Thengai Paal Sadam | Coconut Milk Rice | Coconut Milk Kuska

Delicious and easy-to-make thengai paal sadam or the vegetarian coconut milk kuska without any veggies! Learn how to make this mild and flavorful rice with step-wise pictures.

You will find different biryani varieties in Indian cuisine, and one of the popular ones is the kuska biryani or plain biryani, or the MT/empty biryani. As the name suggests, it’s a plain biryani without meat but cooked with meat or chicken stock.  

Here is my vegetarian take on the kuska, and I used coconut milk to cook the rice. Coconut milk enhances the flavor and adds richness and creaminess to this recipe. You don’t need any veggies for this recipe except for onion and tomatoes. The dry spices and mint leaves add sufficient flavor. I didn’t make it as a spicy one. But you can adjust the green chilies as per your preference. 

Homemade coconut milk or store-bought? 

For this recipe, I went with homemade coconut milk. For one-half of freshly grated coconut (break the coconut into two halves and grate the one-half), add 1 cup of lukewarm water and grind it. Squeeze out the milk, and this is the first and thick coconut milk. Grind again by adding 1 cup of water and extracting the liquid, the second and thin coconut milk. I used a combination of both thick and thin coconut milk for this recipe.

But folks, I have tried this recipe with store-bought coconut milk, both thick and light. If I am using light coconut milk, I don’t dilute it. But if I use the thick one, I dilute it with water. 

Rice to water ratio:

I follow different water ratios for open-pot, stove-top pressure cooker, and Instant Pot methods, and here are the details.

Open-pot: For the open-pot method, I use 2 cups of liquid for 1 cup of basmati rice. I went with 3 cups of thick coconut milk and 1 cup of thin coconut milk for 2 cups of water for this recipe. You can use an equal measure of thick and thin coconut milk or adjust it as per your preference. 

Stove-top pressure cooker: I use 1.5 cups of liquid for 1 cup of basmati rice for this method. Also, I cook for just one whistle, reduce the heat to low, and cook for 5 minutes. If the rice is aged, then you can cook for two whistles.

Instant Pot method: For this method, I use 1.25 of liquid for 1 cup of basmati rice, and I always use rice preset for biryani and pulao in Instant Pot. 

Coconut milk pulao platter

This pulao is a weekend staple in our household, and I even share a platter with this recipe – the coconut milk pulao platter. As this rice is mild, I like to serve it with spicy kurma, and our favorite is the turnip kurma. But you can serve it with salna or mushroom kuzhambu or any other spicy curries. 

Dietary specifications

The coconut milk kuska is a nut-free, gluten-free, vegan dish. But if you are not particular about dairy products, you can use ghee instead of oil.

So far, I have refrigerated it for only one day. Trust me, folks, we love this so much that we finish it off in one meal. 

Now without any further ado, let’s see how to make this coconut milk kuska or the thengai paal sadam.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups basmati rice, rinsed and soaked in water for 20 to 30 minutes
• 3 cups thick coconut milk
• 1 cup thin coconut milk
• 1 bunch mint leaves, 1 cup tightly-packed, remove the stems and clean
• 2 tbsp oil
• 1 tbsp fennel seeds
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 cardamom
• 1 star anise
• 2 small cinnamon piece
• 1 cup onion, chopped
• 2 cloves
• 2 green chilies
• 1 tomato, chopped
• 1 tbsp ginger-garlic paste
• 1.5 tsp salt, or to taste

How to make thengai paal sadam

• Wash the rice and soak it in water till you do the preparation work. Then drain the water thoroughly.

• Chop the onions and tomatoes, slit the green chilies into two.

• Prepare the coconut milk as mentioned above in the post. If using, store-bought can dilute it as needed.

• Remove the stems from the mint leaves and wash them.

• Heat the heave-bottomed pan or kadai and add the oil. When the oil is hot, add fennel seeds. 
• After 30 seconds, add bay leaf, aniseed, cloves, cardamom, green chilies, and sauté well for two minutes. Do not overcook the fennel seeds, as it turns bitter.
• Then add the ginger-garlic paste and sauté for a couple of minutes. Now add the mint leaves and sauté well till the raw smell goes away.
• Add the onions and sauté till they become translucent. Then add tomatoes and salt. Saute for a minute.

