Mango-Coconut Chitranna Recipe | Quick and Easy Mango-Coconut Rice Recipe

Learn how to make Mango-Coconut Chitranna - A spin to South Indian tangy yellow rice of coconut and raw mango flavoured with generous tempering of peanuts and aromatic spices

The meaning of ‘home’ is ever evolving. When I was a kid, home was a palatial bungalow where I was born and surrounded by dozens of aunts, uncles, cousins, my grandparents and parents. It was a place where I woke up to jingling of anklets and bangles, clattering pots and pans, aroma of rasams and sambars bubbling in a large copper pots, sound of sizzling tadka and gossiping women in the kitchen. Home was the warmth of being held closely to my uncles chests, tickling fingers of my aunties, skipping and running bare footed with my cousins, splashing waters in a crystal clear streams, sleeping peacefully on a cosy bed of my grandpa’s chest, morsels of food being fed by my grandma under the star lit skies, and being sandwiched between my parents before drifting off to sleep.

When I was 6 years old, my parents moved to their current home to be close to the best schools and dad’s clinic and it became our home where we drove each other absolutely crazy one moment and made one feel like million dollars the next. It was a place which nourished me and always made me feel safe, loved, and cherished. Home was a place that welcomed me with open heart and a plate of amma’s home cooked meals peppered with spice and love!

After marrying the love of my life, home was a small terraced house with old rickety kitchen where I learnt to cook a decent meal. It was a place which made us work harder to make the house into a home and a few extra pounds were simply welcomed as ‘more of you to love’! When our baby was born, our new house became a home the day he came home with us. The sense of relief and joy that swept me when we pulled into the driveway after a long stay in the hospital, a quiet kiss on the silky curls on the head of a baby fast asleep in my arms, the warmth of my husband’s arms around my shoulders, and the smiling faces of my parents as they opened the doors to welcome us! Till then home was many places I’ve had lived, but its warmth, comforts and the true meaning were defined by the simple and blissful simple moments like these!

Home is a place where I can be blissfully imperfect myself; a place where craziness of days can be shared, even the silliest things, unchecked and unedited; a place that evokes a sigh of relief as I walk in the door; a place where I can spend a day in shocking pink yoga pants, a very old flip-flops and uncombed hair twisted in a messy knot; a place where I will be not be judged for the crazy things I say or do on a whim; a place where a perfect mix of absurdities, high pitched laughter and feel good drama makes me smile even on a difficult day!

Home is a sound of my husband’s laughter, unconditional love in his twinkling eyes, mischief in his boyish grin and his off-key singing. Home is my little boys' non-stop chatter, his innocence and wonder, finding pleasure in simple things of life, his toys and books scattered all over the floor and me tripping all over them. Home is where I feel comfortable cooking in my pajamas, churning plates of food that tastes of home that I've left a long time ago. Home is wherever we gather with our family and friends, a place that cherishes and nourishes our body, mind and soul. In the last 10 years, my husband and I have lived in 5 different homes in different countries and continents. Home to me is now unpacking that last brown cardboard box of things that we brought together for our home. It may be inexpensive and even junk items for others, but for us they are simply priceless! A box full of cherished memories! The houses can be bought and sold, but a home stays with us always whenever we are with our loved ones!

Home is a place where we churn old memories and make new ones. Most of my cherished memories revolve around food; food that I grew up watching the ladies in my joint family cook. The jingling of bangles and the burst of joyous musical laughter mingled with some hot gossips as the spices were pound in musical rhythm completely in sync with the clanking of ladles and pots and bubbling noise of curries in the background. Bliss! As I sit here, thousands of miles away trying to recreate the magic I can’t help but reminiscence the time I spent in my grandmother’s kitchen. The smoky warm kitchen of my grandma is a world away from the modern kitchen I have here with every mod-coms imaginable, but the recipes I follow still resonates the age-old traditional recipes that she churned for the entire family. It feels like home when I put a morsel of food that tastes like the food cooked by the special women in my family.

One such recipe that is very dear to me is this Mango-Coconut Chitranna, a typical South Indian tangy yellow rice of coconut and raw mango flavoured with generous tempering of peanuts and aromatic spices. A summer special dish which was prepared to make the most of those tangy raw mangoes was packed for our picnics as it tastes wonderfully good even when it’s cold on a sultry hot summer days. The tang from raw mango, the crunch of peanuts and lentils in the tempering, the sweetness of coconut and the aroma of curry leaves is what makes this Mango-Coconut Chitranna a flavourful affair. Every morsel of this Mango-Coconut Chitranna bursts with flavour that will leave you asking for more! This to me, my dear readers, is what home feels like!

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Mango-Coconut Chitranna (A spin to South Indian tangy yellow rice of coconut and raw mango flavoured with generous tempering of peanuts and aromatic spices)

Prep Time: 15 mins
Cooking Time: 10 mins
Spice Level: Low
Recipe Level: Easy-Beginner
Serves: 3-4 people
Shelf Life: Best eaten fresh, but can be refrigerated for up to 2 days
Serving Suggestion: On their own or with chilled yogurt/raita

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Ingredients:
5-6 cups cooked Rice (I have used leftover Sona Masuri rice at room temperature)
1 medium Onion, finely chopped
2-3 small or 1 medium Raw Mangoes, peeled and finely chopped or grated
½ small Coconut, grated or finely chopped
2-3 Green Chillies, slit (Adjust as per taste)
½ inch Ginger, peeled and finely chopped or grated
½-1 juice of fresh Lime/Lemon (Adjust as per taste)
1-2 tsp Sugar
Salt to taste

Spices Used:
¾ tsp Haldi/Turmeric Powder

For Tadka/Tempering:
1-2 tbsp Oil
¾ cup Raw Peanuts
1 tsp Mustard Seeds
1 tbsp Channa Dal/Split Chickpeas
½ tbsp Urad Dal/Split Black Gram
3-4 Dry Red Chillies, halved
2-3 sprigs Curry Leaves
A generous pinch of Hing/Asafoetida

Method:

1. Heat oil in a pan and add raw peanuts. Roast the peanuts on medium flame for about 3 minutes. To this add chana dal, urad dal, dry red chillies and mustard seeds and fry them until the urad dal turns golden brown and the mustard seeds start to pop and splutter.
2. Add hing, curry leaves and slit green chillies and fry them for half a minute. Mix in chopped onion and ginger and cook until the onion turns translucent, about 2 minutes, on medium flame.
3. Next add the sugar, turmeric powder and finely chopped or grated raw mango and let it cook for 2-3 minutes. Add salt and give it a quick stir.
4. Add the cooked rice and mix it well so that every grain of rice is coated well with spices and is heated through, about 3 minutes.
5. Finally mix in freshly squeezed lime/lemon juice if using along with finely chopped or grated fresh coconut. Give it a good stir before switching off the flame.
6. Serve this delicious Mango-Coconut Chitranna on its own or with chilled yogurt or raita and enjoy!

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Sia’s Notes:

• Use lemon/lime juice only if the raw mangoes are not sour enough.
• You can substitute peanuts with cashew nuts for rich flavour.
• Reduce the amount of green chilies or simply skip them if cooking for kids.