Shavige or Rice Noodles is a tiffin variety from the state of Karnataka, prepared using rice noodles, vegetables and South Indian spices.
Table of Contents
Shavige
Shavige is a Kannada word used to describe noodles. This shavige is prepared with rice noodles and South Indian spices – mustard seeds, green chillies and curry leaves.
This recipe describes who you can make lemon shavige that serves as an excellent lunch box recipe.
Shavige is most usually prepared when people are short on time and need a hearty meal to fill in that evening 4PM snack.
It is also a popular evening tiffin served at popular local eateries. Shavige is usually served with white coconut chutney.
Ingredients for Rice Noodles
There are two types of Shavige – one that is prepared with dried rice noodles available in stores or the one that is prepared from scratch, also known as Otthu Shavige. In this recipe, we are going to use the dried rice noodles.
I prefer to use Dragon or Double horse brand – both are excellent. You will need about 250-300 grams of dried rice noodles for a family of three.
The spices we are going to use in this recipe are – mustard seeds and turmeric powder.
Chana dal, cashew nuts and peanuts add a crunch factor to the shavige to an otherwise soft texture of the dish.
Curry leaves and green chillies will add the intense South Indian flavours. To make it easier for kids or elderly people to eat, cut the green chillies in half lengthwise so we can remove them if needed.
In this recipe I have only used onions, but you can add finely chopped carrots, beans and potatoes as well to make it a filling tiffin item. When dicing the vegetables, ensure that you cut them into small and equal pieces. This will help them cook evenly and quickly.
And finally, in order to make it a lemon shavige, you need a juice of a full lemon that will give it that lemony tangy flavour with a hit of heat from the green chillies.
You may also add grated coconut as a garnish at the end just before serving.
How to make Shavige
Cooking the rice noodles
The first step is to cook the rice noodles. Since the store-bought noodles are really thin, they take very little time to cook.
Take a large vessel and fill it with water and 1/2 a teaspoon of salt. Bring it to a rolling boil.
You can now add the rice noodles and allow all of them to submerge in the hot water. Lower the flame and allow it to cook. You are basically rehydrating the dry rice noodles. Turn off the flame after a minute.
You take a string of rice noodles and check if it is sufficiently cooked. If it is about 90% of the water, you can good to go.
Drain the water with the help of a large sieve. You can collect this starch water and use it for your plants.(after it cools down).
Rinse the rice noodles in cold water to arrest the cooking process. Allow the rice noodles to remain in the sieve to allow all the water to drain out. Keep it aside while you prepare for the tempering and flavouring.
Tempering and flavouring the Shavige
Place a pan/ kadai on low-medium heat. Add 2 tablespoons of cooking oil – I prefer to use groundnut oil but refined oil is good too.
Once the oil is warm, add the mustard seeds and allow them to sputter. Follow it up with the chana dal and cashew nuts. These provide the crunch element in this shavige. If you do not have cashew nuts, you may add peanuts too.
Once you have browned the nuts, add the curry leaves and sliced green chillies. Saute for 10-20 seconds. Add the finely chopped onions. Follow it up with turmeric powder and a pinch of salt. This will help cook the onion faster.
(If you are using other vegetables such as carrots, beans or potato, add them at this stage with a sprikle of salt and 2-3 tablespoons of water. Cover and cook until the vegetables are soft.)
After the onions are soft, add the cooked rice noodles and add about a teaspoon of salt too. At this stage, you can turn off the flame. Squeeze the juice of one whole lime into the kadai.
Now comes the actual part of making these rice noodles. The shavige will taste delicious only when you have mixed all the ingredients thoroughly. Take at least 2-3 minutes mixing all the ingredients so that you don’t have pockets of salt or lemon in different parts of the Shavige.
Once mixed, if you feel fancy, you can garnish it with some grated coconut too.
Allow the rice noodles to rest for 10-15 minutes before serving.
You may serve this Lemon Shavige with coconut chutney or, if you are like me, with a spoon of sugar on the side.
Storage and Shelf Life
You should eat Shavige as soon as you prepare it. If you are packing for a lunchbox, avoid adding the grated coconut as it might spoil sooner depending on where you are.
You may also cook the rice noodles and store it in the fridge overnight to prepare the tempering fresh the next morning.
Fully prepared rice shavige store well in the fridge for up to 2 days. If you plan on eating it, remove the container from the fridge and leave it on the counter for 15-20 minutes before reheating.
Notes for Beginners
Rice shavige is the best dish for a beginner. The most common issue that I faced as a beginner was with the consistency of the shavige itself. I have over cooked or under cooked them at times. The key part of the process is to wash the cooked rice noodles under water/cold water – this will prevent them from overcooking.
Also, as mentioned in the recipe, take your time to mix all the ingredients thoroughly.
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Recipe
Rice Noodles
Ingredients
- 250-300 g Rice Noodles
- 2 tbsp Cooking oil
- 1 tsp Mustard Seeds
- 1 tsp Chana Dal
- Handful Cashew Nuts/ Peanuts
- 2 sprig Curry Leaves
- 2 small Green chillies sliced length-wise
- 1 Onion finely chopped
- ½ tsp Salt adjust according to taste
- 2 tbsp Lemon Juice
- 2 tbsp Grated Coconut (optional)
Instructions
Preparing the Rice Noodles
- Place a large bowl with water and allow it to come to a boil. Add 1/2 tsp salt to this water.
- Once the water reaching a rolling boil, add the dried rice noodles and allow it to simmer on a low flame for a minute.
- Let the rice noodles cook in the hot water for a minute and turn off the flame. Let a minute or 2 pass and take a string of the rice noodle and check if it is done.
- When you see the noodles are about 90% cooked, take a container and drain the water into a sieve. Run the sieve with the cooked rice noodles under cold water to stop the cooking process.
- Let the noodles sit in the sieve and allow all the water to drain out. Let it cool down completely.
Flavouring the Rice noodles
- Place a kadai on low-medium heat. Add two tablespoons of cooking oil. I like to use groundnut oil.
- Once the oil is sufficiently warm (you should not see smoke from the oil), add the mustard seeds and allow it to sputter. Now, lower the flame.
- Next, add the chana dal and cashewnuts. Allow it to brown while sauteing it in the oil.
- Add the curry leaves and sliced green chillies and give it a good mix. Follow it up with the finely diced onion and mix them all together.
- Now, you can add ½ a teaspoon of turmeric powder and a small sprinkle of salt. This will aid in cooking the onions faster.
- Once the onions are soft, you can now add the cooked rice noodles. Season the rice noodles with ½ tsp salt. This is the part which will take the longest time. Turn off the flame and mix all the ingredients thoroughly mix until you have a nice yellow colour on all the rice noodles.
- Squeeze the juice of one whole lemon and mix is well again. Do a taste test and adjust salt accordingly. Your Shavige is ready. I usually allow the Shavige to rest for at least 15 minutes before serving since this allows the noodles to absorb all the flavours well.
- You can serve Shavige with coconut chutney, or sometimes I eat it with a teaspoon of sugar on the side. (Childhood habits)
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