The everyday native rice
The other varieties on our shelf are red or black, firm, and take planning. Thooyamalli isn't and doesn't. It's a soft white grain that cooks in ordinary time, works in every rice dish you already make, and carries a mild jasmine fragrance that most modern hybrids have lost.
It's the traditional rice for households that want to buy native without changing how they cook.
Honest about what this is
Thooyamalli is a white rice. Unlike our mappillai samba, kavuni and poongar, it doesn't have the bran layer intact — this variety has traditionally been milled white, and that's what gives it the soft texture and fragrance it's known for.
What you're getting is a native Tamil variety rather than a modern high-yield hybrid: better flavour, better aroma, grown by farmers still cultivating traditional paddy. What you're not getting is the fibre of an unpolished grain. If that's what you're after, our poongar is the closest everyday alternative.
We'd rather tell you that plainly than blur it.
Why customers choose ALAI
- A traditional native variety. Not a hybrid, not a blend.
- Cleaned and hand-sorted. Destoned and sieved before packing.
- Sourced from Tamil Nadu growers still cultivating native paddy.
- Nothing added. No coating, no polish enhancers, no artificial fragrance.
- Honest labelling. We tell you what's polished and what isn't.
How to cook it
The easiest rice on our shelf. Cook it the way you cook any white rice.
Rinse. Two or three rinses. Soaking is optional — 15 minutes improves the texture slightly.
Pressure cooker — 1 cup rice to 2 cups water, 2 to 3 whistles, natural release.
Open pot — 1 cup to 2.5 cups water, boil 15–18 minutes, drain any excess and rest covered 5 minutes.
For biryani or pulao — 1 cup to 1.5 cups water after a 20-minute soak. Grains stay separate and the fragrance comes through.
For idli or dosai — use it as the rice in your usual batter. It ferments quickly and gives soft white idli.
For sweet dishes — payasam, sakkarai pongal and kheer. The fragrance suits them.
What to make with it
Plain rice with any kuzhambu · Biryani and pulao · Puliyodarai · Lemon rice · Curd rice · Idli and dosai · Sakkarai pongal · Payasam · Ven pongal
Product details
| Brand | ALAI |
| Variety | Thooyamalli (traditional Tamil white rice) |
| Also known as | Thooyamalli arisi, thuyamalli, thooya malli |
| Processing | Dehusked and milled |
| Ingredients | 100% thooyamalli rice. Nothing added. |
| Available in | 500 g / 1 kg |
| Packaging | Food-grade sealed pouch |
| Shelf life | 12 months from packing |
| Storage | Airtight container in a cool, dry place |
| FSSAI Lic. No. | 22426306000092 |
A note on shelf life
Thooyamalli keeps longer than our unpolished rices — twelve months rather than six — because without the bran there are no natural oils to turn. That's the practical trade-off of a white grain, and it's the honest version of it.
