Sojji is rice, generally of the small variety, that is dry roasted for preparation of various kinds of dishes in the Bhagashastra. This rice is also called Usali in the cuisine of Maharashtra and Karnataka and is prepared on festivals such as Ekadasi, where people have to fast. With the dry roasted rice or sojji once established, various dishes can be prepared by varying the seasoning.
A basic seasoning is described below, which can be varied as per taste and local ingredients.
Seasoned Sojji
Ingredients:
Small Rice – 1 padi
Water – 2 padi
Turmeric Powder – ⅛ r.e
Salt – ½ palam
Pepper – ⅛ palam
Cumin Seed – ⅛ palam
Ghee – 2 palam
For Seasoning:
Ghee – 3 padi
Red Chillies – ¼ palam
Urad Dal/Black Gram – ½ palam
Mustard Seeds – ¼ palam
Curry Leaves – ⅛ palam
Method:
1. Clean the rice thoroughly with water and drain the water.
2. Now, add 1 padi of small rice to a pan and fry it in smaller quantities. Pour 3 padis of ghee in a pot that can hold 5 padis of water and heat it.
3. Refer to the method of (seasoning recipe) for seasoning by adding red chillies, urad dal and mustard. Add curry leaves to the seasoning and when the spluttering sound stops, add 2 padis of water to the prepared seasoning.
4. Put turmeric powder in the water. When the water boils, add the fried rice to it. Stir well and cover it with a lid.
5. When the rice is ¾th cooked, add powdered salt to the boiling sojji and stir it with a ladle.
6. Heat ghee in an iron ladle or pan and after it is fully heated, add pepper, cumin seed and pour it in ghee. Add asafoetida to it and after it becomes crispy, take it out of the ghee.
7. Add the ghee with pepper and cumin seed in the sojji. Mix it and keep it for 5 minutes and remove from the fire.
8. You can add this seasoning of cumin seed, pepper and asafoetida before adding the cleaned rice. By doing this, the aroma of cumin seed, pepper and asafoetida will spread all over the dish.
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