Hyderabadi Vegetable Dum Biryani

Me and my wonderful friends have always maintained that Biryani always equals mutton biryani and you cannot actually call anything else a biryani at all; and I'm sure my non-vegetarian friends would agree to the core. As I have not been eating meat for quite a long time now, I have always prepared chicken biryanis and fish biryanis and loving and embracing my biryani with all my heart.

To a non-vegetarian like me, the first choice for biryani would undoubtedly be mutton/chicken and that's the reason I haven't prepared anything remotely which would both be vegetarian and a biryani; well I call the vegetarian version a pulao. But recently I had vegetarian friends over and that was the sole reason to make me try my hands on making a vegetarian biryani. I did not want to serve a pulao, but something special; so I chose to prepare this Hyderabadi Vegetarian Biryani: inspired from my recipe of Hyderabadi Chicken Biryani which I have prepared and devoured many a times.

This is an elaborate recipe with long preparation time, and even though I never imagined, I actually loved the light and royal feeling, both at the same time with each bite of this flavorful biryani: the goodness of vegetables, the aroma of spices and the royal taste with cashews and saffron will make you drool just at the sight of this amazing dish. So let's move on to the awesomeness !!

Ingredients:

For the rice:

Rice: 3 cups
Cloves: 3
Green cardamom: 2 (add seeds and covers too)
Black cardamom: 1
Cinnamon stick: 1 inch

For the curry:

Cooking oil: 6 tsp.
Shahi jeera: 1 tsp.
Black cardamom: 1
Mace: 1
Cloves: 3
Cinnamon: 1 inch
Bay leaves: 2
Onion (chopped): 1 big size
Ginger-garlic paste: 4 tsp.
Tomato (finely chopped): 2
Salt to taste
Red chilli powder: 1 tsp.
Potatoes (finely cubed): 3
Carrot (peeled and cubed): 2
Peas: 1 cup
Yogurt: 1 cup

For the biryani:

Ghee: 2 tsp.
Cooking oil: 4 tsp.
Onion (thinly sliced): 1 big
Cashew nuts: 6-8
Mint leaves: a handful
Coriander leaves: a handful
Saffron strands: 3 pinches
Milk: 1/2 cup

1. First we will prepare the rice: Boil the rice as you normally do. If you want to see how I boil rice without a rice cooker, check this link: How to make perfect boiled rice. I drain the water and cover and let cook in steam and that's where I add the spices: cloves, green cardamom seeds (and covers separately), black cardamom and cinnamon. 
2. Add the spices after draining the water and before covering. Or you can add the spices while boiling the rice as well if you don't want to drain the water.
   
   
3. Now we prepare the vegetable curry. Heat oil on medium flame and add the whole spices: shahi jeera, cardamom, mace, cloves, cinnamon and bay leaves. 
4. Add the chopped onions and let fry until they turn transparent.
5. Add the ginger-garlic paste and fry until the raw smell goes away. I have used grated ginger and garlic in this recipe.
6. Add the chopped tomatoes and sprinkle a little salt. Let cook until the tomatoes are soft and mushy. Add the red chilli powder and mix well and let cook for another minute.
7. Add the chopped and prepared vegetables: potatoes, carrots and peas. You can also add cauliflower and green beans if you like but I did not add in this recipe. Sprinkle little more salt and mix everything well. Let cook for about 2 minutes. 
8. Add the yogurt and mix well. Do not add any water. Cover and let cook for about 10 minutes or until the vegetables are tender. If adding cauliflower, add the florets to boiling water before adding to the curry. 
   
