Housewives who cannot boast of any experience in preparing pilaf often receive rice porridge, filled with a whole mass of stuck together lumps, but in no way a traditional Uzbek dish. When this happens every time, all sorts of experiments begin. Cooking enthusiasts use different kinds rice, certain types of meat, try to follow the advice of friends. Quite often the results of such actions are disastrous, which makes you give up.
How to properly cook crumbly pilaf? What recipes should you use? We invite you to find out about this by reading the practical recommendations presented in our publication.
About choosing dishes
How to cook pilaf correctly? It is difficult to achieve the expected results using the first pan you come across, which has a thin bottom and walls. Following proven solutions, you should use a cast iron cauldron. It is better to place the latter not on the stove, but on an open fire. If it is not possible to cook in an open space, you can choose the first option. The main thing is that the dishes comply with the canon. Not only a cauldron is suitable here, but also a spacious cast iron pan or a deep duck pot.
The above samples of containers have specific qualities. The main property is the ability to retain heat inside and uniform temperature distribution. The finished pilaf does not come in lumps. The meat comes out as juicy and soft as possible.
Which meat is better to choose?
How to cook delicious pilaf? To achieve the traditional taste, use lamb. However, there are many noteworthy recipes that allow the use of beef, poultry and pork. If you plan to get a classic, spicy taste, preference should be given to lamb.
It is recommended to choose meat obtained from the shoulder or brisket. The flesh of the thigh is also suitable. You can add meaty ribs. The pronounced hardness of the product is not a problem. By simmering the meat over the fire, the product will definitely soften.
How to properly cook rice for pilaf?
There are an impressive number of individual rice options available to cooking enthusiasts these days. You can use traditional Uzbek and Tajik varieties. We are talking about cereals of the alanga, devzira, oshpar, and kenja categories. Good solutions are Mexican, Arabic, Italian rice.
When choosing a base for preparing pilaf, the determining factor should be the nature of the product. It is better to use long-grained varieties. It is desirable that the starch content be at the lowest level. Cooking experts advise pre-soaking rice. It is recommended to rinse the grains and drain the water 6-8 times. Such actions ensure the removal of excess starch from the structure of the product. As a result, the risk of cereal sticking will be minimized.
Fat or vegetable oil?
During cooking, you can use vegetable oil or animal fat. The final decision always remains with the cook. Using an extremely limited amount of the ingredient will make the finished dish dry. Therefore, it is better to make pilaf fatty. Refined oil does not have a distinct taste and aroma. On the contrary, animal fat will add specific shades to the character of the pilaf, which not every consumer will like.
A few words about spices
The classic recipe involves the use of cumin, cumin, barberry and hot pepper as seasonings for pilaf. These spices have a bright, piquant aroma, giving the dish a moderate spiciness and perfectly complementing the meat component. A good addition to such a composition would be garlic, thyme, suneli hops, and saffron. It is recommended to put the garlic whole into the pilaf, after first clearing the head of the husk.
Crispy pork pilaf
According to cultural beliefs, Muslims never use pork as an ingredient in pilaf. If there are no such restrictions in the family, it is worth using the recipe, which will be discussed later.
How to properly cook pork pilaf? The following set of ingredients should be used:
- Pork pulp - 500 grams.
- Long grain rice - 1 kg.
- Sunflower oil- half a glass.
- Onions - 4-5 pieces.
- Large carrots - 3-4 pieces.
- Garlic - 2 heads.
- Black pepper, bay leaf, salt, turmeric - to taste.
Meat, rice and vegetables are taken in approximately equal proportions. In this case, the dish will be balanced in all respects and will give a rich taste. Cooking must be done in a deep cauldron.
So, how to properly cook pork pilaf? First, the rice is washed several times. The water should become clear, which will indicate that the starch has been thoroughly washed out. Peel carrots and onions. Vegetables are rinsed and then chopped. The carrots are cut into thin strips, and the onions into half rings. Pork is soaked in water, dried and cut into pieces. average size.
Half the norm vegetable oil pour into a frying pan and then heat until the first bubbles form. Prepared pork is placed here. The meat is fried until a light brown crust appears. The product is sent to the cauldron. Add oil to the frying pan and add chopped onions and carrots. Vegetables do not need to be fried. It is enough to soften them slightly. The ingredient is also transferred to the cauldron. Then the whole thing is seasoned with a mixture of spices.
