An Invitation to Indian Cooking - Madhur Jaffrey [80]
There are several methods of cooking rice so that each grain comes out firm and separate, as you will see in the recipes that follow. Rice will always stay warm, left covered, for about 20 minutes after the burner has been turned off.
Plain boiled rice
SERVES 4–6
2 cups long-grain rice
3 cups water
1 tablespoon butter
1 teaspoon salt
Combine all the ingredients in a 2–3-quart heavy-bottomed pot with tight-fitting lid. Bring to boil, cover, and turn flame as low as it will go. Leave for 25 to 30 minutes. Lift cover and quickly check to see if rice is cooked through. Turn off heat, and leave lid on until ready to serve.
(When cooking plain boiled rice, I always cook more than I need because there are such wonderful ways of dressing up cooked rice. I cover and refrigerate the leftovers, and cook them for breakfast, lunch, or dinner.)
Plain baked rice
SERVES 6
2 cups long-grain rice
1 tablespoon salt
4 tablespoons butter
Preheat oven to 300°.
Fill a 4-quart pot with about 13 cups of water, add the salt, and set over a high flame.
Meanwhile, wash and drain the rice in a colander.
When the water is boiling, put the rice in it. Bring to a second boil, and boil rapidly for exactly 5 minutes.
Drain the rice by pouring it through a colander.
Put the rice in an ovenproof dish. Cut the butter into 4 patties and place over the rice. Now cut a piece of aluminum foil 2 inches larger than the rim of the dish, cover the dish, and then put the lid on top of the foil. Crinkle foil around the edges to seal as thoroughly as possible. The rice has to cook in its own steam, so that steam must not be allowed to escape.
Place dish in oven for 45 to 50 minutes (check after 45 minutes to see whether rice is done).
Plain basmati rice
SERVES 6
I love the taste of a plain basmati rice eaten with moong dal. When I was a child, these two items were always on our luncheon menu—but today, with most of the basmati supply controlled by exporters or black marketeers, even the thought seems extravagant! Basmati is, however, available in American specialty stores, so do buy it and cook it when you can. This method of cooking rice can also be used for any long-grain, fine-quality rice.
2 cups basmati rice
1¼ teaspoons salt
1 tablespoon butter
Wash the rice well in cold water. Soak it in a bowl with 5 cups of water and ½ teaspoon salt for 30 minutes. Then drain.
Melt the butter in a heavy-bottomed pot over medium flame. Pour in the drained rice and stir for a minute. Add 2¼ cups water and ¼ teaspoon salt. Bring to a boil, cover, lower heat to very low, and cook for 20 minutes.
Lift lid. Mix rice gently with fork. Cover again and cook another 10 minutes, or until rice is tender.
Serve with almost any dish you like. I love it with Moong Dal, Pyazwala Khare Masale Ka Gosht, lime wedges, and a cucumber relish of some kind.
Buttered saffron rice
SERVES 6
2 teaspoons leaf saffron, loosely packed, roasted and crumbled
2 tablespoons milk
1 tablespoon salt
2 cups long-grain rice
4 tablespoons butter
Preheat oven to 300°.
Soak saffron in warm milk. (I just leave the milk to heat on top of the pilot light area of my stove. You could heat it slightly in a small pot if you like.)
Fill a 4-quart pot with about 13 cups water. Add the salt and bring to a boil.
Meanwhile, wash and drain the rice in a colander.
When the water is boiling, put the rice in it and bring to a second boil. Boil rapidly for exactly 5 minutes.
Drain the rice in a colander.
Put the rice in an ovenproof dish. Pour the saffron milk over it in streaks. Cut the butter into 4 patties and place over the rice. Now cut a piece of aluminum foil 2 inches larger than the rim of the dish. Place foil on top of the