9. Remove the cover and turn off the flame. The curry is ready and now we will layer the biryani.
10. Layering the biryani: Take a heavy bottomed pan and add the ghee to the base. This will prevent the biryani from sticking to the base.
11. Add a thin layer of rice and spread evenly. Add a layer of the prepared vegetable curry.  Sprinkle chopped mint leaves. 
12. Add another layer of rice and another layer of vegetables over it. Sprinkle the chopped coriander. Add the final thin layer of rice over it and cover everything evenly with the rice layer. 
13. Add the milk over the layered biryani and sprinkle the saffron strands over it. Cover and add weight over the lid (or seal it with dough) and put this complete setup over minimal flame for about 20 minutes to let every flavor mix in together and produce a wonderful taste.
14. While the biryani is cooking on slow flame, prepare the onions and cashews. Heat the oil and another pan and add the sliced onions. Let fry on medium flame until the onions fry completely and start getting brown and crispy. Drain the oil and remove the onions on kitchen paper to absorb extra oil.
15. In the same oil, fry the cashews until they start becoming little brown on the sides. Turn off the flame, drain the oil and remove the cashew too on a kitchen paper. 
16. To use up less oil in your biryani, fry the onions before you begin to prepare the vegetable curry. In step 3, first fry onions, then cashews and use the same oil for making vegetable curry.
17. Open the lid carefully and top with the fried onions and cashews. Mix carefully and serve hot. The accompanists for Hyderabadi Biryani is always Hyderabadi Mirch Ka Salan but you can also prepare Tamatar Ka Salan or Baby Onion ka Salan to go with the biryani.  

I had prepared this as a main course meal for my guests so did not prepare Salan but rather served it with rich and creamy Dal Bukhara, Boondi Raita, Mint coriander chutney and Mango Shrikhand for dessert.

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Looking for more vegetarian rice and biryani varieties? Try this Green Broccoli Pulao, Kashmiri Pulao, Mint Rice, Malabar Vegetable Dum Biryani, Achaari Coriander Pulao, Mix Vegetable Pilaf and Qubooli Biryani.  

Mix vegetable pilaf

This is one simple and quick recipe for those tiring weekdays. This recipe can be made with leftover boiled rice as well (which is what exactly I did). This contains a lot of vegetables and you can add all the available veggies and serve it with simple pickle or yogurt. It is very filling food and easy to prepare.. I whipped it up in 15 minutes..

Ingredients:

Boiled rice: 2 cups
Cooking oil: 3 tsp.
Cumin seeds: 1 tsp.
Onion (chopped): 1
Potato (chopped): 2 (medium sized)
Carrot (chopped): 1
Ginger (grated): 1 inch
Green chilli (chopped): 1
Tomato (chopped): 1 (big size) I used 6 cocktail tomatoes, halved.
Peas: 1/4 cup
Salt to taste
Red chilly powder: 1/2 tsp.
Coriander powder: 1/2 tsp.
Garam masala: 1/2 tsp.
A lot of coriander leaves to garnish

1.  Heat oil and crackle the cumin seeds. Add the chopped onions and fry until they start getting transparent.
2. Add the potatoes, carrots and any other veggies (boiled cauliflower, beans, capsicum) you would love to add and sprinkle salt. Let them cook completely. This will take about 10 minutes.
3. Add the ginger, green chilli and the tomatoes. Add the peas and the spice powders: red chilli powder, coriander powder and garam masala. Mix everything well and cook until the peas are done and the tomatoes are soft. 
   
4. Add the boiled rice and mix everything well. Turn off the flame after 2 minutes and garnish with a lot of coriander leaves. Simple and healthy veggie pilaf is ready !!

Malabar Vegetable Dum Biryani

Usually my love in biryanis is limited to non-vegetarian dishes. I mostly use chicken and fish for preparing flavorful, mouth watering biryanis. I had prepared this biryani for my vegetarian friends and they loved it!! That was the time I did not use to document my recipes so did not take any pictures. Using the same picture from my Malabar Dum Chicken Biryani. This biryani recipe is for all the vegetarian friends who love to enjoy biryani in their own ways.


