Pudina Pulao
This delicious "green jewel" of the rice dishes from India is flavored with mint, cilantro and fragrant spices.
Equipment
- 1 6 qt Instant Pot
- 1 12 or 15 " Kadai or Wok
- 1 Small or regular sized blender
Ingredients
- 2 ½ cup Dry Basmati Rice
- 3 cup Water
- 1-2 cup Cauliflower washed and cut into florets
- ½ cup Carrots washed and diced
- ½ cup Frozen or Fresh Green Peas
- 2 teaspoon Cumin Seeds
- 2 Bay Leaves
- 2 -3 Whole Star Anise
- 1 inch Cinnamon Stick
- Salt to taste
- 2 tablespoon Avocado Oil sub with any neutral oil
- ¼ cup Toasted Cashews optional
Mint and Cilantro Masala Paste
- 1 ½ cup Mint Leaves washed and leaves removed from stalks
- ½ cup Cilantro/Coriander Leaves
- 4 Whole Clove Buds
- 4 Green Cardamom Seeds remove from pods before use
- 1 teaspoon Black Pepper Whole
- 5 cloves Fresh or Frozen Garlic
- 1 inch Fresh or Frozen Garlic
- 3 Indian Green Chillis adjust per preference; sub with anaheim or jalapeno
- ¼ cup Fresh or Frozen Shredded Fresh Coconut sub with unsweetened dry shredded coconut
- 1 teaspoon Salt
Instructions
- Place the rinsed and drained rice in the "inner" pot of the Instant Pot(IP). Add the water. Close the IP lid and keep the valve set to "sealed". Select the "pressure cook" option and set the timer to 9 minutes.
- While the rice is cooking, add all the ingredients for the masala paste in a blender and blend until completely smooth. Keep aside.
- Heat a large pan and add 2 tablespoon of oil. Once hot, add the whole spices and let this cook for 1-2 minutes at medium low heat. Now add the chopped onions, turn up the heat to medium and saute for 3-4 minutes.
- Add the other vegetables and mix. Season and let this cook for 5-7 minutes. Keep the pan covered to help trap the steam inside and help cook the vegetables faster. Now add the ground masala paste and mix well. Again close the lid and cook for 8-10 minutes to ensure the paste is cooked and does not taste raw.
- At this point, start adding the cooke basmati rice. Add 1-2 cups at a time and mix gently to prevent the rice from breaking in to smaller pieces. You can season with salt as you go. Once all the rice is mixed, top with some fresh chopped mint leaves and some toasted cashews. Serve hot with raita, chutney or sagu.
Notes
- The nutritional information provided is only approximate and are not accurate values. The values do not consider any ingredient listed as "optional".
- You can cook the dish on the stove top or all in the instant pot/pressure cooker.
- Feel free to use cooked rice you might have in the refrigerator for making the pulao.
- Cilantro/Coriander leaves are important for flavor. However, if you are not a fan replace with the same quantity of mint leaves. You could also choose to use leaves like spinach or chard. Parsley might not be an option since it has a pretty strong flavor as well and might not go well with this particular dish.
- If you are not able to use frozen or fresh shredded coconut, opt for dry shredded coconut. Make sure it is unsweetened and add a little extra water while grinding the paste.