Strained rice is placed in an even layer on top of the meat mixed with vegetables. Water is slowly poured into the cauldron along the wall of the container. The liquid should cover the cereal by several centimeters. Make a big fire on the stove. When the water boils, set the flame level to minimum. The pilaf is covered with a lid.
Cooking continues for half an hour. Then the cauldron is removed from the fire. Garlic is stuck into the pilaf. Cover the container again with a lid and wrap it in a warm blanket. The dish is allowed to reach condition.
Pilaf with chicken meat
The recipe should be used by those who want to enjoy a tasty and aromatic, but at the same time quite light in content dish. How to properly cook pilaf using poultry as a meat ingredient? As in the previous case, first we note the necessary ingredients:
- Chicken fillet- 400 grams.
- Long steamed rice - one and a half cups.
- Onions - 2 pieces.
- Medium-sized carrots - 2-3 pieces.
- Sunflower oil in a quantity sufficient for high-quality frying of ingredients.
- Garlic - 1 head.
- Special seasoning for pilaf.
How to properly cook chicken pilaf? The starch is washed out of the rice under running water. The poultry fillet is cut into moderately small pieces. Peel, wash and cut vegetables. You can chop carrots using a grater. The onion should be cut into half rings.
The bottom of the cauldron is covered with vegetable oil. A mixture of meat and vegetables is placed here. The ingredients are fried directly in the container over low heat. Preliminary heat treatment perform until the products have a light golden hue.
How to properly cook pilaf in a cauldron? A small amount of water is poured into the container. The mixture of meat and vegetables is lightly dried, salted and spices are added. Place washed and drained rice on top. The grain is leveled and a number of holes are made inside. Cooking is carried out over medium heat. When there is no liquid left on the surface of the rice, stick in the garlic cloves.
The pilaf is left to simmer under the lid for 5-10 minutes. This time is enough for the rice to absorb residual moisture and become crumbly. At the end, you can stir the dish and resort to tasting.
How to cook Uzbek pilaf correctly?
The dish will turn out worthy of the highest praise if you resort to using the traditional Uzbek recipe. If everything is done correctly, there will be no hint of the presence of rice lumps. The pilaf will be extremely aromatic and crumbly.
How to properly cook pilaf according to the Uzbek recipe? You need to use the following set of ingredients:
- Lamb - 500 grams.
- Large carrots - 3-4 pieces.
- Big onion- 4 pieces.
- Long rice - 500 grams.
- Vegetable oil - about 150-200 grams.
- Head of garlic.
- Spice mixture: cumin, thyme, cumin, barberry, saffron.
The rice is washed several times and then left to soak in cold water. Lamb is cut into medium pieces. Vegetables are peeled and washed. Cut the onion into large cubes. The carrots are chopped into strips.
Vegetable oil is heated in a frying pan. The meat is placed here and fried until golden brown. Add a mixture of vegetables and spices. Roasting is continued for another 5 minutes.
The contents of the frying pan are sent to the cauldron. Place rice on top and add a few teaspoons of salt. The rice is carefully poured with water. The container is placed on the stove with the heat set to medium. After boiling, cover the cauldron with a lid. Reduce the flame and leave the pilaf to cook for 20 minutes. Then the dish is left to infuse for a quarter of an hour.
Let's return once again to the question of how to properly cook crumbly pilaf? To ensure that the finished dish never disappoints with its qualities, it is enough to pay attention to the following points:
- Products must be added in a certain sequence. The optimal solution is pre-frying the meat ingredients with onions. Chopped carrots are also added here. The mixture of ingredients is seasoned with spices and then placed in a container that will be used to prepare pilaf. Everything is flooded hot water so that the liquid level is at least 2-3 cm above the meat layer.
- Once you put the rice in a container, do not stir it. It is recommended to carefully smooth the surface of the cereal and place the head of garlic inside.
- During the cooking process, the rice should not be boiled, but slowly steamed, simmering over moderate heat. To achieve uniform cooking of the cereal, it is worth making a series of holes on the surface with a wooden stick. Through such holes it will be easier for the steam to rise up.
- Keep the rice covered while cooking. The latter can be raised briefly to replenish the lack of water in the container.
- Once the dish is fully cooked, it is important not to remove the lid for the next 10-15 minutes. The pilaf must be removed from the heat and allowed to brew. Otherwise, unwanted lumps may form.