Ingredients:

To fry:

Ghee: 3 tsp.
Cooking oil: 1 tbsp.
Onions (sliced): 2
Cashew nuts: accordingly
Raisins: accordingly

For the rice:

Ghee: 2 tsp.
Rice: 2 cups
Cardamom: 2 (seeds)
Cinnamon stick: 1 inch
Cloves: 2

For the vegetable curry:

Potatoes: 2 (chopped)
Cauliflower florets: 1 cup
Carrot: 1 (or more if desired)
Peas: 1/2 cup
Cooking oil: 2 tsp.
Garam masala: to taste
Tomato (chopped): 1
Ginger (grated): 1 inch
Garlic (grated): 3 cloves
Green chilli (chopped): 1
Salt to taste
Mint leaves (chopped): a handful
Biryani masala: 1 tsp.
Lemon juice: 2 tsp.

For the biryani:

Ghee: 2 tsp.
Garam masala: as required
Milk: 4 tbsp.
Saffron strands: a pinch
Chhapati dough (to seal the vessel for dum)
Coriander leaves: to garnish

1. Heat ghee and cooking oil and fry the onions on medium heat until they become fried, brown and crispy. Drain the oil and keep aside. Next, fry the cashews and raisins in the same pan and drain and keep aside.
2. Wash and keep the rice aside. Keep a pan (for the rice) on another stove and heat ghee. Add the drained rice and fry for about 2 minutes. Add water (2 cups) and add the whole spices: cardamom (seeds), cinnamon and cloves.
3. Add the lemon juice, mix and let rice cook and when it is done, turn off the heat and cover it and let it sit.
4. Warm the milk in microwave for about 30 seconds and add the saffron strands to it. Keep aside.
5. By this time we will prepare the vegetables. Cut the cauliflower into florets and boil in salted water till they are slightly cooked and a little soft. 
6. Chop the potatoes and fry them a bit in the same oil and ghee mix in which the onions were fried. Drain from the oil and remove the fried potatoes. Sprinkle garam masala on the potatoes.
7. Fry the carrots in the same way as the potatoes or both could be fried together. Carrots can be chopped either in rounds or slit length-wise. Keep all the vegetables aside. Vegetables can also be boiled but I prefer to fry them for a bit so they taste better.
8. Heat the same pan and add 2 tsp. oil. Add the chopped tomatoes and let cook on medium heat till they soften. Then add ginger, garlic, green chillis and mix well. 
9. Add the fried vegetables and peas, salt and the chopped mint leaves. Mix everything well and let cook for about 2 minutes until everything is mixed and absorbed well. 
10. Add biryani masala (or garam masala) and lemon juice. Give a quick stir and turn off the flame. 
11. Now start making layers: In a heavy bottomed deep pan, begin by adding the ghee. Then add half the cooked vegetable masala. Now add half the rice in another layer above it. Sprinkle little garam masala, spread half of the fried onions and half of the cashews and raisins.
12. Add the remaining cooked vegetable masala in a layer above the rice layer. Add the remaining rice on the top layer. Add the other half of onions and the remaining cashews and raisins. Add the saffron milk to the pan and cover with a lid.
13. Now knead the dough as you would for chappati and tightly cover the edges of the cover on the pan with it so it gets sealed and no air can escape. You can also cover with a lid and place a heavy weight on the lid and it works the same as dum !
14. Keep this pan with cover on the lowest heat for about 10 minutes and let cook. This is so that the rice and the masala gets fused in together. Don't keep it for long time as the veggies are already cooked so they might become mushy. 
15. Remove the seal, open the cover and garnish with coriander leaves. Serve hot !!

Green Broccoli Pulao

Ingredients:

Rice (boiled): 3 cups
Broccoli: 1
Cooking oil: 2 tsp.
Cumin seeds: 1 tsp.
Black cardamom: 1
Bay leaf: 1
Cinnamon: 1 inch
Cloves: 2
Onion (chopped): 1
Ginger-garlic paste: 2 tsp.
Green chilli (chopped): 1
Salt to taste
Red chilli powder: 1/2 tsp.
Garam masala: 1/2 tsp.
Peas: 1/2 cup
Mint leaves: a few

1. Separate the broccoli florets and boil them in warm water. Drain the water and keep the broccli aside.
2. Heat oil in a pan and add the whole spices: cumin, black cardamom, bay leaf, cinnamon and cloves. Let them splutter.
3. Add the chopped onion and fry until they are transparent. Then add the ginger-garlic paste and fry until the raw smell goes away. 
4. Add green chilli and broccoli and mix everything well. Let the broccoli cook for about 10 minutes until it is soft and tender. 
5. Add peas and mint leaves. Add salt, red chilli and garam masala and mix everything well. Cook on medium flame until the peas are done. 
6. Add the boiled rice and mix everything well. Turn off the flame after 2 minutes and serve hot !!

