Vegetable pulav / pulao

Good afternoon :)
I prepared vegetable pulav today morning for breakfast. It was the first time I prepared it. I learnt the recipe from Krishnaveni Nalka’s blog. Thank you so much Krishnaveni for sharing the recipe with us. You can find the perfect recipe in her post Vegetable Pulav - Using Home Made Masala

Well I didn’t have three items i.e. Cauliflower, saunf and bay leaf. I used potato in substitute of cauliflower and cumin in place of saunf. Didn’t know what to substitute for bay leaf ;) :D I had ready made ginger and garlic paste, so directly used it :)

Although you can always refer Krishnaveni’s recipe i.e. Vegetable pulav using home made masala I’ll post in the recipe here :) I am enjoying this posting because it is raining outside and I’m typing :) Just love this situation :)

Ingredients (For four servings)

1 ½ cup of rice (I took raw white rice. You can take the better form of rice like basmati, steam or jeera rice)
½ cup grated coconut

Vegetables

1 large carrot
1 medium sized potato (Better to take cauliflower instead of potato)
2 large onions
1 medium sized tomato
4 sticks of beans
¾ cup of peas

Greens

¾ cup of chopped coriander leaves
¾ cup of chopped mint leaves

Spices

1 large green chilly
4-5 garlic pods
1 ½ tsp ginger garlic paste
7-8 black pepper corns
2 inches cinnamon stick broken into two pieces
7-8 cloves
3 cardamom pods
¾ tsp coriander seeds
¾ tsp cumin seeds

8 tbsp cooking oil/ghee (2 tbsp for frying the masala to be ground, 6 tbsp while making the pulav)
Salt to taste
2 ½ to 3 cups/glasses of water

Method
Soak the green peas in water the previous night. Wash and soak rice for about half an hour. Chop all the vegetables and green chillies in whichever style you like.

Heat 2 tbsp of oil in a vessel. On a small-medium flame add pepper corns, cinnamon stick, cloves, cardamom, coriander seeds, cumin seeds and stir fry them for 2 minutes on a small-medium flame. Then add 1 chopped onion, green chilies (chopped), garlic pods and ginger-garlic paste and stir fry for 2 minutes. Then add the mint leaves, coriander leaves and chopped tomato. Stir fry for 2 minutes and then add the coconut and fry the mixture for a minute.

Then grind this fried mixture into a fine paste by adding water. Consistency should be as shown below.

Now heat about 3 tbsp of oil in a vessel. Put the remaining chopped onions and stir them till they are just about to turn brown.

After this add the ground masala to the onions and stir fry on a medium flame.

Now add all the vegetables and peas. Add ½ cup of water and let it come to a boil.

Now add the soaked rice, salt and add the remaining water. Mix it well and bring it to a boil on a high flame. Then put it on a low flame and cover the vessel with a lid. (Please refer Krishnaveni’s recipe i.e. Vegetable pulav using home made masala for preparing the pulav in a pressure cooker.)

Keep mixing the pulav in between so that it doesn’t get charred underneath. After the rice is cooked, pulav is ready to be served. You can serve the pulav with choley or salad/raita :)

To make raita
I prepared the raita using only tomatoes, onions and coriander leaves. You can add even cucumber.

Ingredients (For 4 servings)
1 large onion
1 large tomato
¾ cup of chopped coriander leaves
3-4 glasses/cups of thick curd
Salt to taste

Method
Mix all the ingredients mentioned above well. Serve it with the pulav.

Here was the recipe of pulav. Hope you enjoyed it :) And thanks a ton to Krishnaveni Nalka.I am inspired by her :)

Happy cooking till I write again :)