Cooking pilaf in a slow cooker
If desired, you can prepare the dish using a modern solution. How to properly cook pilaf in a slow cooker? The features here are identical to the specifics of preparing a dish using a cauldron. The main thing is that the multicooker has a special “Pilaf” mode. All that remains is to prepare the meat and vegetable frying, based on the tips from our article. Then just put the ingredients in the device’s container, add rice, pour water and set the desired mode. A “reasonable” device will do everything on its own.
Finally
The recipes discussed in our publication have some specific differences. At the same time, regardless of the chosen option, strict adherence to the recommendations allows you to achieve the canonical taste and make the rice crumbly. When it comes to using spices, there is room for experimentation. Don't be afraid to use different seasoning combinations. After all, this is the only way to achieve a taste that fully satisfies individual preferences.
The other day I looked at different resources pilaf recipes. As someone who has cooked this dish probably hundreds of times, I can only shrug and suggest cooking “natural pilaf.” More precisely, Uzbek pilaf. And even more precisely - the Fergana version of Uzbek pilaf, which simply does not exist in nature as “more natural” (I will refrain from extensive ethnographic and culinary information).
Of course, as soon as I present a set of products that are actually accessible to the average city dweller, there will immediately be “apologists for the classics”: they say, cottonseed oil is not used, red carrots are used instead of yellow ones, pilaf is made not on a fire, but on a stove, and so on. However, for those who really want to cook real pilaf, I will say: do not listen to the “apologists.” Pilaf is a dish that forgives liberties in unimportant details. But he does not forgive fundamental miscalculations. One of the fundamental components of pilaf is the fact that pilaf is a living organism, and not a male one, but female, requiring, therefore, an appropriate attitude towards itself.
Armed with a serious understanding of this circumstance (I will explain its essence clearly below), we can safely get down to business.
To begin with, I suggest preparing pilaf based on small proportions of ingredients. With such pilaf it will be possible to feed 5-6 people to the full and not make almost a single fundamental mistake when preparing it. Later, if desired, the proportions can be increased and, with the experience gained, you can prepare pilaf for at least 20 people, at least for 100.
So, for a “small” pilaf we will need:
1. A kilogram of rice, preferably durum varieties. For example, devzira rice, which is now available in almost any market for 200-250 rubles per kilo (photo will be placed below), or its varieties, like chungara. Or - other rice varieties that have proven themselves well in Central Asian pilafs - laser, alanga, basmati, etc. I would like to remind you once again of what I have said more than once: the choice of rice for pilaf must be approached very carefully, not only taking into account that this is the main component of the dish, but also the fact that the dish itself is relatively labor-intensive in terms of time and technological costs. You need it - after putting in a lot of effort, only to be disappointed at the finish line because you bought any kind of rice in any station store? I think no.
2. About a kilogram of medium-fat lamb, of which a third are bones, two thirds are meat. By the way, I’ll add that talk about how pilaf is prepared exclusively from lamb is nothing more than talk. And idle time. Especially considering the undeniable primacy of rice in this dish. However, lamb is the most preferred meat in it.
3. 100 grams of lamb fat, preferably tail fat, although (in the absence of it) it can be replaced with fat cut from other parts of the carcass. You should definitely avoid using lard - because of its pronounced “foreign” quality and, to put it mildly, not the best taste.
4. A kilogram of red juicy carrots. If you find a yellow one (which I doubt) - very good.
5. Three medium onions.
6. Two heads of garlic.
7. 150 grams of vegetable oil (refined).
8. MANDATORY: one and a half to two teaspoons of cumin (cumin). Without it, don’t even try pilaf.
9. 1-2 whole pods of hot pepper (optional).
10. Salt to taste.
11. As an option, you can use several grains of dry barberry, but it has absolutely no effect on the taste of the future pilaf.
Since I have a gas stove, I will cook pilaf in a cast iron cauldron traditional for preparing this dish, although the use of other utensils is not prohibited. It depends on the conditions you have - be it a fire, gas or electric stove. The “tool” you will need is a slotted spoon. A spatula or, especially, a spoon is not only inconvenient, but at certain stages is harmful.
So, first of all, we make 100% preparation of products for pilaf - during frying there will be no time to do cutting.
1. Separate the meat from the bones and cut into small pieces, as for goulash. We don't throw away the bones.
2. Cut the lard into small cubes - about a centimeter by centimeter.
3.Cut the onion into thin rings.
