Pilaf is traditionally prepared in the east. Today you can find a thousand versions of it, which have special and excellent tastes. However, there are several unchangeable principles for preparing pilaf, knowledge of which will help you achieve success in any case. Today we will present to you these most important principles, as well as three recipes for pilaf with dried fruits that seems unusual, but has amazing taste.
How should you cook pilaf?
- One of the basic principles is to take the two main components of the dish in equal proportions. The first of these is, of course, cereal, which is usually rice, but can also be a mixture of various grains, wheat, corn, or peas. But the second part gives much more room for imagination; for it you can take meat, chicken, fish, vegetables, or fruits and dried fruits.
- To ensure that the pilaf you cook does not turn into porridge, you need to learn how to choose the right rice for it. It should be transparent and belong to strong, medium-grained varieties (such as: Basmati, Jasmine, White Alanga, Oshpar, Devzira, round Krasnodar, Akmarzhan, Barakat and others).
- It is better to stew the grains for pilaf rather than boil them, while the other part of the pilaf should be cooked separately.
- You need to be very careful in the amount of water, not to use too little or too much, otherwise you risk getting either a sticky porridge or a burnt dish. Usually it is necessary and sufficient to pour 2.5 times more water in relation to the cereal, or make sure that the water covers the cereal and is 2-3 cm higher than it.
- During the cooking process, do not stir the rice, otherwise starch will be released, making the pilaf viscous and sticky.
- Well, one more thing, pilaf is traditionally cooked in a cast-iron bowl with thick walls (in the so-called cauldron); if your pan has thin walls or is enameled, it will be difficult to get real pilaf.
Fruit pilaf with walnuts and honey
Now that you know the basic techniques necessary for preparing pilaf, we can move on directly to the recipes. Preparing this sweet dish will only take you half an hour. For lunch for six people you will need to prepare the following ingredients:
- Rice (can be steamed) - 2 cups;
- (dried apricots, pitted dates, prunes) - 300 g;
- and - 100 g;
- - 30 gr;
- Vegetable oil - 30 ml;
- Salt, saffron - to taste.
At the same time, place thoroughly washed dried fruits, as well as nuts and almonds, in a separate frying pan. Pour in a small amount of water and, covering the frying pan with a lid, place it on the stove. When the mixture of dried fruits and nuts is steamed, add honey and the rest of the vegetable oil to it. Simmer for another 10 minutes.
Serve the dish by pouring the fruit and nut sauce over the cooked rice.
Sweet pilaf with dried fruits
For this version of sweet rice pilaf with dried fruits you will need:
Place ghee in a cast iron pan, melt it and add dried fruits. Simmer the mixture for 20-30 minutes. Add the pre-prepared and washed rice to the dried dried fruits, add water so that it is two fingers above the level of the rice and add sugar and salt without stirring the mixture. When the water boils, reduce the heat as much as possible. The rice should be ready when all the water has evaporated, collect it in a mound and cover the pan with a lid. You can also cover it with a towel, which will absorb excess moisture. Leave to brew for 10-15 minutes. After the required time has passed, remove the lid and cover the cauldron with a large dish. Quickly turn the pilaf onto a plate so that the dried fruits are on top. You can serve!
Armenian traditional pilaf
In Armenia, sweet pilaf with dried fruits is traditionally prepared as a festive dish - for Easter. But who said that such a delicious dinner cannot be prepared just like that - to the delight of yourself and your family? Here is a recipe for Armenian pilaf with dried fruits and pomegranate seeds.
Heat washed and dried dried fruits and nuts in a water bath for half an hour, add a third of melted butter and a little salt, stir. Pour the rice into 6-7 glasses of boiling salted water and cook until half cooked. Drain the water, drain the rice in a colander and rinse with cold water to make it extra fluffy. Coat the sides of a cast iron pan with melted butter and place pita bread on the bottom. Place ½ or ⅓ of the rice on top of it, pour a spoonful of the remaining oil, place the next part and pour oil again until you have laid out all the rice. Wrap the lid of the cauldron with a waffle towel and close it, cook the cereal for another 10-15 minutes until fully cooked. At the very end, add a mixture of dried fruits and nuts to it and cook for a few more minutes. When serving, place broken pieces of lavash on a dish, and on it - pilaf with dried fruits, which you can already decorate with pomegranate seeds.
Try the options presented and choose the recipe that you like best. Bon appetit!
