Rice cooked with a sharp tamarind-chilli tempering, curry leaves and peanuts — the most universally made Telangana-Andhra festival rice preparation. The specific balance of sour, hot, salty and the fragrance of curry leaves defines authentic pulihora.
Ingredients
3 cups cooked rice — cooled completely (hot rice makes the pulihora mushy)
Tamarind — lemon-sized ball soaked in 1/2 cup warm water, strained (about 4 to 5 tbsp thick pulp)
For the tempering:
3 tbsp sesame oil (gingelly oil — for the Andhra-Telangana character)
1 tsp mustard seeds, 1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp urad dal, 1 tsp chana dal
2 dried red chilli, 2 green chilli — slit
15 to 20 curry leaves
1/4 tsp asafoetida
1/2 tsp turmeric
1/2 cup peanuts — dry roasted
salt to taste
jaggery — a very small piece (for balance)
Method
Cool the cooked rice: The most important step — the rice must be completely cooled and separated. Hot rice will turn to mush. Spread the cooked rice on a wide plate. Toss with 1 tsp sesame oil to keep the grains separate.
Extract thick tamarind: Soak tamarind in warm water 15 minutes. Squeeze and strain to get very thick, concentrated tamarind pulp — about 4 to 5 tbsp.
Make the tempering: Heat 3 tbsp sesame oil in a pan until hot. Add mustard seeds — pop. Add cumin seeds. Add urad dal and chana dal — stir until golden. Add dried red chilli and green chilli. Add curry leaves — a large quantity, they should crackle dramatically. Add asafoetida.
Add turmeric: Add turmeric. Stir 15 seconds.
Add tamarind pulp: Add the thick tamarind pulp to the hot spiced oil. Cook stirring for 3 to 4 minutes on medium heat until the tamarind thickens and the raw sour smell transforms to a cooked, complex sourness. The tamarind must be cooked in the oil — not added raw to the rice.
Add salt and jaggery: Add salt and a tiny piece of jaggery. Stir. The jaggery rounds the sharp tamarind sourness.
Add peanuts: Add dry roasted peanuts to the tamarind tempering. Stir.
Add rice to the tamarind: Add the cooled, separated rice to the pan. Alternatively pour the tamarind tempering over the rice on a wide plate.
Mix gently: Mix the tamarind tempering through the rice using a wide folding motion — turning and mixing without breaking the grains. Every grain should be evenly coated with the yellow-orange tamarind.
Serve at room temperature: Pulihora is not eaten hot — it is served at room temperature. Taste and adjust salt and sourness.
Note: Pulihora (puli = tamarind, hora = rice preparation in Telugu) is the most universally made festival rice of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh — prepared for Ugadi (Telugu New Year), Dasara, Sankranti and distributed as temple prasad. The sesame oil (gingelly oil) tempering is specifically the Telugu version — it imparts a distinct nutty character that differentiates this from the North Indian tamarind rice. Temples across Telangana distribute pulihora as prasad on all major festival days.