Beetroot Rice Recipe

Beetroot rice is a simple, tasty and colourful rice made with cooked rice, grated beetroot, spices and a few basic ingredients. It has a sweetness from the beetroot with a little spice, making it a delicious meal for both kids and adults. This easy rice is perfect to pack in school lunch boxes.

Beetroot Rice

Beetroot is a healthy root vegetable that is rich in fibre, iron, anti oxidants and other nutrients. I like adding beetroot to our everyday meals in different ways like thoran, pachadi, poriyal. My kids all time favorite is this beetroot pasta.

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Now this beetroot rice is a quick rice dish that is perfect to pack in kids lunch box. I usually make beetroot rice with leftover rice, but you can also use freshly cooked rice. It takes very little time to prepare and is a great way to add beetroot to your family meal.

About Beetroot Rice Recipe

This beetroot rice is a simple and colourful South Indian variety of rice made with grated beetroot, cooked rice, basic spices and a simple tempering. It is similar to other easy variety rice recipes like lemon rice, carrot rice, coconut rice and tomato rice.

I often make this beetroot rice for my kids lunch as they love its mild sweetness and bright pink color. It is made without heavy masala or spices, which makes it simple and kid friendly.

This recipe is also a great way to use leftover rice. You just need grated beetroot, cooked rice and a few basic ingredients to make this colorful rice in about 15 minutes. You can also add grated carrot, roasted peanuts or cashews for extra crunch and flavour.

Similar Recipes

Beetroot rice is perfect for lunch boxes, quick lunches or busy mornings when you don’t want to do elaborate cooking. Serve it with simple raita, appalam, potato fry, boiled egg or any vegetable side dish for an easy and filling meal.

Rice with beets is a quick lunch recipe which you can whip up in few minutes. I suggest you to cook the rice the day before and store in fridge, so the next day you can make this in a jiffy.

This Lunch Box has Beetroot Rice & Brinjal Tawa Fry. If you are looking for beetroot rice recipes, check my beetroot pulao and beetroot biryani.

Ingredients

Cooked rice : I used regular cooked rice for this recipe, but you can use any variety of rice like basmati rice, seeraga samba or brown rice.
Beetroot : Grated beetroot gives the rice its beautiful color, mild sweetness and earthy flavour.
Oil or ghee : Use oil or ghee for making the tempering and cooking the beetroot. Adding ghee gives the rice a richer taste and lovely aroma.
Tempering : Mustard seeds, urad dal, and asafoetida are tempered in hot oil. You can also add curry leaves if you like.
Ginger garlic paste : A little ginger garlic paste adds extra flavour and aroma to the rice.
Spice powder : I used turmeric powder and chilli powder for color and mild heat.
Salt : Salt added to balance the overall taste of the rice. Adjust accordingly as cooked rice also contains salt.

Step by Step Pictures

1)Heat ghee in a pan, add in tempering spices like mustard, urad dal.

2)Add a pinch of asafoetida. You can add in curry leaves as well.

3)Let these spices fry in the oil for a minute.

4)Add in ginger garlic paste and cook for a minute until the raw smell leaves. You can add in some chopped onions as well.

5)Now add in the peeled and grated beetroots and saute with the spices and ginger garlic paste.

6)Let this cook down for 3 to 4 minutes. The raw smell will leave from the beets and the vegetable will be cooked.

7)Now add in salt, red chilli powder and turmeric powder and mix well with the beetroots.

8)This is your simple beetroot rice mixture.

9Add in cooked rice. You can use basmati rice, or any rice of choice.

10)Mix well so the rice is coated with the beetroot and heated through. You can taste and adjust the salt at this point.

11)Serve beetroot rice hot, or pack in your kids lunch box.

Expert Tips

If you are using freshly cooked rice, let it cool completely before adding it to the beetroot mixture.
Add a handful of peanuts or cashews while tempering for an extra crunch.
Add one or two chopped green chillies if you prefer it to be as spicy.
You can add grated carrots, sweet corn, green peas to make this rice even more colorful and nutritious.
Add some grated coconut at the end for a different flavour.

Storage and Serving

Beetroot rice tastes best when freshly served. But leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 1 to 2 days. Serve beetroot rice warm with simple raita, appalam, potato fry, or any simple side dish.

FAQ

Q. Can I use freshly cooked rice ?

Absolutely ! You can use freshly cooked rice. Just make sure to spread it on a plate and allow it to cool before mixing so that the rice does not become mushy.

Q. Can I add other vegetables ?

Of course. You can add any vegetable like green peas, corn, grated carrot or any veggies of your choice. Make sure to cook the vegetables before adding the rice.

Q. Why did my beetroot rice become mushy ?

This happens if hot rice or overcooked rice is used. Always use cooked and cooled rice with separate grains and mix it gently with the beetroot.

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