Tomato Rice

My husband has some pretty weird requirements when it comes to tomato rice... he wants it to be tangy & spicy but not too tomatoey (if that is a word). I've had a really tough time catering to this and most of my attempts have not been met with much enthusiasm. I tried quite a few recipes and most of them had a lot of tomatoes in the ingredients list and I knew right away that it wouldn't fit the bill... if I scaled back too much on the tomatoes then it didn't have sufficient tang :( but help arrived in the form of my mom's tomato rice... Finally i found a version that was met with approval and I promptly took note of the measurements. So, this may not be the tomato rice for everyone out there but even for someone who loves tomatoes (like me) , this is a very tasty and quick rice dish.

TOMATO RICE a.k.a Thakkali Saadham

Ingredients:
Basmati Rice - 2 cups (levelled, not heaped), soaked in water for 20 minutes with a bay leaf and cumin seeds  and drained
Roma Tomatoes - 3, chopped
Onion - half of a big one, chopped finely
Coriander leaves - 1/4 cup, chopped
Mint Leaves - 1/4 cup, chopped
Yogurt - 1 tbsp 
Tamarind paste - 1 tsp (optional, needed if using tomatoes that are not very sour)
Chilli powder - 1 tsp
Sambar powder (I use Shakthi) - 1.5 tsp
Turmeric Powder - 1/4 tsp
Garam Masala - 1/2 to 1 tsp
Water - 3.5 cups
Salt - to taste
Oil - 2 tbsp
Ghee - 1 tsp

For Tempering:

Kraambu (Cloves) - 1
Pattai (Cinnamon) - 1 inch piece

To Fry & Grind:

Cinnamon - 1 small piece
Sombu (Fennel seeds) - 1 tsp (always a good combination with tomatoes)
Elakkai (Elaichi) - 1
Clove - 1
Coriander seeds - 1 tbsp
Coriander  leaves and stems - some
Onion - half of a big one, cut into big cubes
Tomato - 1
Garlic - 8 to 10 cloves, peeled

Ginger - 1 inch, peeled
Green Chillies - 8

Method:1) Heat 2 tsp of oil and fry the masala ingredients, one half of the onion (cut into big cubes),tomato,  garlic, ginger & green chillies till the onion is light brown. Cool and grind this to a paste.
2) Heat the remaining oil in a pressure cooker and season with  clove & cinnamon Then add the chopped onion and cook till it is browned. Now add the chopped tomatoes with some salt and turmeric powder and cook till mushy.
3) Toss in the chopped coriander and mint leaves, and the ground paste along with the chilli powder, sambar powder and garam masala, yogurt and tamarind paste (if using). Fry this really well for about 5 to 7 minutes.
4) Meanwhile, drain the rice, saute in ghee for a few minutes & keep aside.
5) Add the drained and fried rice to the onion-tomato spice mixture and 3.5 cups of water. Check and add more salt if necessary. Cover with lid, place the weight on top and once the pressure builds allow to cook for 5 minutes on medium flame before switching off the stove (there will be no whistle). Let this rest for 20 minutes atleast before opening the cooker. Stir gently and serve with some raitha and chips.