Every housewife is familiar with traditional recipes for pilaf with meat or chicken, but few know that there is an unusual variety of this dish - sweet pilaf, popular among many peoples of the East. His recipes are found in Azerbaijani, Uzbek, Turkmen and Kazakh cuisine. This pilaf will delight children; it is suitable for both vegetarians and those who fast, since the dish is prepared without meat.
Secrets of preparing delicious sweet pilaf
To get tasty and beautiful sweet pilaf, like in the photos in cookbooks, you need to know a few tips from experienced housewives. Follow them and the result will not disappoint you:
- Round or long steamed rice is suitable for this dish. It needs to be rid of starch by rinsing it well.
- You should not add sugar; dried fruits will replace it. When choosing, pay attention to appearance: raisins should be light and soft, dried apricots should be free of stains and damage.
- Suitable spices include barberry, cumin, ginger, cumin, saffron, black pepper, suneli hops, and sometimes mint; coriander is undesirable.
- Traditionally, the dish is prepared in dishes with thick walls: a cauldron, a stewpan, a cast iron pot, a cast iron casserole dish.
- In the process of cooking rice, the most difficult thing is adding liquid: add too much and the dish will boil, but add too little and it will burn. You must strictly follow the recipe.
Sweet pilaf recipe
The preparation of sweet pilaf has several variations: with dried fruits, with the addition of pumpkin and carrots, with fresh fruits, with caramelized apples. Nuts are added and spices add additional flavor. In addition to the difference in ingredients, the cooking technology is different: in Armenian, the products are combined and cooked together, in Azerbaijan they “get to know each other” only when serving.
Sweet pilaf with apples
- Time: 50 minutes.
- Number of servings: 3 persons.
- Calorie content of the dish: 320 kcal per 100 g.
- Purpose: for breakfast, holiday.
- Cuisine: Transcaucasian.
- Difficulty: easy.
Rice with the addition of fresh fruits is considered healthier than with dried ones. It's all about vitamin C, half of which is lost when dried. Apples in the recipe will replenish the supply of nutrients. The combination of fruit and cinnamon will add a festive, pre-Christmas aroma. You can serve pilaf on the table on Christmas Eve or at children's gatherings with friends.
Ingredients:
- sweet rice - 200 ml glass;
- apples – 150 g;
- olive oil – 3 tbsp;
- raisins – 0.25 cups;
- sugar (preferably brown) – 1 tsp;
- salt - to taste;
- saffron - to taste;
- ground cinnamon - to taste.
Cooking method:
- Rinse the rice thoroughly and set aside to dry.
- Pour olive oil into a frying pan, heat it, add rice, fry it for 4 minutes over medium heat, stir occasionally.
- Scald the raisins with boiling water, drain the water.
- Add salt, cinnamon, saffron, processed raisins.
- Add hot water to the food in small portions. Add more each time the rice absorbs liquid.
- Between approaches with water, add diced apples, sugar, and mix.
- Continue adding water, stirring the porridge until it reaches the consistency you like.
Classic sweet pilaf with dried fruits
- Time: 20 minutes.
- Number of servings: 4 persons.
- Calorie content of the dish: 319 kcal per 100 g.
- Purpose: for lunch.
- Cuisine: Uzbek.
- Difficulty: easy.
The classic pilaf recipe requires the presence of dried fruits. These are mainly dried apricots and raisins, but you can add dates, dried bananas, figs, and other types to taste. Honey adds sweetness to the dish. The products are selected so that pilaf is suitable even for people on a diet. If desired, in the classic recipe, chopped nuts are sprinkled on top before serving the dish.
Ingredients:
- steamed rice - 1.5 cups;
- raisins – 50 g;
- water – 3.5 cups;
- honey – 4 tbsp;
- barberry – 1 pinch.
- dried apricots – 150 g;
- olive oil – 3 tbsp;
Cooking method:
- Wash, chop dried fruits, rinse rice.
- Heat the oil in a cauldron, add dried fruits, simmer for 3 minutes.
- Add rice, simmer for a couple of minutes, stirring constantly.
- Add the remaining ingredients, add water, cover with a lid.
- Cook for 25-35 minutes over low heat, checking for doneness. After removing from heat, cover with a lid for another 15 minutes.
With carrots and walnuts
- Time: 35 minutes.
- Number of servings: 4 persons.
- Calorie content of the dish: 395 kcal.
- Purpose: for lunch.
- Cuisine: Armenian.
- Difficulty: easy.
In the recipe for pilaf with walnuts, the rice gets a rich color thanks to the addition of carrots. To fully develop the flavor of all ingredients, the products must be properly processed: prunes and dried apricots are simply chopped, raisins are left in boiling water for 15 minutes, and the nuts are pre-fried in a dry frying pan without oil for several minutes.
