Nagpur: This is a quick and simple meal which is very flavorful. When had with a nice spicy gravy, it becomes a rich meal. Here I have used a combination of asparagus, capsicum and green peas. You can add just a single veggie and make quick asparagus pulao, capsicum pulao or peas pulao. I prefer these veggies to stay crunchy in my pulav and hence i saute it separately and add to the rice. You can make the whole recipe even simpler by cooking the veggies along with the rice too.
Ingredients
Basmati Rice – 2 cups
Asparagus (cut into 1″ slices)/ Capsicum – 1 cup
Green Peas – 1 cup
Onion – 1
Ginger garlic paste – 1 tbsp
Cumin seeds – 1/2 tsp
Oil – 1 tbsp
Water – 2 cups
Coconut milk – 1 cup
Bay leaf – 1
Salt – to taste
Method
1. Wash and soak the basmati rice for minimum 15 minutes. Drain and keep aside.
2. Heat oil in a pan and splutter the cumin seeds.
3. Saute the sliced onions till it becomes translucent.
4. Next add the ginger garlic paste and saute till the raw smell vanishes.
5. Add this to the soaked and drained rice along with bay leaf, coconut milk, water and required salt and cook it.
6. Heat some oil in another pan, add the peas, asparagus and/or capsicum and saute for 2 minutes.
7. Once the rice is done, gently mix the asparagus and peas with it using a fork.
8. Garnish with cilantro and serve with some spicy gravy.
Tips
– You can saute the asparagus and peas along with the onions and cook it with the rice too. But the veggies will get overcooked and loose its crunchiness.
– Adding coconut milk is to make the rice richer and more flavorful. It is optional and you can substitute that with water too.
