Tehri Recipe (Tahri)

Tehri also known as Tahri or Tehari, is a one pot yellow rice dish from Awadhi Cuisine. Though not as popular as the Biryani and Pulao, Tehri holds a special place in the hearts of the vegetarians of Uttar Pradesh, a North Indian state. Made with rice, spices and winter vegetables like carrots, cauliflower, peas and potatoes, this dish is delicious, hearty and comforting. In this post I share how to make vegetable tehri in a pot & pressure cooker.

About Tehri

Tehri is a vegetarian dish of North Indian origins but elsewhere in the Indian-subcontinent it is also made with meat. Minimally spiced, this dish is real big on flavors that comes from the fresh veggies & spices. Tehri is a close cousin of the popular biryani and pulao but tastes completely different from them.

A biryani is a dish essentially layered, is heavy on whole & ground spices and uses yogurt to tenderize the meat. Whereas, a pulao is a one pot dish, not layered & mostly uses only whole spices and is made with or without yogurt. A Tehri is in between a biryani & a pulao. It is a one pot dish, uses whole and ground spices, and is not layered.

All the three dishes can be made with vegetables or meat. Purists argue that a biryani cannot be made without meat and a Tehri cannot be made without vegetables.

However the truth is that, you will find biryani without meat known as Veg Biryani & Tehri with mutton known as Mutton Tahari.

So there is no one way these dishes are made. You will be surprised that no 2 restaurants serve the same tasting biryani or pulao. The same holds true and no 2 homes make the same tasting tehri and pulao.

Every home cook has their own way of making vegetable tehri with varying amount & kind of spices and veggies. Some make it with meat and some with veggies, for a vegetarian version.

About this Recipe

Making a vegetable tehri is simple & is cooked in a single pot. Enjoy it with plain Dahi/yogurt, Raita or a chutney to make a complete meal. My recipe is roughly adapted from the popular Indian Chef Sanjeev Kapoor. It turns out delicious every single time with perfectly cooked rice grains and veggies.

I have made this vegetable tehri with basmati rice but it can also be made with any aged short grain rice. No one likes sticky and mushy tahri, so use only aged non-sticky variety rice.

More Rice Recipes
Biryani Rice
Khichdi Recipe
Ghee Rice
Lemon Rice

Photo Guide

How to Make Tehri (Stepwise Photos)

Preparation

1. Rinse 1 cup rice at least thrice. Drain the water. Soak for 15 to 20 minutes. Prepare the veggies as the rice soaks. When its time to add the rice to the pot, drain the rice to a colander.

2. Rinse the veggies well under running water. You will need:

• 1 Medium onion thinly sliced or chopped
• 2 medium to small potatoes (diced to 1 inch , for 2 servings)
• 1 small to medium tomato (deseeded and chopped)
• ½ cup cauliflower florets
• 6 green beans (Cut to 2 inches long)
• 1 small to medium carrot (peeled and diced to 1 inch)
• ¼ cup green peas (fresh or frozen)
• 1 green chilli chopped or slit

Tempering Spices

3. Heat a pressure cooker or pot with 2 tablespoons oil or ghee. Add 1 bay leaf, ½ teaspoon cumin seeds, 4 green cardamoms, 2 inch cinnamon, 1 black cardamom (optional) and 4 cloves.

4. When the spices begin to sizzle, add chili & onions. Fry them until golden to light brown.

5. Add 1 teaspoon ginger and garlic paste. Saute for a minute.

6. Regulate the flame to low. Add all the ground spice –

• ½ teaspoon garam masala
• ½ teaspoon jeera powder
• ¼ teaspoon fennel seeds powder (optional)
• 1 teaspoon coriander powder
• ¼ teaspoon red chilli powder
• ¼ teaspoon turmeric
• ½ teaspoon salt

7. Saute just for a minute. Do not burn this.

8. Add all the veggies – tomatoes, potatoes, beans, cauliflower, carrots and peas.

9. Fry them on a medium flame for 2 to 3 mins.

Make Tehri

10. Drain the rice completely and add it. Fry stirring gently for 2 minutes. Do not over stir, the rice can break.

11. Pour 1½ cups water. Mix and check the salt. Bring the water to a rapid boil on a high flame.

12. Regulate the stove flame to low. If cooking in a pot – Cook covered until the rice is fully cooked, not mushy.

13. If cooking in a cooker, cover and cook for 1 whistle. (Medium flame).

14. When the pressure drops, open the lid.

15. Add 2 tablespoons coriander leaves. Fluff up the rice gently with a fork mixing the leaves. Keep covered for another 10 minutes.

Serve Vegetable Tehri with raita & papad.

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Tehri recipe first published in March 2018. Updated & republished in July 2022.