Ingredients:
- rice – 200 g;
- water – 2 glasses;
- raisins, prunes, dried apricots – 50 g each;
- chopped walnuts – 100 g;
- butter – 100 g;
- finely grated carrots – 75 g.
Cooking method:
- Fry chopped carrots in oil, add dried fruits, simmer for 3 minutes.
- Add rice, a little salt, add hot water, leave covered for 25-30 minutes.
- Remove from heat, add nuts, let simmer, covered, for another 15 minutes.
With raisins
- Time: 20 minutes.
- Number of servings: 5 persons.
- Calorie content of the dish: 175 kcal per 100 g.
- Purpose: for a holiday.
- Cuisine: European.
- Difficulty: easy.
A simple, economical, dietary version of pilaf - rice with raisins. The consistency of the porridge should be boiled, and the dried fruits should be soft. The recipe is notable for its simplicity in the use of spices and additives: housewives use vanillin and flavor it with sugar. Cinnamon lovers are allowed to add it for flavor, but do not go overboard so as not to lose the main taste.
Ingredients:
- white rice – 1 tbsp.;
- water – 2 tbsp.;
- butter – 50 g;
- raisins – 50 g;
- vanillin – 0.5 g;
- salt – 2 g.
- sugar – 0.5 tbsp;
Cooking method:
- Rinse the rice and raisins.
- Add rice and water to a thick bottom pan and cook for 8-10 minutes.
- Add the remaining ingredients, stir, cook for 15 minutes.
In a slow cooker
- Time: 1 hour.
- Number of servings: 3 persons.
- Calorie content of the dish: 150 kcal per 100 g.
- Purpose: for children's afternoon tea.
- Cuisine: Central Asian.
- Difficulty: easy.
You can cook pilaf not only in a container with a thick bottom, but also in a slow cooker. The device will help save personal time. To prepare, you only need to prepare the food and put the multicooker in the desired mode, which is called “Pilaf”. The dish turns out crumbly, aromatic due to spices and sweet due to dried fruits. No added sugar required.
Ingredients:
- rice – 1 glass per 200 ml;
- olive oil – 10 ml;
- water – 400 ml;
- carrots - half;
- dried figs – 3 pcs.;
- prunes, dried apricots – 5 pcs.;
- raisins – 30 g;
- turmeric – 0.5 tsp;
- salt – 0.5 tsp.
Cooking method:
- Grease the multicooker bowl with olive oil, add chopped carrots, raisins, dried apricots, prunes, figs, and add turmeric.
- Wash the rice, put it in a bowl with the food, add salt, pour water, and start the multicooker.
- Cook until the multicooker beeps.
With pumpkin
- Time: 1 hour 10 minutes.
- Number of servings: 4 persons.
- Calorie content of the dish: 221 kcal per 100 g.
- Purpose: for lunch, dinner.
- Cuisine: Transcaucasian.
- Difficulty: easy.
Pilaf with pumpkin will appeal to lovers of healthy and satisfying food. The dish is rich in vitamins due to fresh ingredients, and rice makes it low-calorie. Children will also enjoy this treat: the combination of quince, apple and pumpkin gives the rice a sweetness. Products must be properly processed: peeled, rinsed well. The pumpkin should be thoroughly cleaned and the grains removed.
Ingredients:
- rice – 1.5 cups;
- pumpkin – 500 g;
- apple – 3 pcs.;
- quince, raisins – 100 g each;
- butter – 120 g.
Cooking method:
- Prepare the fruit, peel the pumpkin, rinse the raisins and rice.
- Melt 60 g of butter in a saucepan, cover the bottom with even slices of pumpkin, flesh side up.
- Pour some of the rice onto the pumpkin, put pieces of fruit, and cover with rice. There will be three layers in total.
- Add salt on top, add the remaining oil, and fill completely with water to the last level.
- Cook covered for 50-60 minutes.
With fresh fruit
- Time: 1 hour.
- Number of servings: 5 persons.
- Calorie content of the dish: 210 kcal per 100 g.
- Purpose: for a children's party, lunch.
- Cuisine: Asian.
- Difficulty: easy.
Pilaf can be prepared without the use of dried fruits, completely replacing them with fresh fruits. Instead of peaches and cherry plums, which are used in the recipe, you can choose your own set of fruits (apricots, plums, raspberries, pineapples). Pomegranate juice syrup, which is poured over the rice before serving, will add a special piquancy.
