PANEER (COTTAGE CHEESE) & PEAS PULAO

This dish is a meal in itself and is easy to make when you have unexpected guests over. I have a strong dislike for the taste of peas too much but since Aravind likes it, I throw in a handful in order to satiate his taste buds. You can add more of it or avoid it completely depending on your preferences.

What Goes In:

Long-grained rice – 1 ½ cups

Water – 3 cups

Paneer / Cottage Cheese cubes – 200 g

Frozen Peas – 50 g

Onions (thinly sliced) – 2 large

Ghee / clarified butter – 3 tbsp

Cumin Seeds – ½ tsp

Green Cardamom – 3

Cloves – 2-3

Cinnamon – 1” piece

Bay Leaf – 1

Turmeric Powder – ½ tsp

Chili Powder – 1½ tsp

Pepper Powder – 1 tbsp

Garam Masala Powder – 1 tsp

Ginger Garlic Paste – 1 tbsp

Tomato (chopped) - 1

Salt – to taste

Coriander Leaves (chopped) – 1 bunch

Mint Leaves (chopped) – 1 bunch

The “How To”:

1.       Soak the rice in 4 cups of water for half an hour. Then Drain and keep aside

2.       Heat ghee in deep pan and fry the paneer cubes till they turn slightly golden. Drain and keep aside.

3.       In the same pan, fry 1/2 an onion till crisp. Drain and keep aside.

4.       To the remaining ghee, add the cumin seeds, green cardamom, cloves, cinnamon, and bay leaf and sauté for 1 minute.

5.       Add the remaining onion, and fry till the onion turns translucent (1-2 minutes). Add the chili powder, turmeric powder, garam masala powder and pepper powder and sauté for 1 minute. Next, add the ginger garlic paste and fry till the raw smell of the paste is reduced.

6.       Add the rice and fry for 2-3 minutes, taking care not to break the rice grains.

7.       To the rice, add the 3 cups of water, peas and salt to taste. Once the water boils, reduce the heat, add the coriander and mint leaves, cover and cook.

8.       When the water is almost absorbed, add the paneer cubes and cook till the rice is done.

9.       Sprinkle the fried onion and serve hot with raita and pickle.

Tip: A quicker version of this pulao can be made in the pressure cooker. Fry all the ingredients in the pressure cooker, in the order mentioned in the recipe. After adding the ingredients as per step 7, add the paneer pieces also to the pressure cooker and cover and cook for 2-3 whistles.