Lemon Rice Recipe

Lemon Rice recipe under 10 mins! Yes, making this amazingly delicious & refreshing Lemon Rice is very fast if you have some precooked rice. It uses only pantry staples yet will surprise you with great authentic Indian flavors. Known by different names such as Chitranna & nimmakaya pulihora, it is the easiest way to transform your plain old boring rice to a more interesting & colorful meal.

In this post, I share 2 ways to make the dish – traditional way with precooked rice on the stovetop & in the instant pot with raw rice.

About Lemon Rice

Lemon Rice is a staple & has been made for generations in South Indian homes. It is made by mixing precooked rice with a tempering of mustard seeds, lentils, chilies, ginger, turmeric and curry leaves. With a delicate flavor of lemon juice and a nutty aroma of the tempering, this dish wins the hearts of millions.

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It is hugely popular due to the ease of making, can be made with leftover rice and can be packed in school & office boxes. A generous amount of turmeric used in the tempering keeps the lemon rice fresh for longer. So in the past people would pack this for road & train journeys.

While learning to cook the basics, this is the first rice dish every South Indian tries out because with little effort you are sure to have a great refreshing meal. This Lemon Rice is usually eaten on its own with a bowl of yogurt.

If making an elaborate meal during festivals, it is eaten with a side of papadum, Potato stir fry, Potato masala, Pakora, Masala vada or Bonda. Tomato Chutney and Coconut Chutney also make good sides. Some times we also serve with Boiled egg fry and South Indian egg curry.

Ingredients & Substitutes

• Rice – You can use any kind of non-sticky rice. Traditionally aged short grain rice is used but Basmati or Jasmine rice also works. Aged rice keeps the rice grains separate and your dish won’t get mushy. So non-sticky rice is highly recommended.
• Lemon – Fresh lemon juice is the star of this recipe. You may use lime or even citron but don’t use bottled lemon juice here.
• Spices – Whole brown mustard seeds, fresh ginger and green chilies or dried chilies are essential to make an aromatic tempering. Chilies can be substituted with chili flakes and ground black pepper.
• Lentils – Chana dal (gram dal) and urad dal (skinned split black lentils) are used traditionally to impart a nutty aroma and crunchy texture. You may omit them or use red lentils instead. (The flavor won’t be the same)
• Herbs – Fresh curry leaves are an essential and takes your dish to the next level. If you do not have them, add a handful of very fine chopped fresh mint leaves to the tempering. Alternately add coriander leaves/ cilantro to garnish.
• Nuts – Peanuts and cashews are the 2 most common nuts used. They add another layer of crunch to the dish. You may use pre-roasted or fry the raw nuts as shown below.

Hard lentils – Soak or no soak?

Traditionally while making lemon rice, dal is not soaked but uncooked raw dal is directly added to the tempering. They get fried and impart a nutty flavor but remain somewhat hard / crunchy and that’s how they are in a traditional Lemon Rice. To soften them, I have tried soaking in ¼ cup boiling hot water for 15 mins. Pat dry and add to the tempering.

Soaking did not bring out the same nutty flavor (as the dry raw lentils) and they will still be hard when you fry them until golden & aromatic. So I prefer to add a small amount of water to the tempering. This not only softens the lentils to your preference but also cooks down the tempering and brings out a great flavor.

However neither soaking nor adding water to the tempering were done traditionally. So you can choose what you prefer.

More Indian rice dishes you may like
Tomato rice
Fried rice
Jeera rice
Coconut rice
Tomato bath
Pudina rice

Photo Guide

How to make Lemon Rice (Stepwise photos)

This recipe serves 3, you may scale up or down by using the recipe card below.

Preparation

1. You need 4 cups of perfectly cooked non-sticky rice. If you don’t have here is how to cook it. Add 1½ cups aged basmati rice (or any other) to a strainer and rinse well under running water. Drain completely and transfer to a sauce pot or pressure cooker. I’m giving the water quantity for basmati. If you are using any other adjust the water and cook time accordingly.

• To cook in stovetop pressure cooker: Pour 2½ cups water and pressure cook on a medium heat for 1 whistle.
• To cook in Instant pot: Pour 1¾ cups water and pressure cook for 5 mins, on high pressure. When the pressure drops open the lid.
• Cook in a Sauce pot: Pour 3 cups. Bring to a rolling boil on a high heat. Turn down the flame to medium and cook covered until the rice is cooked through. (Take me 15 mins, depending on the kind of rice).

2. Cool down the rice slightly and fluff up with a fork.

Make the Tempering

3. Omit this step if you have pre-roasted peanuts or cashews. Pour half tablespoon oil to a pan and add ¼ cup raw peanuts or split cashews. Fry them on a medium heat until golden and aromatic but not burnt. Remove to a plate and reserve aside to garnish.

4. Wipe your pan with kitchen paper and pour the remaining oil to the same pan. Add

• ¾ teaspoon mustard seeds
• 1 teaspoon urad dal (split skinned black dal)
• 1½ teaspoon chana dal (Bengal gram/ gram dal)

5. Fry them until light golden on a medium flame. Takes only 2 to 3 mins.
Add

• 1 to 2 sprig curry leaves (pat dry)
• ½ tablespoon fine chopped ginger
• 2 slit or chopped green chilies and/or 2 dried red chilies (may use both)

6. Fry them for about 30 to 60 seconds until you smell the ginger and curry leaves nice.
Add a pinch of hing (asafetida), ½ teaspoon turmeric & ½ teaspoon salt (assuming you did not add salt while cooking rice).

7. Stir and pour 3 tablespoons water. Quickly the water will evaporate and the mixture turns aromatic. Dal will soften slightly yet will keep the crunch.

8. If you want them very soft then add 2 to 3 tbsps more water and cook further until all the water evaporates & the lentils soften a bit. Turn off the stove.

9. Add cooled cooked rice. (OR alternately you can also add the tempering to the bowl of cooled rice). Squeeze lemon juice all over and give a good stir.

10. Taste the lemon rice. Add more salt and lemon juice as required. Lastly garnish with crunchy roasted peanuts or cashews.

Serve Lemon rice with plain yogurt, papad or with pickle.

Expert Tips

• It is essential to cook your rice grainy but fully cooked. It should not be sticky.
• Avoid adding lemon juice to very hot rice or to the hot tempering as it alters the flavor completely. Also some amount of nutrients in the lemon juice is diminished. Let the rice cool down slightly before adding the juice.
• Feel free to omit the lentils if you don’t like their texture. Traditionally they are kept slightly hard for a crunchy texture.
• Avoid over frying the dal else they will turn rock hard. Also don’t cook them on a low heat, this hardens them further.
• Caution: Avoid using a small tadka pan if you cook on gas. Using it can be a fire hazard. Oil can overflow as we pour water into the pan.

Variations

Karnataka style chitranna has some chopped onions sautéed in the pan along with tempering ingredients. A handful of coriander leaves are added towards the end. Also many people use only urad dal for this version. Again every home follows their own recipe.

Sometimes I make lemon mint rice where some chopped mint leaves are added. You can find the recipe here on my pudina rice post.

Related Recipes

Recipe Card

This post was first published in June 2015. Updated & republished in July 2025.