• Then add the soaked rice, followed by 4 cups of coconut milk.

• Cook over medium flame until ¾ of the liquid is absorbed. Then reduce the heat to low and cover and cook until all the moisture is absorbed. Let it rest for about 15 minutes before mixing. And that’s it; yummy coconut milk rice is ready. Serve hot with kurma of your choice.

Recipe Notes:

• • Adjust the salt and spices according to your preference.
  • Instead of 4 cups of coconut milk, you can add 2 cups of water + 2 cups of coconut water.
  • Please check the post for the stove-top pressure cooker and Instant Pot methods. 
  • For the open-pot method, cook the rice in medium heat and keep an eye on the liquid. If needed, add more water. 

PS – If you try this coconut milk kuska please don’t forget to comment and rate this recipe. If you have any questions, please leave a comment, and I will get to it asap.  Make sure to follow me on my Pinterest for more healthy and delicious ideas! Follow me on Instagram or join my Facebook Group for more gardening and recipe updates.

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5 from 5 votes

Thengai Paal Sadam | Coconut Milk Rice | Coconut Milk Kuska

Delicious and easy-to-make thengai paal sadam or the vegetarian coconut milk kuska without any veggies! Learn how to make this mild and flavorful rice with step-wise pictures.

Prep Time30 mins

Cook Time45 mins

Total Time1 hr 15 mins

Course: Entree

Cuisine: Tamil Nadu

Servings: 8

Calories: 444kcal

Author: Srividhya G

Ingredients

Measurement Details: 1 cup = 240 ml; 1 tbsp=15ml; 1 tsp= 5ml;

• ▢ 2 cups basmati rice rinsed and soaked in water for 20 to 30 minutes
• ▢ 3 cups thick coconut milk
• ▢ 1 cup thin coconut milk
• ▢ 1 bunch mint leaves 1 cup tightly-packed, remove the stems and clean
• ▢ 2 tbsp oil
• ▢ 1 tbsp fennel seeds
• ▢ 1 bay leaf
• ▢ 1 star anise
• ▢ 2 cardamom
• ▢ 2 small cinnamon piece
• ▢ 2 cloves
• ▢ 2 green chilies
• ▢ 1 cup onion chopped
• ▢ 1 to mato chopped
• ▢ 1 tbsp ginger-garlic paste
• ▢ 1.5 tsp salt or to taste

Instructions

• Wash the rice and soak it in water till you do the preparation work. Then drain the water thoroughly.
• Chop the onions and tomatoes, slit the green chilies into two.
• Prepare the coconut milk as mentioned above in the post. If using, store-bought can dilute it as needed.
• Remove the stems from the mint leaves and wash them.
• Heat the heave-bottomed pan or kadai and add the oil. When the oil is hot, add fennel seeds.
• After 30 seconds, add bay leaf, aniseed, cloves, cardamom, green chilies, and sauté well for two minutes. Do not overcook the fennel seeds, as it turns bitter.
• Then add the ginger-garlic paste and sauté for a couple of minutes. Now add the mint leaves and sauté well till the raw smell goes away.
• Add the onions and sauté till they become translucent. Then add tomatoes and salt. Saute for a minute, and then add the soaked rice, followed by 4 cups of coconut milk.
• Cook over medium flame until ¾ of the liquid is absorbed. Then reduce the heat to low and cover and cook until all the moisture is absorbed. Let it rest for about 15 minutes before mixing. And that's it; yummy coconut milk rice is ready. Serve hot with kurma of your choice.

Notes

• Adjust the salt and spices according to your preference.
• Instead of 4 cups of coconut milk, you can add 2 cups of water + 2 cups of coconut water.
• Please check the post for the stove-top pressure cooker and Instant Pot methods. 
• For the open-pot method, cook the rice in medium heat and keep an eye on the liquid. If needed, add more water. 

 

Nutrition

Calories: 444kcal | Carbohydrates: 45g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 28g | Saturated Fat: 22g | Trans Fat: 1g | Sodium: 494mg | Potassium: 393mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 139IU | Vitamin C: 6mg | Calcium: 61mg | Iron: 5mg

I am not a nutritionist. The nutritional information is provided as a courtesy and is an estimate only. It varies depending upon the product types or brands.

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