Ingredients:
- rice – 200 g;
- vegetable oil – 150 g;
- saffron infusion – 1 tbsp;
- peaches – 3 pcs.;
- cherry plum – 1 glass;
- peeled almonds – 100 g;
- honey – 2 tbsp;
- pomegranate juice – half a glass;
- ground cinnamon – 1 tsp;
- cloves – 2 pcs.
- sugar – 2 tbsp;
Cooking method:
- Wash and boil the rice until half cooked, then rinse it with cold water.
- Place half in a thick-bottomed bowl, add melted butter, level, cover, simmer for 30 minutes.
- Fry washed, cut into strips fruits and almonds until golden brown.
- Boil syrup from juice, sugar, honey. When the liquid boils, add the fried foods and cook for 3-4 minutes.
- Serve the rice after pouring it with syrup and garnish with strawberries.
Video
Quite often, pilaf recipes contain ingredients such as raisins, dried apricots, dates, prunes and other dried or dried fruits.
These and other sweet ingredients not only add variety to the range of dishes called “pilaf”.
Often dried fruits, despite their insignificant presence in pilaf, play the role of “first violin”, create a unique taste, make the dish bright and unforgettable.
Basic principles of cooking pilaf with dried fruits
Imagine an evening dress without accessories and jewelry. Boring and ordinary! There is not enough light touch to emphasize the solemnity of the event. It’s the same in pilaf: bright “beads” of berries are an equal element, on a par with rice, if we are talking about the sweet types of this dish. Sweet pilaf without fruits, dried fruits or nuts is just rice porridge. Where, in addition to rice, the pilaf contains meat, fish or vegetables, dried fruits also do not go unnoticed: they are the very small detail that completes an evening outfit.
It is also very pleasing that dried fruits do not require any complex pre-processing to prepare pilaf using them. They are simply washed, large fruits are cut. It is enough to simply wash the raisins and do not steam them with boiling water, because they will steam and acquire the desired consistency together with the rice in the pan. If the recipe calls for chopping prunes, figs or dried apricots, then they must first be kept in hot water just enough to make it easy to cut.
All dried fruits, without exception, go well with rice. For sweet pilaf with dried fruits, you can generally use all dried fruits in a single composition. In other recipes, you need to think about the principle of product compatibility. For example, you can add dried prunes to vegetable pilaf: its sour taste and slight smoked smell will add a piquant aroma to the dish as a whole. Sweet raisins highlight the flavor of meat, especially when combined with spicy, salty and sour ingredients. Dates and dried apricots play the same role in pilaf. Dried figs, due to their grainy texture, require a thoughtful approach to preparing pilaf. In a word, dried fruits in pilaf are a matter of individual and creative taste.
Of course, to everything written, it should be added that there is the main rule of pilaf - the crumbly texture of the rice itself or any cereal part from which it consists. Without meeting this basic requirement, no dried fruits will save the dish.
Perhaps the most difficult thing in cooking pilaf is the long search for a new interesting recipe, especially if you want to cook pilaf with a “twist”, literally and figuratively. Understanding this, we offer interesting, already found and tested options.
Recipe 1. Pilaf with dried fruits and lamb
Ingredients:
"Basmanti" 300 g
Almonds 50 g
Dark burgundy raisins 100 g
Turmeric 10 g
Butter 50 g
Lamb tenderloin 500 g
Meat broth 250 ml
Olive oil 30 g
Preparation:
Rinse the rice with water and leave it to drain. Boil the rice in a saucepan of salted water for approximately 8-10 minutes. Soak raisins in a bowl of hot water.
Finely chop the onion, fry it over low heat until caramelized and golden brown, remove from heat and divide into two parts.
Dry the steamed raisins and fry them in olive oil with almonds so that the raisins are saturated with their aroma. Set aside.
Drain the boiled rice, rinse it and place it in a saucepan. Add butter, raisins, turmeric and one part of caramelized onions to it. Stir and heat, covering with a lid.
Beat portions of lamb, rub with pepper, but do not add salt. Fry the meat in a deep frying pan with some oil, pour in a cup of broth and simmer until soft. At the end of cooking the lamb, add spices.
Place the finished rice in the center of the dish, with pieces of lamb around it.
Recipe 2. Pilaf with dried fruits, pistachios and pine nuts, unsweetened
Ingredients:
Saffron 1 g
Butter, peanut (or ghee) 160 g
Cardamom 2 g
Cinnamon (stick) 1 pc.
