When the heat waves hit and the air feels like soup, even thinking about turning on the stove to make lunch or dinner can feel like too much. Most people crave something cold and refreshing in the summer, and that's just what we saw recently on Padma Lakshmi’s (@padmalakshmi) Instagram feed.
The former Top Chef host, creator of Taste the Nation and best-selling author recently shared her version of yogurt rice, or thayir sadam, a South Indian staple that combines creamy, tangy yogurt with day-old rice and a fragrant, fast-cooked spice mix called tadka. The result is comforting, cooling and surprisingly energizing even on the hottest days.
If you have some leftover rice in the fridge, you're halfway there. Read on for all you need to know to make this delicious dish at home.
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Lakshmi recently shared her take on yogurt rice on Instagram, and it’s as straightforward as it is satisfying. Known as thayir sadam in South Indian cuisine, this dish is beloved for good reason. It's quick, filling and ideal for hot weather.
Lakshmi begins with a bowl of day-old rice, which she mixes with plain yogurt and a little (okay, a lot of) salt. And she mixes it the traditional way: with her hands! This step might seem unusual, but it’s common in Indian homes and believed to enhance the texture and help blend the flavors more evenly.
The rice soaks up the tangy yogurt, becoming creamy but still toothsome and the generous amount of salt makes the base feel complete even before the next step. It’s a dish you can prep in just a few minutes, and one that gets better the longer it sits, making it perfect for meal prep or a quick lunch in the middle of a sweltering afternoon.
But the real magic happens when you add the tadka.
Related: The Chef-Approved Trick for Making Fluffy, Tender Rice
Tadka: A Quick Burst of Flavor
Tadka is a traditional Indian cooking technique where spices are bloomed in hot oil or ghee to unlock their flavors and create a delicious sauce for drizzling over all sorts of foods. It’s a simple step, but a crucial one, and it moves fast. As Lakshmi wisely suggests, line up all your spices before you begin so you’re ready to go the moment that oil hits the pan.
She lists every spice she used in the video, but you can use whichever spices you prefer for a tadka. Common additions for a yogurt rice tadka include mustard seeds, curry leaves, dried red chilies, asafoetida and urad dal.
Once the mustard seeds start to pop and the curry leaves crisp, pour the hot, spiced oil directly over the yogurt rice. The contrast between the cool, creamy base and the hot, crackling spices creates something truly special. It's soothing yet bold, refreshing yet complex.
Stir it all together, and you’ve got a dish that’s humble in appearance but packed with layers of flavor and texture.
Whether you’re new to Indian cuisine or grew up eating yogurt rice every summer, this is the kind of recipe that quickly becomes a regular in your rotation, especially on days when you want something easy but not at all boring.
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