A well known fact, a cliche to be precise, that Indians love their rice. Cooking rice, especially in a pressure cooker, is an everyday affair. It is almost like a sacred ritual, the very first thing that you do once you enter the kitchen is to wash and soak the rice. Many of us would have had the pleasure of getting up to the whistle of the cooker rather than an alarm. Oh! It is sensational to see those beautiful white pearls and inhale the warm aroma of the steam that comes out as soon as it is cooked. Spanning across the entire nation we have so many of rice varieties. Among them two of the rice dish surpass the rest holding a special place in the Indian cuisine. One is the Mughal special Biriyani and the other is Pulao | Pilaf.
Pulao is not as cumbersome as Briyani. This is one of the quick recipe you can resort to when you are pressed for time. As expected, it is very difficult to trace its authentic roots. According to wiki, there are three references to this dish. It is believed that it existed during the Alexander period and his army brought it back and spread it through out Greece. Also it is mentioned in Mahabharatha, the Indian epic, in which the rice and meat was cooked together and called as "Pallao". But the proper method and preparation was properly documented and there on it became a standard fare in the middle east and thereby reached us.
Generally Pilaf is made with Meat and rice. The speciality of pilaf that differentiates it from a Biriyani is that the rice and meat or veggies are cooked together in the liquid. A one pot meal in its true sense. But nowadays, many (including me) for the sake of convenience and appearance, cook the rice and veggies separately and then mix it. Also there is no heavy masala mix added except for the whole garam masala. This is mildly flavoured rice without use of strong spice mixes. Hence the rice is usually paired with some gravy on the side just like I served this with Peas Potato Kurma for this weeks BM.
Veg Pulao | Pilaf
Medley of veggies and aromatic rice , flavoured mildly to make a sumptuous one pot meal.
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoon Butter
- 2 cloves
- 2 cardamom
- 1 Bay leaf
- ½ " cinnamon stick
- ½ teaspoon Pulao masala
- 2 green chilies acc to your spice level
- 1 small sized onion finely chopped
- 1 tablespoon finely minced Garlic
- 1.5 cups Vegetables chopped (1)
- ½ cup peas. fresh or frozen
- 1 cup Basmati Rice
- 1 tablespoon finely chopped mint leaves (optional) (2)
- Cashews broken and roasted in ghee
- 1 Cup chopped onions for garnishing as Fried Onions Optional
- Coriander leaves for garnishing
Instructions
- Heat oil in a pan. Add cloves, cinnamon, bay leaf, cardamom and cumin seeds.
- Once it splutters, add onions; saute until they become transparent. Then add the minced ginger and garlic, green chili. Then add the pulao masala and mix well.
- Add the vegetables like potatoes, carrot, beans etc. Add required amount of water and allow it to boil.
- Then add the soaked rice and allow it to boil till the rice absorbs water 90%. Then close the pan and keep it for 15-20 minutes in a slow flame (depending on the quality of rice it may take more or less time).
- Once the rice is cooked, fluff it with a fork, gently, to separate the grains. Switch off the flame. Add the fried onions, coriander leaves, mint leaves and cashews. Keep it covered until you serve. (4)
Recipe Notes
Veggies like carrot, beans, potato and cauliflower can be added. Its your choice. Mint leaves gives a warm taste to the pulav. You can add this to all pulav types. Soaking the rice helps in cooking it faster. Also some rice qualities tend to retain water at the bottom of the vessel while cooking in a pressure cooker. Soaking prevents retaining water at the bottom of the vessel when cooked in a pressure cooker. To avoid this, soak it before you cook. For normal everyday cooking, soak it for 10 minutes. Covering will ensure in retaining the flavour and it will be fully absorbed by the rice.
veena krishnakumar says
Should I talk about the Pulao or the picture. Stunning!!!
Harini-Jaya R says
Thats an awesome combo! A very inviting bowl of pulao!
Chef Mireille says
a dish that will always please
Pavani N says
Pulao is such a versatile and crowd pleasing dish. Yours looks yummy.
Srividhya says
Wonderful combo and great pics
Srivalli says
That's such a superb combination Nisha, and your pictures surely make them all the more inviting!
Manjula Bharath says
wow wonderful clicks and fantastic combo 🙂 Pulao and kurma are just looking so delicious !!
Jayanthi Sindhiya says
Pulao looks so tempting..Can't wait to dive in 🙂
Padma Rekha says
this is always a perfect combo every thing look so inviting..
vaishali sabnani says
Beautiful clicks..and a super pulao..looks tempting.
sneha datar says
A one dish meal, great, yummy, I love pulaos.
Priya Suresh says
Pulao looks absolutely inviting, very colourful and beautiful..
Varadas Kitchen says
Pulao is such a versatile dish and works with any combo of veggies. Yours looks lovely.
Sandhya Ramakrishnan says
One of my most preferred one pot meal. Love the clicks.....so tempting 🙂