Pulao or Pilaf is an aromatic rice dish that is cooked with vegetables or meat, spices and dry nuts. Vegetable Pulao is a very comforting and easy rice dish that is full of mild flavors from whole spices and vegetables.

It is a simple recipe that can be prepared using any vegetables you have at home, fresh or frozen! I make it in a pressure cooker when I want a quick one-pot meal. But I prefer to make it in a pan or wok, as I like my vegetables to be crunchy!

Recipe                                                 Servings: 6                             Time: 45 minutes

Ingredients

• 2 cups basmati rice
• 2 cups cauliflower florets
• 1 cup broccoli florets
• 1 medium sized carrot, diced
• 4 oz. mushrooms, quartered
• ½ red bell pepper, cubed
• ½ green bell pepper, cubed
• ½ cup frozen peas
• ½ cup corn kernels (I roasted mine)
• 2 medium onions, finely sliced
• 2 Tbsp. ginger garlic paste
• 1 tsp. cumin seeds
• 4-5 black peppercorns
• 4 green cardamom
• 2 black cardamoms
• 5 cloves
• 1 inch cinnamon stick
• 2 bay leaves
• ½ star anise
• 2 medium tomatoes, chopped
• ½ tsp. turmeric powder
• 1 tsp. red chili powder (cayenne pepper)
• ½ tsp. garam masala powder
• 2 Tbsp. ghee or butter
• 2 Tbsp. oil
• Salt to taste
• cilantro, chopped
• Few strands of saffron
• 1 Tbsp. milk

Method

• Wash rice and soak it with couple cloves, a green cardamom and little salt for 15- 20 minutes. Cook until fully cooked.
• Warm milk in a bowl and add saffron strands to it.
• Heat oil and ghee in a big pan. Add cumin seeds, bay leaves, cardamoms, star anise, cloves, cinnamon stick and peppercorns. Let them crackle.
• Add sliced onions and sauté until translucent.
• Add the cauliflower, broccoli, carrots and cook for couple minutes.
• Add mushrooms, peas and bell peppers. Stir-fry for few more minutes.
• Add ginger garlic paste, tomatoes, chili powder, salt, turmeric, garam masala powder and cook until the vegetables are cooked. Make sure they have some crunch and are not too soft.
• Add cooked rice and saffron soaked milk. Gently mix them all together, making sure not to break the rice grains.
• Garnish with chopped cilantro.
• Serve it with raita or mint chutney.

Notes

• You can even garnish with raisins and cashews.
• No worries if there is no saffron.
• You can use frozen vegetables of your choice to save time.