Black pepper 2 g (ground)
Light raisins 70 g
Bay leaf 1 g
Dried apricots 120 g
Dark, large raisins 80 g
Nuts, pine 100 g
Pistachios 150 g
Onion, chopped 200 g
Preparation:
Wash and soak the rice. It is preferable to use a thin, long-grain variety of white rice: Jasmine or Basmanti.
Boil water and add saffron and salt to it, set aside temporarily, cover with a lid, so that the saffron brews.
Heat the oil in a deep cast iron pan and fry the pine nuts. Immediately transfer them to the prepared bowl, and add spices to the nutty aroma: cardamom, bay leaf, pepper and cumin. It is advisable to slightly mash the spices first so that their smell is also transferred to the oil. Remove the seeds after 30-40 seconds. Now fry the chopped onion well (you can use leek) and also transfer to a separate plate. Now put rice in the fragrant oil, stir until it is completely saturated with oil, add dried fruits to the rice. Boil water with saffron again and pour it over the rice. Cook the rice over low heat until the water evaporates. Add onions and nuts at the end of stewing, stir, adjust the taste with spices if necessary, cover the dish with a lid for five minutes and turn off the stove.
Recipe 3. Turkish cuisine: pilaf with dried fruits, green peas and chicken
Ingredients:
Basmanti rice 600 g
Onion, coarsely chopped 280 g
Green peas, frozen 150 g
Turmeric 15 g
Cloves, ground 5 g
Ground cumin 15 g
Black pepper 10 g (ground)
Cardamom 10 g
Cinnamon (whole sticks) 2 pcs.
Olive oil 150 ml
Almonds, toasted 100 g
Chicken 2.2 kg
Citrus juice 250 ml (oranges or tangerines)
Dates (pitted) 200 g
Cooking process:
Wash and soak the rice. Divide the processed chicken carcass into portions. Rub the meat with ground spices, place in a container and pour citrus juice over it for forty to fifty minutes.
Heat the oil in a frying pan, lightly fry the onion and place the chicken on it. Fry until golden brown, place chopped dates, raisins and rice on the meat. Gently mix the ingredients and add water, previously brought to a boil, to cover the rice with water by 2-3 cm. Reduce the heat to low and simmer under the lid until the rice is cooked. Place the peas and almonds on top, cover the pan and let sit for 15 minutes before serving.
Recipe 4. Indian cuisine: pilaf with dried fruits, cashews, almonds and sesame seeds
This recipe is quite suitable for fans of vegetarian cuisine, as a complete dish. But at the same time, it can be supplemented with any meat or fish, using separate technology for preparing the constituent parts of pilaf, known in the East since ancient times.
Ingredients:
Wild rice 200 g
Raisins (dark and light) 120 g
Almonds, raw 60 g
Cashew 100 g
Sesame 40 g
Turmeric 15 g
Olive oil 100 ml
Cilantro, fresh 40 g
Pepper, ground (red and black) 10 g
Sesame oil 50 ml
Broth (chicken or vegetable) 0.5 l
Greens, fresh 50 g
Sumac (or dried barberry) 70 g
Cooking process:
Place finely chopped onion in heated olive oil and sauté until transparent, add salt and add chopped cilantro and raw almonds, after 5 minutes – rice, turmeric, cashews, raisins, sumac (or barberry), pepper. Stir, fry for a few minutes and pour in the broth. When the rice is half cooked, add salt. Before serving, sprinkle with fresh herbs and sesame seeds fried in your own oil.
Recipe 5. Pilaf with dried fruits: chicken breast with almonds, dried cherries, pineapple rings and vegetables
Grocery list:
Long grain rice 350 g
Chicken breast 1.2 kg
Shallot 200 g
Garlic 30 g
Pepper (yellow, green and red), salad 250 g
Cherries, dried (pitted) 150 g
Raw almonds 70-80 g
Vegetable and ghee butter (50/50) 120 g
Broth 450 ml
Chopped parsley 50 g
Dried pineapple rings 200 g
Orange zest (fresh) 40 g
Mediterranean spices
Cooking process:
Rice is washed and soaked in water. Prepare and chop the vegetables: chop the peppers and onions into large cubes, chop the garlic and herbs. Dried fruits are also washed, but they do not need to be steamed with boiling water. After washing the chicken breast, cut into portions.
