Lightly spiced dry fruit vegetable Pulao

We Indians and our rice. Rice is a staple out here, especially in the north east and south.  We have a large variety of rice preparations, savory and sweet ; mild to full on spice, rice for life changing occassions like a wedding to rice to soothe that destroyed digestive system after that so called wedding (khichidi) .What I am going for today is lightly spiced , slightly sweet pulao. It has cinnamon, cardamom and cloves as main spices , loaded with carrots, beans and peas and for that crunch I added nuts . For a slight tangy sweetness, raisins. I made this the day I made my chicken kofta dish , which is a match made in heaven and if you are looking for a vegetarian accompliment for this, any paneer or potato gravy dish will be great. Just use something which has enough gravy because this by itself would be a little dry. This is a quick one and can be stored in the fridge for upto 48 hours, the texture is not lost when reheated and its very mild, so it goes very well with heavy curries without being overpowering.

Some technical points :

1. Choice of rice  and its treatment. Pulao is traditionally made with long grain basmati rice, primarily because it has low starch content and is very fragnant and any kind  of basmati rice will work fine with this. What you need to focus on is getting as much starch out of your rice as possible . Wash your rice multiple times, the water will get less and less cloudier with each rinse , I wash my rice around 4-5 times. Soaking the rice will soften those outer walls and break them down, it will cook faster and you need to time it accordingly. As soon as the rice is 70% cooked , immediately remove and drain. Remember, they will continue cooking and will be pan fried later.
2. Seasoning. There is no seasoning in this pulao other than salt and sugar. You may see the recipe and think , woah! thats a lot of sugar! (2/3rds of a cup. yes . you heard that right ). However, this has sweet undertones and secondly, we are boiling the rice in a lot of water and the seasonings will be diluted.

Recipe : Lightly spiced dry fruit vegetable Pulao

Cuisine : Indian

Prep Time : 30 mins

Cooking time : 35 mins

Course : Main

Serves : 4

Ingredients : 

1. 1 cup basmati rice
2. 10 green cardamons
3. 3 large pieces of cinnamon
4. 8 cloves
5. 3 bay leaves
6. 2 tablespoon ghee (Please use the best quality you can get)
7. Salt to taste
8. 2/3 cup sugar
9. 1 cup chopped carrots and green beans 
10. 1/4 cup peas
11. 1/4 cup chopped paneer
12. 12 cashews
13. 12 almonds
14. handful of raisins
15. 3 tbsp of vegetable oil

Procedure : 

1. Wash the rice thoroughly and let it soak for 30 mins.
2. Soak the raisins and cashews in room temperature water and soak the almonds separately in hot water.
3. In a large pot add water ( about 8 cups) and bring to a rolling boil.
4. Add the cardamom, cinnamon, bay leaves and cloves along with salt and sugar.
5. Add the rice and cook on high until he rice is tender but has resistance.
6. Drain the rice and cool until you can touch it comfortably.
7. Fish out the whole spices(they have done their job)
8. Add the ghee and  stir the rice. Reserve till needed.
9. In a large pot, add oil ,
10. Add in the vegetables and saute . Add salt to taste.
11. Remove the almond skins (it will be a piece of cake after the soaking)
12. Add the nuts and raisins to the pot. Cook for 4-5 mins of medium of until the vegetables are slightly tender but not soft.
13. Add the rice and combine everything well.Cover and cook until the rice is fully cooked.
14. Serve immediately.