon mustard seeds first. Then, fry 12 to 15 curry leaves, 1 to 2 Marathi moggu, 2 to 3 dried red chilies (seeds removed), 18 to 20 cashews and ¼ teaspoon asafoetida (hing). Fry until the dry red chilies change color and the cashews turn a light golden. 27. Immediately pour this tempering mixture together with the oil in the prepared Bisi Bele Bath and stir. Cover the cooker with the lid for about 5 minutes, so that the tempering flavors infuse in the bath. 28. Serve Bisi Bele Bath with potato chips, banana chips/wafers or fried papads and raita or yogurt. If you prefer, top with a bit of ghee, while serving.
Expert Tips for Bisi Bele Bath
Please be sure to rate the recipe in the recipe card or leave a comment below if you have made it. For more vegetarian inspirations, Sign Up for my emails or follow me on Instagram, Youtube, Facebook, Pinterest or Twitter. Curd Rice Recipe | Daddojanam | Thayir Sadam Sambar Rice | Sambar Sadam Vangi Bath Recipe (Karnataka Style) Tomato Rice Recipe | Quick Thakkali Sadam This Bisi Bele Bath Recipe recipe from the archives first published in May 2014 has been updated and republished on January 2023.
title: “Bisi Bele Bath Recipe Karnataka Style " ShowToc: true date: “2024-10-19” author: “Jose Mayoka”
What is Bisi Bele Bath
Also known as Bisi Bele Huliyanna, Bisi Bele Bath is essentially a spicy dish made with rice, lentils and vegetables that is tempered with typical South Indian spices and nuts. A special spice blend called the Bisi Bele Bath powder is also added to it, which gives it the authentic taste. If you break down the words, in Kannada language, ‘Bisi’ means hot, ‘Bele’ refers to lentils and ‘Bath’ means rice. Hence these three Kannada terms literally mean – Hot Lentil Rice. The first time I tried the traditional Bisi Bele Bath was at an MTR eatery in Bengaluru (earlier Bangalore), Karnataka. This was also because my husband had recommended it as this unique dish is one of his favorite. And to be honest, even I fell in love with this specialty, in the very first bite. Along with the unique masala powder and the Marathi moggu (kapok buds) that goes in the tempering, the Bisi Bele Bath Recipe also has tamarind which contributes to the dish’s distinctiveness. Sometimes, a personalized or customized recipe of this dish may also have about 30 ingredients! Since the typical spice mixture is an integral part of the Bisi Bele Bath Recipe, you should have it handy at home. The best thing to do is to use the homemade blend versus a readymade one from the market. For this reason, you can refer to this easy DIY Bisi Bele Bath Powder recipe of mine. Making the Bisi Bele Bath Recipe is a long process. You have to cook the rice, lentil and the veggies separately and then mix everything. Well, it’s not just mixing where you stop. There is definitely more.
About This Bisi Bele Bath Recipe
The Bisi Bele Bath is so popular that you easily get it in almost all South Indian restaurants in Karnataka as well as outside this state. Whilst living in Bengaluru too, it was a must for us to order a portion of this wholesome dish whenever we would visit an MTR chain of restaurants. Since then, the dish literally grew on me. So much that I had to learn and share its recipe on my blog too. I happened to discover Pratibha’s Blog, from where I have loosely adapted my Bisi Bele Bath Recipe too. The flavors make all the difference, which essentially comes from the Bisi Bele Bath Powder and the tempering towards the end. This special masala mix gives a lot of depth and flavor to the dish on the whole. As I have mentioned earlier, it is apt to use your own homemade batch of this spice blend. Just in case you can’t, then go for a good quality store-bought one. Also, you can cook the dal first. Then, add the rice, vegetables in it and cook them together in the pressure cooker. Sometimes, I do it this way too, to cut down on the time and steps. In this post, I have shown the traditional way of cooking everything separately. The veggies that can be added in this recipe are carrots, turnips, green peas, brinjal (eggplant or aubergine), French beans, kohlrabi (ganth gobi), capsicum (green bell pepper), chayote squash (chow chow). I have added some of these in my recipe. You can also add your own choice of vegetables.
How to make Bisi Bele Bath
I have divided the entire recipe into 4 steps for ease of understanding and making.