Heat the oil in a deep heat-resistant bowl and fry the breast with spices, add onions, almonds, orange zest and garlic, then add washed rice and pour the broth over the contents. When the rice is half cooked, add pepper and dried fruits. Add salt and after simmering for five minutes over low heat, add the chopped herbs. Place pilaf on a plate in layers. Temporarily transfer vegetables and dried fruits to a separate plate. Place rice on a dish, then dried fruits, place peppers and meat around the dish.
When cooking or stewing rice, it is necessary to take into account its variety: the amount of liquid added to obtain the desired consistency of the dish depends on this. The temperature and duration of rice processing also depends on its variety.
Add dried fruits no earlier than 10 minutes before the end of cooking the pilaf, so that they retain a moderately dense consistency and are not too boiled.
If you've been bored with traditional rice dishes for a long time, hurry up and add recipes for rice with dried fruits to your cookbook. You will want to cook these unusual dishes again and again! We offer a selection of 4 step-by-step recipes for rice with dried fruits for every taste.
Rice recipes with dried fruits
Sweet rice with dried apricots, dates and raisins
Ingredients:
- Carrot (1 pc.)
- Long grain rice (1 cup)
- Ground black pepper (a couple of teaspoons)
- Pitted dates (150 g)
- Onion (1 head)
- Raisins (1 cup)
- Vegetable oil (1.5 tablespoons)
- Dried apricots (150 g)
- Salt (2 teaspoons).
How to cook fluffy fruit rice with dried apricots and raisins
- Soak the rice (it is best to use the crumbly variety) for twenty minutes. Then drain the liquid and place the cereal in a saucepan with salted water. Cook until done.
- Thoroughly wash the dates (can be replaced with prunes), dried apricots and raisins. Pour hot water into different bowls and leave for ten minutes. Thanks to this action, you will achieve softening of the fruit, and the unpleasant astringency will go away.
- Finely chop all the dried fruits. Grind the peeled carrots using a grater - either a medium or large attachment will do. Peel the onions and cut them into halves of rings.
- Sauté onions and carrots in vegetable oil. There is no need to fry the vegetables too much, just let them brown slightly.
- Place dates, raisins and dried apricots in the same pan. Fry together with onions and carrots, adding salt and spices to taste (saffron and cinnamon are very good in this dish).
- Next comes the rice. We evaluate the taste of the dish - if necessary, add a little more salt and spices.
- Stir everything thoroughly and steam a little.
Finally, sweet rice with dried fruits is ready to be served!
Rice with shrimp and prunes
- Mayonnaise (half a cup)
- Salt (to taste)
- Shrimp (100 g)
- Rice (half a cup)
- Prunes (40 g)
- Lemon juice (a couple of teaspoons)
- Apple (1 pc.).
How to cook rice with shrimp and prunes
- Soak the prunes in a bowl of warm water. After one hour, drain the water and cut the dried fruits into large slices.
- We wash the shrimp. Cook in salted water for 3-4 minutes, then peel and immediately sprinkle with lemon juice.
- My apple. Cut off the skin and remove the core, chop the pulp into strips.
- Boil the rice (don't forget to add a little salt to the water). Place in a colander and rinse with chilled water.
- Once cooled, the rice can be placed on a serving plate. Lay out the shrimp and apple straws and pour mayonnaise on top. Pieces of prunes will serve as an elegant decoration and add piquancy to the dish.
Pilaf with chicken, dried apricots and raisins
- Basmati rice (4.5 cups)
- Garlic (4 heads)
- Chicken meat (1 kilogram)
- Vegetable oil (1.5 cups)
- Onions (4 heads)
- Quince (1 fruit)
- Carrots (3 pieces)
- Salt (to cook's taste)
- Dried apricots (1 handful)
- Spice mixture for pilaf (turmeric / barberry / paprika / cumin)
- Chili pepper (1 piece)
- Black raisins (1 handful).
How to cook pilaf with chicken, dried apricots and raisins
- Wash and soak the basmati in warm water (dissolve a little salt). Leave the rice for about 3 hours.
- Cut the chicken into small slices.
- We clean and chop the vegetables: carrots into bars, onions into thin half rings. We also peel the garlic.
- Divide the thoroughly washed quince into 8 slices, remove the core and discard. Dried fruits also need to be washed thoroughly; they do not need soaking.
- Heat sunflower oil in a cauldron. Place a small onion and wait until it turns black (this is necessary in order to absorb excess smell).
- Now add the chopped onion. Brown, stirring occasionally, then add the chicken. Fry until golden brown and all the liquid has evaporated.
- When the oil becomes transparent, add carrot sticks. Continue frying for ten minutes, do not forget to stir occasionally.
