5 Quick Recipes You Can Try with Leftover Rice

I tend to cook extra rice almost all the time. It’s nearly impossible to be sure exactly how much rice we eat in a meal. When I have guests at home, the rice leftover can sometimes suffice an entire meal for my husband, daughter and me! I do not like to throw food so, I make one of these 5 quick recipes with leftover rice. I either pack it up for lunch the next day or have it as breakfast in the morning.

1. Lemon Rice

Named after one of the simplest ingredients used while preparing it, lemon rice is my go-to dish on lazy mornings.

Ingredients:

• Cooked rice – 3 bowls
• Vegetable oil – 4-5 tablespoons
• Mustard seeds – ½ teaspoon
• Cumin seeds – ½ teaspoon
• Urad dal – 1 teaspoon
• Chana dal – 2 teaspoons
• Onion – 2 medium
• Green chillis – 3
• Curry leaves – 1 sprig
• Turmeric powder – ½ teaspoon
• Groundnut – 3 tablespoons
• Lemon juice – 4-5 tablespoons
• Salt – to taste

Method:

• Heat some oil and add mustard seeds and urad dal. Fry until the dal is golden brown
• Then, add chillies, onion, and curry leaves. Stir and fry until the onion turns golden brown.
• Add turmeric powder and salt.
• Switch off the stove, add the rice and stir the mixture.
• Fry groundnuts separately and add it to the rice.

2. Fried Rice

This simple yet tasty dish can be prepared in many different ways. Here’s the recipe I follow when I prepare it for dinner.

Ingredients:

• Cooked rice – 3 bowls
• Vegetable oil – 1 or 2 tablespoons
• Star anise
• Garlic
• Ginger (optional ingredient)
• Onion – 1 medium
• Capsicum – 1 medium
• French beans – 5-7 beans
• Carrot – 1 medium
• Celery – 1 or 2 stalks
• Green chillis – 1 or 2
• Soy sauce – 2 teaspoons
• Tomato sauce (optional ingredient)
• Salt – to taste

Method:

• Heat oil and add star anise, garlic, and ginger.
• Add green chillies and finely chopped vegetables. Stir and fry.
• Then, add soya sauce and tomato sauce.
• Mix rice with the sauce. Add salt if necessary.

3. Curd Rice

Curd rice is simple to make and light on the stomach. I make curd rice for dinner on days when we had a heavy lunch or a late evening snack.

Ingredients:

• Cooked rice – 3 bowls
• Mustard seeds – 1 teaspoon
• Cumin seeds – ½ – 1 teaspoon
• Urad dal – 2 teaspoons
• Green chillies – 2 or 3
• Curry leaves – 1 sprig
• Curd – 1-2 cups
• Milk – 1-2 cups
• Salt – to taste

Method:

• Heat some oil and add mustard seeds and urad dal. Fry until the dal turns golden brown.
• Then add chillies and curry leaves. Let the mixture cool down.
• Add the mixture to the rice along with curd and milk.
• Add salt to taste.

4. Tamarind Rice

Tamarind rice is very easy and quick to make if the tamarind mix is ready. So, I prepare the mix and stock it up in the refrigerator so that I can use it when I wish.

Ingredients:

• Cooked rice – 3 bowls
• Vegetable oil – 3 tablespoons
• Mustard seeds – 1 teaspoon
• Tamarind – ⅓ cup
• Chana dal – 1 teaspoon
• Urad dal – 1 teaspoon
• Dry red chillies – 3 to 4
• Black pepper – ¼ teaspoon
• Sesame seeds – ½ teaspoon
• Methi seeds – ¼ teaspoon
• Coriander seeds – 2 teaspoons
• Asafoetida – ¼ teaspoon
• Groundnuts – 3-4 tablespoons
• Turmeric powder
• Jaggery powder – 1-2 teaspoons
• Salt

Method:

• Soak tamarind in 2 cups of hot water for about half an hour.
• Squeeze the tamarind to create a pulp. Filter it and keep it aside.
• Heat a pan and add the spices – dry red chillies, black pepper, sesame seeds, methi seeds, coriander seeds, urad dal, and chana dal.
• Switch off the stove, add asafoetida, mix well, and grind it in a mixer-grinder.
• Heat sesame oil in a pan.
• Add mustard seeds, urad dal, chana dal, groundnuts, and saute on a low flame until the ingredients turn golden brown.
• Switch of the stove, add 2-3 dry red chillies, curry leaves, turmeric powder, and a pinch of asafoetida.
• Add the tamarind pulp to the mixture and stir.
• Add jaggery powder and salt to taste and simmer the mix.
• Bring it to a boil and then add the fine spice powder.
• Continue to simmer until it becomes a thick sauce.
• Add the sauce to rice and mix well. You can fry some extra ground nuts and add them too.

5. Rice Roti

Rice Roti, also known as Akki Roti in Karnataka, is one of my mom’s first choices in the list of quick recipes with leftover rice.

Ingredients:

• Cooked rice – 1 bowl
• Rice flour
• Onion – 1 small
• Coriander – A few sprigs
• Green chilli – 2
• Salt

Method:

• Mix all the ingredients with water to make the dough.
• Roll it out and fry it in a pan. Once you put the roti on the pan, add a little oil on the edges.

Try these delicious and easy-to-make dishes and let me know how they turned out. If you have any other ideas, share it in the comment section below.