4. Cut the carrots (we do not scrape the skin, but cut it off) into thin strips, by hand, without resorting to the help of any kitchen devices. Sometimes, to decorate pilaf, one or two whole carrots are added to the chopped carrots, which are fried according to a slightly different algorithm than the main one. Since sometimes misunderstandings arise with “average” carrots, that is, those mostly sold on our shelves (during heat treatment they crumble and no longer hold their shape), I began to practice this trick. Sprinkle chopped carrots lemon juice, add a few pinches granulated sugar, mix and leave to “lie” for 15-20 minutes. Thus, it acquires much greater resistance to temperatures and does not fall apart. However, as observations have shown, this only applies to some varieties of imported carrots.
5. Remove the rhizome from the garlic and remove the skin, exposing the teeth.
We try to place all products (except rice and spices) on one wide plate, without mixing, so that they are at hand.
Cooking rice. This is what devzira rice looks like while it is still covered in pollen.
And this is what it looks like after washing in several waters. The rice should be washed and sorted to remove stones at least two hours before preparing the pilaf in order to keep it in lightly salted water. This significantly improves the properties of rice.
So, everything is prepared, we begin to warm up the dishes thoroughly.
Pour 150-200 grams of vegetable oil into the cauldron and heat the oil to such an extent that a circle of onion thrown into it turns brown in a few seconds. As soon as the oil has warmed up, drop the lamb fat into it. But you can do the opposite - first melt the lard and, after removing it, pour oil into the melted fat. The second method is convenient because fats can be dosed more accurately. Provided, of course, that you managed to “fit in” well enough with both the dishes and the rice used, since different varieties of rice have different abilities to absorb fats.
There is no need to render lard into smoke, keeping in mind its main purpose, which, of course, is not to add a bit of fat, but to flavor the vegetable oil.
As soon as the lard turns golden, catch it and transfer it to a separate plate - it will no longer be needed for pilaf. Place the seeds into the hot oil, stirring vigorously. Add a pinch of salt and a pinch of cumin. ATTENTION! Let us remember one important thing: the color of the future pilaf largely determines the degree of roasting of the seeds. The correct degree of roasting is a persistent brown color of the meat remaining on the bones.
Now it's time for the onions. It should also fry with vigorous stirring. Its readiness is also determined by color: the onion should turn golden.
As soon as the onion turns golden, add the chopped lamb pulp to the cauldron and mix.
Fry the meat carefully. We don't want it to get crusty. It is enough for it to burn with oil (in time - no more than 7-10 minutes).
As soon as the meat has reached the specified condition, add the carrots cut into strips into the cauldron, immediately thoroughly mixing it with the other ingredients.
As a rule, with intensive stirring, the carrots reach the desired state in 10 minutes. Well limp, it signals the beginning of a new stage - pouring into the cauldron warm water and the emergence of an important component of pilaf - sauce, which is scientifically called zirvak.
It is very important not to make mistakes with water - it is better not to add it than to overfill it. I usually pour water by eye, but this time I used a measuring cup, pouring 1.2 liters of food onto the indicated volume of food. What happened next showed that I was exactly in the required volume. I recommend that you pour no more than a liter, since the rest can be added when adding rice. The water level from the frying along the top edge should be about a centimeter and a half.
Now we wait for the zirvak to boil and, as soon as this happens, we put garlic and capsicum into it (ATTENTION! The pepper must be ABSOLUTELY whole so that there are no leaks. Otherwise, you will have to eat the pilaf accompanied by the fire brigade). Reduce the heat, achieve a slight, even boil, watching as the zirvak gains color right before your eyes.
After 30 minutes of low boiling of the zirvak, we taste it for salt and adjust it so that it tastes a little too salty. Then, using a slotted spoon, remove the seeds, garlic, and pepper onto a separate plate so that they do not interfere with us. We increase the temperature under the cauldron and carefully transfer the rice into it with a slotted spoon, from which the water has previously been drained.
First, we level the rice, ensuring uniform boiling of the zirvak along the entire circumference of the cauldron, if necessary (if the pilaf is being cooked on the stove), turning the cauldron around the circumference.
That crucial moment comes when the pilaf slowly turns into a living organism. It is not advisable to mix rice with the other contents of the pilaf, but at the same time, in order to ensure the subsequent friability and running of the rice characteristic of pilaf, it should be very gently stroked with a slotted spoon, as if transferring its own electricity into the rice through it. It is better to start stroking from the edges.
