Pilao Rice

    (33)
    1 hour 10 min

    When I grew up as a child in India, I always enjoyed this wonderful rice which was served at weddings or other special occasions. Also good with curry.


    40 people made this

    Ingredients
    Serves: 16 

    • 1/4 teaspoon saffron threads or ground turmeric
    • 1.4L boiling water
    • 100g butter
    • 2 medium onions, chopped
    • 1 cinnamon stick
    • 4 whole cloves
    • 1 teaspoon ground ginger
    • 2 tablespoons ground cumin
    • 10 cardamom pods
    • 800g basmati rice
    • 200g natural yoghurt
    • 2 teaspoons salt

    Method
    Prep:30min  ›  Cook:40min  ›  Ready in:1hr10min 

    1. Place saffron threads into boiling water, set aside to steep.
    2. Melt the butter in a large pot over medium-high heat. Stir in the onions, and cook until golden, about 5 minutes. Season with cinnamon, cloves, ginger, cumin and cardamom. Cook for 3 to 4 minutes to release the flavour, stirring constantly.
    3. Pour in the rice and cook for 10 minutes, stirring constantly. Add the yoghurt, saffron water and salt. Bring to a simmer, then reduce heat to low. Cover pot with a cloth folded into 4 layers. Place a lid over the cloth and cook until the rice is done, about 20 minutes. Remove the cinnamon, cloves and cardamom before serving.

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    Reviews & ratings
    Average global rating:
    (33)

    Reviews in English (22)

    by
    19

    This recipe got RAVE reviews from my middle eastern husband. After dinner he was eating it directly from the pot. It's the real thing for sure. I didn't have shortening so I used butter and a touch of olive oil. I was really unsure about the cloth bit but I just tried it with a doubled tea towl under the lid. I'm glad I did.  -  11 Sep 2006  (Review from Allrecipes US | Canada)

    by
    16

    Umm...yes! This is incredible! Did everything just as the recipe called for, except used ground cardamom in place of the seeds. It was hard to stop eating this. I served it with the Indian Tomato Chicken recipe listed on this site and me and fam (including husband and 3 little kids) were in heaven. I'm not sure what to say about folks who found it bland. I thought it was anything but. Subtle, maybe, but REALLY tasty. Eat it as a side dish to make sure you get enough "flavor" out of your dinner! (By the way, I'd cut the recipe in half next time - this is two dinners' worth of rice for a family of 5.)  -  27 Mar 2008  (Review from Allrecipes US | Canada)

    by
    9

    Finally an awesome Indian rice recipe! It was absolutely awesome! My husband also loved it and I'm keeping this recipe handy! I used the saffron AND the ground turmeric (the turmeric was put in with the other spices). I also added a chicken bullion cube to the spices and it turned out awesome!!!! It was good enough to eat by itself.  -  09 Apr 2007  (Review from Allrecipes US | Canada)

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