Vegetable Pulao — Recipes

Basmati cooked by absorption with whole spices, onion, mint and vegetables — the pilaf of India, and the dish biryani is so often confused with.

Untested: not yet made in this kitchen. It is here for the Rice section’s regional pages and is adapted from the source named in the Notes.

Ingredients

1½ cups basmati rice (aged)
2 tablespoons oil or ghee
2½ cups water for a pressure cooker (2¾ cups for a pot, 1¾ cups for an Instant Pot)
1½ teaspoons ginger garlic paste
1 medium onion, thinly sliced
2 green chilies, slit
1 medium carrot (¾ cup chopped)
4 medium French beans (½ cup, chopped to 1 inch)
½ cup green peas
1 small potato, cubed (optional)
3 tablespoons mint, finely chopped (or coriander leaves)
1 bay leaf
¾ teaspoon shahi jeera (caraway; or cumin)
4 green cardamoms
4 cloves
2-inch piece cinnamon
1 star anise (optional)
1 strand mace (optional)
1 pinch nutmeg (optional)
2 pinches stone flower (dagad phool, optional)
½ teaspoon fennel seed powder (optional)
Salt, as needed

Key ingredients

Cinnamon

Rinse the rice until the water runs clear, soak at least 20 minutes, and drain.
Spices. Heat the ghee and sizzle the whole spices. Fry the onion and chilies until golden, then the ginger-garlic paste for 30–60 seconds.
Vegetables. Add the vegetables and mint and sauté 2–3 minutes.
Water. Add the water for your vessel and enough salt that it tastes slightly salty, and bring to a rolling boil. Add the rice.
Cook. In a pot, cover and cook on low until the water is absorbed, then rest covered 10–15 minutes. In a pressure cooker, cook to one whistle.
Serve fluffed, with raita.

Source Adapted from Swasthi Shreekanth, “Veg Pulao,” Swasthi’s Recipes (indianhealthyrecipes.com). The water changes with the vessel, as listed.

Pulao and biryani Pulao is an absorption dish; biryani is layered and sealed. The collection’s Chicken Biryani (Dum Style) is the layered kind.

The Rice section’s South Asia page (/rice/south-asia/) covers the history and technique behind this dish.