I served this pulao with Murgh Dahi Masala.

Achaari Coriander Pulao

Ingredients:

Rice: 2 cups
Pickle oil or Mustard oil: 3 tsp.
Dried red chilli: 2
Fennel seeds: 1 tsp.
Coriander seeds: 1 tsp.
Mustard seeds: 1 tsp.
Fenugreek seeds: 1/2 tsp.
Cloves: 2
Bay leaves: 2
Turmeric powder: 1 tsp.
Onion (chopped): 1
Ginger (chopped): 1 inch
Garlic (chopped): 3 cloves
Yoghurt: 4 tsp.
Red chilli powder: 1 tsp.
Salt to taste
Garam masala: 1/2 tsp.
Coriander: 1 bunch

1. Add onion, ginger, garlic, dried red chilli, fennel seeds, fenugreek seeds, cloves, bay leaves to a mixer and grind to a smooth paste. To this add yoghurt, turmeric powder, garam masala, some chopped coriander leaves, 1 tsp. pickle oil and keep aside for 30 minutes.
2. Boil the rice and keep aside. 
3. Heat the remaining 2 tsp. oil and add mustard seeds and coriander seeds. Add the remaining chopped coriander and save some for garnish. Mix well and add the ground mix which was kept previously.
4. Add salt and red chilli powder and mix well. Let the mix cook for about 10 minutes, when the raw smell no longer appears. 
5. Add the boiled rice and mix well. Garnish with coriander leaves and serve with any raita. 

Kabuli Chana Pulao

Ingredients:

Rice: a cup

Kabuli chana: 1/2 cup

Cooking oil: 2 tsp.

Bay leaf: 1

Black peppercorns: a few

Cloves: 2

Cumin seeds: 1/2 tsp.

Onion paste of one onion

Ginger-garlic paste: 2 tsp.

Tomato puree of one tomato

Salt to taste

Red chilli powder: 1/2 tsp.

1. Soak the chana in water overnight or for at least 8-10 hours, they will double in size. Wash and pressure cook with 2 cups water till they are soft. Let the pressure settle and then open the pressure cooker. Don't throw the water.
2. Heat oil in a pan and add the cumin, cloves, cardamom, bay leaf and sauté them. Add the onion paste and mix well. Let cook until the paste starts browning and leaving oil on the edges. 
3. Add the ginger garlic paste and fry for two minutes. Add the tomato puree and add salt, red chilli and a pinch of garam masala (optional). Mix well and fry until the tomatoes are cooked and the masala leaves oil on the sides. 
4. Now strain the boiled chana in a separate bowl and measure the water remaining in the pressure cooker. 2 cups water is needed to add to cook the rice, so discard more than two cups, if it is less, make up by adding more hot water to the pan with the cooked masala and mix well.
5. Add the washed rice to the pan and mix well. Cover and let cook until the rice are 90% done on medium flame. Now open cover and mix the boiled chana along and cover again for 5 minutes. 
6. Turn off the heat and remain covered. Open after 10 minutes and garnish with coriander leaves (optional) and serve hot !!

Mint Rice

Ingredients:

Rice: 2 cups
Mint leaves: about 25-30
Dried red chilli: 2
Garlic cloves: 3
Cooking oil: 2 tsp.
Bay leaf: 1
Cinnamon: 1 inch
Cumin seeds: 1/2 tsp.
Onion (chopped): 1
Tomato (chopped): 1
Asafoetida: a pinch
Salt to taste
Red chilli powder: 1/2 tsp.
Green chilli (chopped): 1
Garam masala: 1/4 tsp.
Kasoori methi: 1/4 tsp.

