Tomato Rice Recipe - Instant Pot & Stovetop

4.72 from 14 votes

Tomato Rice using Coconut Milk is a Tamilnadu style tomato rice recipe made with fresh tomatoes, coconut milk and few Indian spices.

Course Main Course

Cuisine Indian, South Indian

Keyword instant pot, instant pot tomato rice, tomato biryani, tomato recipes, Tomato Rice, tomato rice with coconut milk

Diet Gluten-Free, Vegan, Vegetarian

Method Instant Pot/Pressure Cooker, Stovetop

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 15

Total Time 30

Servings

Calories 440kcal

Author Bhavana Patil

Press SAUTE on Instant Pot. Heat oil (or ghee), and add whole spices like cumin seeds, bay leaf, cinnamon, cloves, and cardamom. Saute for a few secs or till aromatic.
Next, add onion, and green chilies. Saute till the onions are soft and light brown.
Add ginger-garlic paste and saute for 1-2 minutes till the raw smell disappears.
Then add finely chopped tomatoes (or tomato puree), turmeric powder, red chili powder, garam masala, and salt. Cook till tomatoes turn soft and mushy. This can take 3-4 minutes.
Then add the mint leaves, and coriander leaves. Saute for another minute.
Finally, coconut milk, water, and basmati rice. Mix everything together.
Deglaze the pot (Make sure there are no food bits stuck to the bottom of the pot). This helps to avoid getting a 'BURN' Alert during pressure cooking.
Close the lid securely, and turn the vent to "SEALING". Select the PRESSURE COOK/MANUAL (High Pressure) setting and set the cooking time to 5 minutes.
When the instant pot beeps, do a quick pressure release before removing the lid.
Gently fluff up the rice with a ladle or fork. The Tomato Rice recipe is ready, serve with yogurt, raita.

Follow the same process mentioned above for Instant Pot. Close the lid and put the whistle weight on. Cook for 2 whistles on medium flame and turn off the gas. All the other steps remain the same.

Heat oil (or ghee) in a nonstick pan or Kadai. Add whole spices like cumin seeds, bay leaf, cinnamon, cloves, and cardamom. Saute for a few secs or till aromatic.
Next, add onion, and green chilies. Saute till the onions are soft and light brown.
Add ginger-garlic paste and saute for 1-2 minutes till the raw smell disappears.
Then add finely chopped tomatoes (or tomato puree), turmeric powder, red chili powder, garam masala, and salt. Cook till tomatoes turn soft and mushy. This can take 3-4 minutes.
Then add the mint leaves, and coriander leaves. Saute for another minute.
Finally, coconut milk, water, and basmati rice. Mix everything.
Close the lid and cook on medium-heat until the water is absorbed, and then turn off the heat and leave it covered for 10 minutes.
Open the lid and gently fluff up the rice. Tomato Rice is ready, serve with yogurt, or raita.

I have prepared this dish in my electric pressure cooker, Instant Pot DUO60 6 QT

Tomatoes: Use ripe, juicy Roma tomatoes for the best results.
Type of Rice: Traditionally short-grain rice like sona masuri or seeraga samba rice is used for tomato rice in south India, but I used basmati rice in this recipe.
Rice-to-water ratio: The rice-to-water ratio is important to get fluffy and nonsticky grains.

Fresh Herbs: I like to add mint (pudina) for flavoring, but you can skip it.
Coconut Milk: I have made fresh coconut milk at home, but you can use store-bought canned full-fat coconut milk as well. Tastes best with homemade coconut milk.
Add vegetables: You can also add other veggies like carrots, green beans, sweet corn, and green peas to make them more healthy.
Whole Spices: I have used whole spices in this recipe, you can completely skip it and add an extra ½ teaspoon of biryani masala or garam masala.

Note: Nutrition values are my best estimates. If you rely on them for your diet, use your preferred nutrition calculator.