Step 1 – Cooking riceStep 2 – Cooking lentils and vegetablesStep 4 – Making Bisi Bele BathStep 4 – Tempering Bisi Bele Bath
Cook Rice
1. Rinse 1 cup rice and ¼ cup raw peanuts first. Another option is too skip the peanuts at this step and fry them in the tempering and then add. 2. Add 2.5 cups water. 3. Soak both rice and peanuts for 20 to 25 minutes in the water. 4. Add ¼ teaspoon edible rock salt or regular salt. Keep on the stovetop and cook the rice. No need to cover the pan with the lid. While I have cooked the rice in a pan, feel free to cook in a stovetop pressure cooker (add 2 cups water) or the Instant Pot (add 1.5 to 2 cups of water). 5. Simmer till the rice grains are tender and cooked well. The peanuts will also cook nicely. Cover and set aside.
Cook Lentils and Vegetables
- Soak 1 tablespoon tightly packed tamarind in ½ or ⅔ cup warm water for 25 to 30 minutes. 7. Later squeeze and extract the tamarind pulp in the soaked water. Strain and keep aside. 8. In a 3 litre stovetop pressure cooker, add ¾ cup rinsed pigeon pea lentils (tuvar dal), ½ teaspoon turmeric powder and 2 cups water.
- Pressure cook the lentils on high heat for 8 to 9 whistles. 10. Once the pressure settles down naturally on its own in the cooker, then only open the lid. Mash the lentils with a spoon or whisk and set aside. 11. In another pan, take the chopped vegetables and sprinkle ¼ teaspoon edible rock salt or regular salt. The vegetables I have added are:
1 medium-sized carrot, chopped18 to 20 french beans, chopped½ cup green peas – fresh or frozen3 to 4 small brinjals or baby brinjals (small eggplants), chopped1 medium-sized onion or 2 to 3 shallots, chopped1 medium-sized tomato, chopped
12. Pour 2 cups water and stir to combine. 13. Cover pan with lid and cook the vegetables till fork tender and cooked well, yet still retaining their shape.
Make Bisi Bele Bath
14. Now, in the cooker with the mashed lentils, add the cooked rice and peanuts. 15. Then, add the cooked vegetables together with the stock. 16. Stir lightly. 17. Add 1 cup water or as needed. 18. Add the prepared tamarind pulp. 19. Mix everything gently, taking care the rice grains do not break. 20. Now, in another pan or bowl, take 3 tablespoons Bisi Bele Bath masala and 1 cup water. 21. Stir and mix very well. The masala tends to stick to the back of the spoon while stirring, so scrape it off and add to the mixture. 22. Now add this Bisi Bele Bath masala solution into the cooker filled with the cooked rice, lentils and vegetables. 23. Add 2 tablespoons unsweetened desiccated coconut. 24. Stir and mix well. Also, add salt as required, keeping in mind that we have added salt to the vegetables and rice too. 25. Keep the cooker without the lid on the stovetop and simmer on low heat for about 15 to 20 minutes. Add more water, if required. Stir often so that the Bisi Bele Bath does not burn at the base. The raw aroma of the tamarind has to go away and the flavors should be blended well. Cover and keep aside, once done.
Temper Bisi Bele Bath
26. In a small tempering (tadka) pan, heat 3 to 4 tablespoons ghee or oil. Crackle 1 teaspoon mustard seeds first. Then, fry 12 to 15 curry leaves, 1 to 2 Marathi moggu, 2 to 3 dried red chilies (seeds removed), 18 to 20 cashews and ¼ teaspoon asafoetida (hing). Fry until the dry red chilies change color and the cashews turn a light golden. 27. Immediately pour this tempering mixture together with the oil in the prepared Bisi Bele Bath and stir. Cover the cooker with the lid for about 5 minutes, so that the tempering flavors infuse in the bath. 28. Serve Bisi Bele Bath with potato chips, banana chips/wafers or fried papads and raita or yogurt. If you prefer, top with a bit of ghee, while serving.
Expert Tips for Bisi Bele Bath
Please be sure to rate the recipe in the recipe card or leave a comment below if you have made it. For more vegetarian inspirations, Sign Up for my emails or follow me on Instagram, Youtube, Facebook, Pinterest or Twitter. Curd Rice Recipe | Daddojanam | Thayir Sadam Sambar Rice | Sambar Sadam Vangi Bath Recipe (Karnataka Style) Tomato Rice Recipe | Quick Thakkali Sadam This Bisi Bele Bath Recipe recipe from the archives first published in May 2014 has been updated and republished on January 2023.