1. Boil the rice as you normally do and keep aside. To see how I boil rice is here: How to make the perfect boiled rice.
2. Add the mint leaves (leave behind about 5-6), garlic, cinnamon and dried red chilli to the mixer. Grind to a smooth paste and keep aside.
3. Heat oil in a pan and add cumin seeds. When they splutter, add the bay leaf and asafoetida. Mix and add the chopped onions after about 30 seconds. Fry until they are transparent.
4. Add the remaining mint leaves and mix well and let cook for about a minute.
5. Add the tomato and green chilli. Add salt, red chilli powder and mix well. Let cook until the tomatoes are soft and mushy. 
6. Add the ground mint paste and mix well. Let cook for 2-3 minutes. Add the boiled rice and mix well. Add garam masala and kasoori methi. Mix well and turn off the flame. Serve hot with Garlic Raita.

Tomato Rice

Tomato Rice is a very simple and quick recipe which can be made within 30 minutes for a quick meal or when you are feeling lazy. I sometimes make this after I come back tired from after a holiday or a trip and I'm in no mood to cook. This recipe can be made with just the basic ingredients and tastes awesome.. 

More rice recipes:

Green broccoli pulao

Indian fried rice

Mint rice

Masala Pulao (spiced rice)

Tawa Pulao

Tomato rice recipe:

Ingredients:

Rice: 1 cup

Cooking oil: 2 tsp.

Mustard seeds: 1 tsp.

Urad Dal: 1 tsp.

Asafoetida: 1 pinch

Onion (chopped): 1

Green chilli (chopped): 1

Tomato (chopped): 2

Salt to taste

Turmeric powder: 1/2 tsp.

Red chilli powder: 1/2 tsp.

Curry leaves: a few

Sambhar Masala: 1 tsp.

Sugar: 1/2 tsp.

1. Boil the rice as you would normally do. To read about how I make the boiled rice, read here: How to make the perfect boiled rice.
2. Heat oil and add mustard seeds and urad dal. Add asafoetida and turmeric powder after 10 seconds.
3. Add onions, green chilli and curry leaves. Fry till the onions are transparent.
4. Add the tomatoes and the salt. Let cook until the tomatoes are soft and mushy.
5. Add red chilli powder, sambhar masala and sugar and mix well. Let cook for another 2 minutes. Add 1/2 cup water and let it boil.
6. After the masala is reduced to half, add the boiled rice. Mix well, cook for another minute and turn off the heat. Serve hot with raita and pickle.

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Brinji Rice

Brinji rice is a wonderful, simple and flavourful rice variety I made in which the main ingredient which flavours the rice is brinji leaves (tej patta or bay leaf). It is called brinji leaf in Tamil.

Ingredients:

Rice: 1 cup
Cooking oil: 2 tsp.
Cashews: a few
Bay leaves (Brinji leaves): 2
Cinnamon stick: 1/2 inch
Star Anise: 1
Cloves: 2
Cardamom: 2
Fennel seeds: 1/2 tsp.
Onion (chopped): 1
Ginger-garlic paste: 2 tsp.
Green chilli (chopped): 1
Coconut milk: 1 tsp.
Mint leaves (or mint powder): a few (or about a tsp.)
Salt to taste

1. Heat 1 tsp. oil in a pan and fry the cashews a bit on medium flame. Drain and keep aside, let the oil remain in the pan.
2. Wash and cook the rice as you normally do. To follow how I do the same, read How to make the perfect boiled rice.
3. While the rice is being cooked, heat the pan with the oil again, fry cinnamon, cloves, bay leaves, star anise, cardamom and fennel seeds. Before you cover the rice, add this fried whole spices to the cooked rice and let it set for sometime.
4. Heat remaining 1 tsp. oil in the same pan, add chopped onion and fry until golden. Add the ginger-garlic paste, green chillis, salt and mint. Mix well and let cook for 2 minutes. 
5. Add the coconut milk and combine well. Turn off the heat and mix the contents with the cooked, flavored rice. Mix well and top with fried cashews and garnish with coriander leaves (optional). Serve hot.  

