First principle of cooking:
The most important ingredient in food is Love. That is what nourishes the soul ,the mind and the body. So when you are cooking, try to be in a good mood. Sing, listen to soothing music and sounds, think about loved ones and sweet memories, smile. It will show in the food.
This recipe is slightly more elaborate, and tastes wonderful when made a little spicy! The sharpness of the spice balances the somewhat sour taste of tomatoes.
Ingredients:
- Oil: half a teaspoon
- 1 cup of basmati rice (get the proper thing imported from India! Brand: “Tilda” or “Lal Qila” is best).
- Half a cup of peas
- 5 to 7 pods of green cardamom. Crack open the pods slightly so that they don’t “explode” when heated.
- 2 to 3 pieces of cinnamon bark, about half and inch long. There are two types of cinnamon: light brown, very thin/crumbly/curled (avoid this one) and dark brown, thick bark (this is the one we want).
- Two cups of water
- Salt: to taste, but completely optional for this dish. I make it without salt. Rock salt is tastier than sea salt, and you need less.
This recipe will make 4 servings. To increase the amount, increase all ingredients proportionately.
Important Notes
- Sunflower or any light oil is best. Indian food should NOT be cooked in olive oil as it burns at a very low temperature. Once any cooking oil has “smoked”, it turns toxic.
- A gas cooker (flame) is the best way to cook Indian food as the temperature can be controlled immediately. Induction cooking is next best, but it does tend to affect the quality of the food inside (like microwaves, though not as bad). If cooking on an electric coil cooker, be watchful – it is easy to burn food.
- Use heavy pots and pans to cook. Cast iron is best, but heavy stainless steel (18/10 grade) will also do. Avoid items with non-stick coatings; the coatings are poisonous.
How to:
- Wash the rice once to remove excess starch, then soak in a small container and leave it for 10 to 20 minutes.
- Put a wide pan on the cooker and allow it to heat a little (if it overheats, wait till it cools down)
- Add the oil. Note that only a little oil is needed; half a teaspoon at the most. If you use too much oil, the rice won’t cook properly!
- DON’T spread the oil. Without waiting for the oil to heat up, add the cardamom and cinnamon to the oil “puddle”
- Wait till the cardamom and cinnamon release a beautiful smell
- Add the rice, toss it about for a few seconds, and then add water. As a general rule of thumb, the water should completely cover the rice and should be about half a centimetre above the rice.
- Add salt (optional)
- Heat on medium flame, and watch the rice till the water comes to a slight boil (don’t let it boil too hard, otherwise you’ll end up with overcooked rice).
- Turn the flame down, cover the rice with a glass lid (so you can see what is going on) and let it simmer for as long as it takes for the rice to cook.
- Keep an eye on the rice to make sure it does not burn. Add water carefully as needed (a small amount at a time). You may need to do this more than once. The rice should remain slightly moist till the end, but not soggy.As the rice starts to get perfectly cooked, each grain will separate and the grains at the top will start to “stand up”. At this point …
- … Simply spread the peas over the top lightly, and then cover the pan again with the lid.
- After two minutes, turn off the heat and keep the rice covered for at least 10 minutes so that the peas cook in the steam generated.
Remember: The most important ingredient in food is Love.