- Salt and season the contents of the cauldron. Pour boiling water over it.
- As soon as the liquid boils again, throw in the quince pieces, whole dried apricots, garlic and chili.
- At the moment of the next boil, reduce the heat to low. Simmer for about forty minutes, then you will need to remove the hot pepper (under no circumstances throw it away!).
- Rinse the soaked rice. Place on zirvak (gravy), increasing the heat to maximum. Carefully pour boiling water to a height of 2-3 centimeters (it is advisable to use a slotted spoon), later you can add a little more water.
- Add the chili we already know and wait for it to boil. Later, reduce the heat to medium power. As the water “flows”, cover the dishes with a lid and reduce the heating power.
- When all the liquid has boiled away and the rice is half cooked, scatter the raisins and cover the dish with a linen towel. Cover with a lid and leave to simmer for another half hour, then turn off the stove and let the pilaf “rest” while wrapped.
Dessert rice with nuts and dried fruits
- Hazelnuts and cashews (a quarter cup each)
- Granulated sugar (300 grams)
- Butter (one and a half tablespoons)
- Dried apricots and prunes (50 grams each)
- Dried cranberries (quarter cup)
- Long grain rice (400 grams)
- Salt (to cook's taste)
- Dark and light raisins (50 grams each).
How to cook rice with nuts and dried fruits
- We wash dried fruits in hot water. Their composition is selected according to personal taste - for example, you can add dried apples, cherries and / or pears.
- Roast the nuts in a hot frying pan. We remove all the husks.
- Wash and then boil the rice in boiling water with added salt. We bring it only until half-ready.
- Now you will need a cauldron or a thick-walled cast iron saucepan. Melt the butter together with the sugar.
- We lay out dried fruits and nuts - they will have to slowly caramelize for 4-5 minutes.
- Add rice, adding a little boiling water at the same time. Set the heat to minimum and simmer the sweet pilaf for about a quarter of an hour.
- Mix thoroughly before finishing cooking. We taste the rice with dried fruits for sweetness and make adjustments if necessary.
Enjoy your meal!
There are probably a thousand pilaf recipes in the world. It is prepared by many peoples, and most consider it their national dish. Every family has its own version of preparing pilaf and each of them deserves attention.
Sweet pilaf with raisins and dried apricots, prepared according to a similar recipe, is called Armenian, Azerbaijani and Uzbek, but it is also prepared by Turkmens, Kazakhs, and, of course, Slavs. Consisting of products that are exclusively beneficial for the human body, pilaf with dried fruits can be easily prepared at home. And to get the best results, use my detailed recipe.
Inventory and kitchen appliances: saucepan, 2 small saucepans or bowls for a water bath, a saucepan, a colander, a cast iron cauldron with a lid, a knife for cutting, a spatula for stirring, a towel.
Ingredients
Did you know? The amount and composition of fruit and nut ingredients can be varied depending on personal preferences. The main thing is that in the end the ratio of rice and fruit by weight is approximately 1 to 1.
Secrets of cooking pilaf
- The ratio of the two main products should be 1 to 1. The first of them is cereal, traditionally for pilaf it is rice, although different nations use peas, wheat, corn, barley or a mixture of different cereals. The second half is meat, fish, poultry, vegetables or, in our case, dried fruits.
- Spices that can be added to pilaf are saffron, cumin, pepper and babaris. I add cinnamon, star anise and cloves to sweet pilaf. Coriander, celery and bay leaves are never added to pilaf.
- According to the cooking technology, the grains for rice are not boiled, but stewed, while the second half of the products is cooked separately.
- You need to choose the right rice. Only transparent and strong varieties with a low starch content in the grains are suitable, such as, for example, Basmati, Devzira, Barakat, Akmarzhan, Oshpar, round Krasnodar. It is better not to use parboiled rice.
- The main condition for preparing proper pilaf is the use of cast iron cookware with thick walls. Other dishes will not work.
Cooking process
So, today I am preparing pilaf with raisins, dried apricots and prunes. As I already said, the composition of dried fruits and their quantity can be changed. Dried figs, dried apple slices, dates and cranberries are also good for this pilaf. Of the nuts, only almonds are required; the rest can also be used as desired. Spices such as cinnamon, star anise and cloves perfectly complement the aroma of dried fruits.
- I put a pan of water on the fire. For 500 g of rice I pour one and a half liters of water.
- When the water boils, add the pre-washed rice and about a teaspoon of salt. Cook for 10 minutes until half cooked.
- I put the rice in a colander and rinse it with cold water so that it doesn’t stick together in the future.
