How to do proper pilaf rice.

Now to cook this you have to take a little time and respect the cooking of the rice. The one thing that we do not do in this country is respect the ingredients that we are cooking. Rice just throw it in some water and boil it up that will do. Then wounded later why it is not like we expected it to be like. Well follow the few simple steps and you should have the perfect aromatic pilaf rice at the very end.

You will need.

250g/8oz Basmati rice
4tbsp ghee or vegetable oil
8 cloves
6 cardamom pods
Two 4cm/2in cinnamon sticks
2 medium-sized onions
2 medium-sized tomatoes
570ml/ 1pt chicken stock
A good pinch of salt

Start by washing your rice, now this removes all the starch from the outside of the rice. Wash it to or three time and change the water every times, just leave it in cold water for about 30 minutes first. Then rinse it threw a few times you will see the water just go white with the starch from the first soak. Drain the water off and just leave in the strainer until you are ready to use it.

Now you need to deseed your tomatoes so drop them into boiling water for 15 seconds take them out and in to iced cold water. Then remove the skins, quarter them remove the pips and dice them. Then slice you onions and you are ready to go.

Get a nice big heavy based  pan and heat the ghee or oil in it. Now I like to use ghee as it is more authentic and you can clarify your own butter if you like, it’s just the real thing has a sort of smell that you can only get from the stuff in a tin, I do not know why.

When it is hot, add the cloves, cardamom pods and cinnamon. Stir it round for a few seconds to let the flavours out then add the onions and start to cook them down. Once the onions have cooked down and just started to go nice and golden in colour then add the chopped tomato. Let the tomato start to cook and go a little soft.

Now add the drained rice, fry gently for a minute or two being careful not to break up the soft grains. You want to cook it so the grains have started to cook and are sticking together.

Now add the stock and a good pinch of salt and bring to the boil. Then cover with a lid turn the heat down as low as you can and cook for about 20 to 25 minutes. For me this is always the hardest bit as you want to look inside but what you need to do is keep all that seam inside the pan. Having let it cooked in its own stem take it off the heat and stand for a bit then remove the lid and give a stir ready to serve.

The perfect aromatic rice for any curry you may want to have.