Gradually, with concentric movements, we reach the middle and slowly follow back, while the rice intensively absorbs the protruding sauce. Often, to cook it more evenly, it is a good idea to collect the rice from the edges of the cauldron to the middle and back.
You can even make a kind of number one girl’s breasts out of rice and gently caress each “breast” with a slotted spoon as if the “breast” is real and the slotted spoon is your hand. It won't hurt the rice.
Attention, this is very important! As the zirvak decreases (absorbs by rice), it is necessary to consistently reduce the temperature under the cauldron to avoid burning of vegetables and meat. This should be done carefully so that, on the one hand, it does not completely “muffle” the process of absorption of zirvak by rice, and on the other, to prevent burning. In short, it will be necessary to choose some golden temperature “middle ground”.
Picking up the rice from the edges to the middle, we make a characteristic bulge and continue stroking it with a slotted spoon for at least a minute, without making sudden movements.
Another important moment comes - tasting the readiness of the rice. To test, take a few grains of rice, going a couple of centimeters deep into the rice layer. Ready rice, if you bite into it, should be elastic, but not hard inside. If you detect the slightest hardness, pour no more than a glass of hot water onto the surface of the rice, level the mound and reassemble the rice from the edge to the middle, giving the water the opportunity to fall inside. After this, dig a “hole” in the middle of the rice layer, carefully return the seeds, garlic and capsicum that were cooked in the zirvak, there, add one and a half to two teaspoons of cumin...
... and just as carefully we cover the whole thing with rice, returning the pilaf to its original spherical shape, not forgetting to stroke this shape thoroughly.
If pilaf is cooked on an electric stove, leave the temperature under the cauldron at its minimum. If on a gas stove, turn off the minimum heat 10 minutes after closing the lid. If it’s on a fire, we remove everything, even the smoldering coals, so that the pilaf comes exclusively from the internal heat of the hearth. And for at least 25 minutes we don’t touch anything and let the pilaf completely ripen. In the meantime, finely chop a couple of tomatoes, cut the onion into rings and wash the onion several times in cold water. Then add it to the tomatoes, lightly salt and pepper (red pepper only) and mix thoroughly (you can watch the video procedure for preparing this salad, which goes very well with pilaf).
Once the pilaf has reached readiness, open it, take out the pepper, garlic and seeds, putting them on a separate plate, and mix the pilaf itself thoroughly using a slotted spoon. Then we put it on a large plate in a heap, put the seeds, heads of garlic and pepper on top, and decorate the perimeter with a prepared salad of onions and tomatoes, as shown in the picture. That's all.
Nuances that you may not know
1. The container in which you are going to cook pilaf must be heated very well before pouring oil into it. Good heating protects against such unpleasant things as burning of meat or vegetables after the rice is put on hold. Of course, when putting rice on hold, you must follow the instructions specified in the recipe. temperature regime. To be honest, the relationship between well-heated dishes and the fact that vegetables do not burn in the future is not entirely clear to me. But it exists and, of course, it was not invented by me.
2. When pilaf is cooked on electric or gas stove, it happens that the rice cooks unevenly. This is also a very unpleasant thing for a ready-made dish. To prevent this from happening, the rice must be stirred from time to time (at the stage when the zirvak boils away), but stir very carefully, trying not to “raise” the meat and vegetables to the surface. The mixing algorithm is approximately this: first, the surface of the rice needs to be leveled, then, using a slotted spoon as a spatula, as if scooping the rice from the edges of the dish to the middle (in a circle), leveled again and after a while repeat the operation. And so - at least three or four times. If bones are involved in the preparation of pilaf, it is better to remove them before adding rice and return them to the pilaf before placing the rice on the stand.
3. Before you put the rice on hold (that is, cover it tightly with a lid or suitable container), you need to make sure that the moisture has completely evaporated. This check is best done before the rice is mounded. To do this, maintaining a temperature under the dish that can create a boil, but excludes burning, you need to make several holes in the layer of rice with a stick or the handle of a wooden spoon, all the way to the bottom of the dish, so that liquid collects in the holes. If it is transparent, it means that it is fat without any remaining moisture and the rice can be collected in a mound and placed on the stand. If the liquid is cloudy, it means there is still moisture in the fat and it needs to be evaporated. Excess and even the presence of moisture in rice, which has practically cooked and become elastic, during the process of soaking the rice, let’s say, “digest” it and disrupt the overall consistency of the future pilaf. I repeat, excess moisture should be removed only if the rice is almost cooked.
