An exclusive recipe for a delicious rice for lunch, whilst entertaining or for the family….
Ingredients
(Serves 6)
Kaima/ Jeeragashala or any Basmati rice – 4 cups
Water to cook the Kaima – seven-and-a-half cups
Butter, Ghee, refined oil – 50 gms each, for frying the Kaima rice
Carrot (finely chopped) – 1 cup
Beans (finely chopped) – 1 cup
Cabbage (minced) – 1 packed cup
Spring onion (chopped) – Half cup
Capsicum (chopped) – Half cup
Cauliflower florets (cleaned) – 1 cup
Potato – Half cup, cut into thin cubes, soaked in a cup of hot water for 10-15 minutes
Dried green peas: Pattani – 1 cup
(Pre-soak for 6-8 hours. Add water, pressure-cook for one whistle, next, simmer for 2- 3 minutes. Turn off the heat.)
Onion – 1 no., finely chopped
Ginger – 2 tbsp, shredded
Garlic – 2 tbsp, shredded
For the Vegetable Pulav Masala powder
Cloves – 3 to 4
Cardamom – 2
Cinnamon – 1 half inch piece
Cumin – Half tsp
Fennel – Half tsp
Peppercorns – 5 to 6
Dry red chilli – 1
Whole coriander seeds – 1 tsp
Refined oil/ butter to fry the vegetables – 2 tbsp
Salt – To taste
Procedure
In a wok, heat the butter, ghee and refined oil together. Stir-fry the Kaima rice grains with salt for three to four minutes until the rice granules are crisp and crackling. Keep aside.
In a non-stick vessel, heat two tbsp refined oil. Sauté onions till soft, translucent. Now, add shredded ginger and garlic. Sauté well. Add chopped spring onions, capsicum and salt. Sauté well.
In a microwave-safe vessel, take a cup of water. Add chopped carrot, beans, cabbage, (cleaned) cauliflower florets. Cook this vegetable mixture for four minutes in the microwave. Reserve the veg stock as base to cook the Kaima rice.
Tip in the vegetables. Cook until the vegetables are dry.
Warm the spices. Powder in the small mixer jar to a fine texture. Pass through a sieve. It will make for a heaped tbsp of pulav garam masala.
Now, add turmeric, garam masala to the vegetables. Sauté for two minutes. Add chopped coriander leaves, mix well.
Add six-and-a-half cups of water and the single cup of reserved vegetable stock to the Kaima rice grains sautéed in oil, ghee, butter. Cook until the rice is completely cooked.
In a big vessel, mix the rice and spicy vegetable mixture together. Serve hot with cucumber and fruit raita, accompanied by achaar, spiced pappads.