- I grease the bottom of the cast-iron cauldron generously with butter (this will take about 25 g) and cover it with one sheet of thin pita bread. This is done to prevent the rice from burning in the future.
- Melt butter, about 50 g, in a water bath. I pour the rice into a cauldron and pour over the melted butter. I level it.
- I wrap the lid of the cauldron on the inside in a clean kitchen towel so that the condensation that will form does not get on the rice.
- I put the cauldron on the stove on the lowest heat and let it sit for an hour. During this time, the rice will be completely cooked.
- In a saucepan I add 100 g of seedless raisins, 100 g of dried apricots cut into small pieces, 100 g of chopped pitted prunes, 50 g of almonds and about 25 g of butter.
- I pour in about 100 ml of water and put it on low heat. I add spices. Simmer for 20-30 minutes, stir occasionally and add more water if necessary.
- When both ingredients are ready, place the rice in a heap on a dish, and steamed dried fruits on top.
- I also add 25 g of cashews, walnuts and hazelnuts here.
- I pour the sauce over the pilaf, which remained in the saucepan after steaming the dried fruits. You literally need a few tablespoons.
- Sweet pilaf with dried fruits is ready. You can serve it to the table and delight your loved ones.
Video recipe for making sweet pilaf
I also suggest you watch a video of preparing pilaf with dried fruits according to this recipe. It will help you understand all the nuances of cooking, especially if you are taking on such a dish for the first time.
About the benefits of dried fruits
Dried fruit is created by removing water from fresh fruit. In essence, they represent a kind of fruit concentrate, because they contain a larger amount of biologically active substances, as well as a lot of calcium, magnesium, iron and other valuable vitamins.
Dried fruits are very good for health. For example, dried apricots have a beneficial effect on the heart. Eating prunes has a beneficial effect on the gastrointestinal tract, and dried plums are also useful for high blood pressure, kidney disease, liver disease and rheumatism. Prunes also improve vision. Due to the high content of B vitamins in raisins, it can strengthen the nervous system and improve sleep; it can be used as a sedative.
Healing properties of nuts
Nuts are not only a tasty treat, but also an undeniable aid for your health.
- Walnut helps with anemia, heart disease, dermatitis, and colds. It also has a beneficial effect on the nervous and immune systems of the body.
- Sweet almonds are good for obesity, hypertension, stomach ulcers, heartburn and asthma. Normalizes cholesterol levels.
- Hazelnuts, or, as they are also called, hazelnuts, are protein in its purest form. Good for the prevention of obesity, diabetes, chronic fatigue, varicose veins, arterial hypertension.
- Cashews strengthen the immune system, normalize metabolism, and are useful for heart diseases.
Why you should eat rice
Most often we use rice as a side dish for the main dish, although rice often surpasses it in its beneficial properties. In Asian countries, rice is an integral part of cooking and is used as a popular folk remedy for many diseases. This cereal combines many substances important for the body. It is extremely nutritious and energizes a person well. Serves as a source of proteins, minerals and carbohydrates, and is considered a dietary product due to its low fat content.
Rice rids the body of excess fluid and has a cleansing effect.. Contains zinc, manganese, phosphorus, calcium, iron and potassium, as well as a large amount of B vitamins. Rice restores the body at the cellular level, strengthens nails, hair, and improves skin condition. In addition, it helps with brain function, stabilizes blood pressure and has an absorbent effect, absorbing harmful substances, removing waste and toxins. This is how many useful properties a product has, which we undeservedly underestimate in Slavic cuisine.
Cooking options
Pilaf is a very ancient dish, and it is unlikely that its reliable origin will ever be established. It is assumed that the principles of preparing this dish developed in India, where similar vegetarian rice dishes were prepared from ancient times. To confirm this, the tradition has been preserved of giving pilaf a yellowish color using turmeric or saffron, favorite Indian spices.
In the modern world, pilaf has become one of the most popular dishes in the Middle East, Central Asia and Transcaucasia. Through Turkey, pilaf spread to Eastern Europe, where it acquired national characteristics.
There are thousands of options for preparing pilaf, but the most popular of them is, and the most original is. It is often prepared, but it turns out no less tasty. For lovers of richer dishes, it is suitable, but all these recipes deserve a separate place of honor in the traditional cooking of different peoples of the world. Try different recipes and choose the one that suits your taste the most.
If you liked my version of preparing pilaf with dried fruits, leave a comment, I will definitely check out all of them. Thank you for your attention and bon appetit!
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