Qubooli Biryani (Hyderabadi Layered Biryani)

I'm totally in love with Hyderabadi Cuisine and I try my hands on the same whenever possible. I had made this Hyderabadi Chicken Dum Biryani, to which I drool till date.. also a very famous dish in my blog.. The procedure took long time, but the results cannot simply be described in words. So, when I got my hands on this another biryani (vegetarian version), I wanted to make it, so this has been on my bucket list since very long, also because the name sounded so royal.. Qubooli Biryani.. Wow! Hume Qubool hai !!

This weekend we were out of ideas, my husband suggested we make probably some biryani, even though both of us avoid rice as much as possible. So this clicked me and I prepared this another vegetarian style of biryani.. finger licking good!! I served it with Garlic Raita and Hyderabadi Mirch Ka Salan

Ingredients:

Basmati Rice: 2 cup
Chana Dal: 1/4 cup
Onion (sliced): 1 big size
Whisked yoghurt: 1/2 cup
Ginger-garlic paste: 3 tsp.
Turmeric powder: 1 tsp.
Salt to taste
Red chilli powder: 1/2 tsp.
Lemon juice: 1 tsp.
Mint leaves: about 20
Coriander leaves: a few
Milk: 1/4 cup
Cinnamon stick: 1/2 inch
Green Cardamom: 2
Peppercorns: 1/2 tsp.
Cumin seeds: 1/2 tsp.
Cooking oil: 4 tsp.
Saffron strands: a few

1. Wash the chana dal and boil in an open container on high heat for 10 minutes with turmeric powder. Drain all the water and keep aside.
2. Boil the rice, drain all the water and keep aside. Boil as you would normally do. If you wish to see how I boil the rice perfectly, see How to make the perfect boiled rice.
3. Heat the oil in a pan and add the sliced onions. Fry on medium heat until they become brown and crispy. Drain from oil and keep aside on a kitchen paper.
4. Heat the same pan again. Add cinnamon, cardamom seeds, peppercorns and cumin seeds. Cook for a minute and add ginger-garlic paste. Mix well and let cook for another minute.
5. Add the cooked dal and red chilli powder. Mix well. Add salt and yoghurt. Mix and let cook for about 2 minutes. Add the lemon juice and mix. Cover and let cook for about 5-7 minutes. Turn off heat and transfer this masala to a bowl.
6. Heat a deep pan (or kadhai) and add a layer of the masala at the bottom. Spread a layer of the cooked rice over it and add half the milk. Add half the fried onions, mint and coriander leaves. I used mint powder because I did not have mint leaves. Skipped onto coriander leaves.
7. Add another layer of masala and the remaining rice layer. Add the remaining fried onions and mint leaves. Add the milk and top with saffron strands.
8. Cover and put on low heat for 10-15 minutes. Remove the cover, mix well and enjoy !! Qubool hai !!

After making the layers, before putting on the cover.

After being cooked, removing the cover.

You might also like:

Hyderabadi Dum Chicken Biryani
Hyderabadi Dum Biryani

Mirch Ka Salan
Hyderabadi Mirch Ka Salan

How to make the perfect boiled rice (without rice cooker)

Making rice the perfect, grainy way.. with the long grain separated.. yes this is the problem I have seen with a lot many people who fail to achieve the perfect results for the same, and end up either overcooking or under cooking the rice, which turns out to be either too soggy to eat, mostly in presentation, or it is a little bit uncooked, which becomes difficult to eat. A lot of people asked me how I always achieve the perfectly cooked rice, so today I'm sharing my method.

I am using long-grained basmati rice for this results. The results will depend on the brand and type of rice you are using.

