Bisi Bele Bath

Thursday, Sep 10, 2026 | 2 minute read | Updated at Thursday, Sep 10, 2026

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Ingredients

IngredientQuantityApprox. Calories
Rice1/2 cup (cook with 1½ cups water)~350 kcal
Toor dhal1/2 cup (cook with 1 cup water)~343 kcal
Beans10–15 nos (cut to 1" pieces)~35 kcal
Carrot1 medium size (cut to 1" pieces)~25 kcal
Fresh green peas1/4 cup~30 kcal
Capsicum1 medium size (cut to medium pieces)~24 kcal
Onions1 no. (cut to pieces)~40 kcal
Tamarind pulp1 tbsp~35 kcal
Dry coconut / freshly grated coconut1/4 cup~130 kcal
Bisi Bele Bhath powder2 tbsp (refer Powders)~50 kcal
Saltto taste0 kcal
Cooking oil (for garnish)2 tbsp~240 kcal
Mustard seeds1/4 tsp~5 kcal
Curry leaves1 sprig~1 kcal
Hing (asafoetida)a pinch~1 kcal

Estimated total: ~1,310 kcal for the whole batch — roughly 330–440 kcal per serving, assuming 3–4 servings.

Note: Values are approximate, based on standard nutritional data for the quantities as written. The “capsicum and onion fried” garnish uses a portion of the capsicum/onion already listed above, so it isn’t counted twice.

Method

  1. Pressure cook rice and toor dhal separately.
  2. Cook the vegetables till slightly soft.
  3. Grind coconut and Bisi Bele Bhath powder into a fine paste.
  4. Into a large thick-bottomed cooker (preferably aluminium), add all the items — cooked rice, cooked toor dhal, cooked veggies, ground masala.
  5. Add tamarind pulp, salt, and mix thoroughly.
  6. Add sufficient water to get the Bisi Bele Bhath consistency and cook on low heat for 15–20 minutes.
  7. Finally, add the garnishings, lower the heat, and let it be for 8–10 minutes.
  8. Keep mixing occasionally to avoid the bhath getting burnt on the bottom layer.
  9. Put off the flame — Bisi Bele Bhath is ready.

Savour with Pacchadi / Raitha.

Garnish

2 tablespoons of oil, 1/4 teaspoon mustard, 1 sprig of curry leaves, hing, and fried capsicum and onion.

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Namaskara and welcome! Alt text

Namaskara, and welcome my dear children.

I’m Jyothi Ramesh. A grandmother, a retired teacher, and someone who still believes the best conversations happen over filter coffee.

I have two children and three grandchildren, and like every grandmother, there’s one thing that quietly keeps me up at night. Will they remember how amma’s rasam actually tastes? Will someone, someday, know how to make bisi bele bath the way it’s supposed to be made, not from a packet, but with time and love and a little bit of stubbornness?

That’s why this page exists.

I’m not writing these recipes for the world. I’m writing them for my own family first, and for anyone else who feels the same pull toward home. Every dish here comes from my kitchen, tested over years, sometimes decades. Nothing fancy, just food that means something.

If even one grandchild, mine or yours, ends up making filter coffee the right way because of this little website, I’ll consider it a life well spent.

ಬನ್ನಿ, ಕುಳಿತುಕೊಳ್ಳಿ, ಒಟ್ಟಿಗೆ ಏನಾದರೂ ಅಡುಗೆ ಮಾಡೋಣ.. (Come, sit, and let’s cook together.)

With love, Jyothi Ramesh