1. Wash the rice thoroughly and soak in water for about 10 minutes before preparing.
2. Drain water and add 4 times the water of the quantity of rice taken, that is, 4 cups of water for a cup of uncooked rice (I do this to remove starch from the rice, you could take twice the water if you don't wish to remove the starch; in that case 1 cup rice + 2 cups water).
3. Put the container on the highest heat uncovered and bring it to a rolling boil (when the water boils completely and you see the white starch being formed on the top).
4. Turn off the flame (I use an induction cooking range which stays hot for quite a lot of time, but if using flame stove top, turn the heat to the lowest).
5. Remove the boiling rice container from the heat and carefully drain the foamy white water on the top, this is the starch. Handle this water carefully because it has boiling water in a super hot container. Don't let any rice fall through, use a sieve if required. If you are not wanting to remove the starch, simply turn off the heat (for induction cooking range) or turn the heat to lowest (for flame stove tops) and let cook uncovered till all the water is absorbed.
6. After removing the starch, most of the water will also be drained through. Now keep the container back on the heat (turned off/ minimum flame cooking range) and cover. Let cook for 3-4 minutes. Remove from cooking range. Serve hot as Jeera Rice, make Indian fried Rice or just any other rice variety, or serve as it is with any chicken curry/vegetable curry.

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Masala Pulao (Spiced Rice)

This spiced and flavourful rice can be an amazing companion for a lot of vegetarian and non-vegetarian curries, or can simply be served just like that with a variety of raita for a light dinner/lunch. I have made it many times and have served with Kaju Curry Korma, Punjabi Dal Fry and Malai Kofta for the vegetarian menus, and also with Dahi Masala Kadhai Chicken and Thai Chicken Curry for the non-vegetarian lunch/dinner with Boondi Raita, Garlic Raita etc. and it has always been a hit.

Easy to prepare with an aromatic blend of spices, this can offer a versatility and change from the regular menu. Here's how to prepare this:

Ingredients:

Rice: 2 cups
Onion (sliced): 1
Cumin seeds: 1 tsp.
Cloves: 3
Peppercorns: 1/4 tsp.
Bay leaves: 2
Cinnamon Stick: 1/2 inch.
Cooking oil: 2 tsp.

1. Wash and soak the rice in water for about 30 minutes. Drain the water and keep aside.
2. Heat oil in a deep-bottomed vessel (in which you cook rice) and temper the cumin seeds. Add onions and sauté till they are transparent.
3. Add the cloves, cinnamon, peppercorns and bay leaves. Let them fry for about 2 minutes till they start releasing wonderful aroma.
4. Add the drained rice to the pan and mix well. Let cook for about a minute. 
5. Add 2 cups of water to the pan and let cook on medium flame till all the water is absorbed. Remove from flame and serve hot.

Tawa Pulao

Tawa Pulao, a heavenly tasting and easily made, with very simple ingredients, this has become my new favorite after Indian Fried Rice, which I am making every time I am short of time, or simply bored with everyday stir fry vegetables. What I loved was a striking difference in taste compared to a lot of rice dishes I have tasted, not too heavy on the platter and gets ready in less than 30 minutes.. What else could you ask for ??

A lot of people prepare tawa pulao from left-over boiled rice from other dishes; but here I made it completely fresh. Here goes my recipe:

Ingredients:

Boiled Rice: 1 Cup
Cooking oil: 2 tsp.
Cumin seeds: 1/2 tsp.
Onion (finely chopped) : 1
Garlic (chopped): 3 cloves
Green chilli (finely chopped): 1
Peas: 1/4 cup
Tomato (chopped): 1
Salt : To taste
Pao Bhaji Masala: 1 tsp.
Tawa fry masala: 1 tsp.
Coriander powder: 1/2 tsp.
Mango powder: 1/2 tsp.

1. Heat oil in a pan and temper cumin seeds. Add the onions and sauté for a while till they become transparent. Add the garlic and fry for another minute.
2. Add tomato, green chilli and peas (I used frozen peas, but if using fresh peas, half-boil them before adding to the pan). Mix well and add pao bhaji masala, tawa fry masala, salt and coriander powder. Mix well and let cook for about 2 minutes; don't let the tomatoes become soft.
3. Add the rice and mix well with the masala. Add mango powder, mix well and let cook for 1-2 minutes. Turn off the heat and serve hot with Garlic Raita or Mint onion raita.