4. Often, errors in the proportions of oil (fats) in relation to other products when preparing pilaf lead to the fact that the pilaf is either “dry” or extremely fatty. It is very difficult to “calculate” the exact amount of fat with insufficient experience, especially when you consider that different varieties of rice have different coefficients of moisture and fat absorption. Therefore, I advise, especially if used durum varieties rice, add fat a little more than the basic values, since excess fat can always be removed during cooking, but its deficiency is almost impossible to compensate. A more or less clear “picture” of the optimal ratio of fat to other products is given by the final stage of preparing pilaf - the stage of preparing rice for cooking. To do this, you need to level the surface of the rice and make sure that the surface is dry and free of fat. Then, in the very middle of the surface, use a tablespoon to make a hole - about a centimeter to one and a half centimeters deep. If the bottom of the hole is slightly filled with fat, the optimal amount of oil has been chosen; if there is no fat, the pilaf will turn out “dry” and this error will need to be taken into account for the future. If there is clearly too much fat and it comes to the surface of the rice layer, you should arm yourself with a ladle and, pushing the rice layer in the middle, try to grab the excess fat with the ladle and remove it.
BY THE WAY
“Yesterday’s” pilaf can be made “today’s”
Well-cooked pilaf in itself is not bad even the next day - after heating. And yet he is a little “not the same” as the day before. Recently I was able to spot a method that seems to return yesterday’s pilaf to its original taste and aroma. I liked this method and already applied it to my “yesterday’s pilaf”. Try it if you have a chance.
They do it this way (per serving). First, half the middle onion head is finely crumbled.
The part of the pilaf that needs to be heated is transferred to a frying pan, the onion is mixed with the pilaf and the dish is heated over high heat for several minutes (with gentle stirring). Then the temperature is reduced to a minimum, the dishes are tightly covered with a lid and left for 15 minutes.
The second half of the onion can be used for a small salad with tomatoes. That's the whole method.
MORE BY THE WAY
About pilaf mythology, or about harmful and funny stereotypes that have arisen around the preparation of pilaf
In the early eighties, my student newspaper practice took place mainly where I grew up - in the Fergana Valley. This was convenient for me for a number of reasons. Firstly, at the very least, I came home from Moscow. Secondly, the then editor of Andijanskaya Pravda, where I was “seconded,” was a good friend of my father, and in a sense, I had a free man. Thirdly, (why freeman was important to me) I specialized in ethnology, ethnopolitical science and interethnic relations, and, therefore, I was allowed to work on my chosen topic, practically without involvement in the editorial turnover, with trips to regions that went beyond the influence regional party newspaper, and so on and so forth.
Why am I talking about this? And besides, in those years (maybe it still exists, I don’t know) competitions of pilaf cooks (oshpoz) were very common, in which, due to my specialization at that time, I simply could not help but participate. This action usually took place either in recreation areas or in large teahouses - where special hearths were equipped with 8-10 boilers, located in a circle under one roof with a central chimney. Each of the 8-10 oshpoz, of course, created a Fergana version of pilaf (devzira-palov, kavurma-palov, etc. - there are a lot of local names), the prepared dishes were brought to the guests, and they appreciated them - accompanied by jokes, jokes and vodka, of course , – quality of prepared pilaf.
And again - why am I talking about this? And besides, I know about pilaf not from books or from someone’s words, and not even from observing the real masters of this craft directly in the Fergana Valley, participating in oshpoz competitions and even once taking one of the prize places. I know about pilaf, knowing the realities of the historical homeland of pilaf. And, knowing the realities, I can well talk about the many myths bordering on shamanism that have arisen around the preparation of this dish. Shamanism and myths are not as harmless as they might seem at first glance. Not only do they produce mediocre recipes for very mediocre pilaf, which are perceived by the inexperienced public as basic. Mythology simply slaps many people in the face and instead of pilaf on their festive tables Pathetic parodies of pilaf appear, after which you simply don’t want to start preparing this dish.
Let's look at these myths, and, having sorted them out, let's forget about their existence.
The first myth is that proper pilaf can only be prepared in a cauldron, and only a cast iron one, for which you need to play tricks with this very cauldron accordingly. Otherwise, as they say, there will be no luck.
It would be foolish to expect from the authors of books dedicated to pilaf in particular and Uzbek cuisine in general that they will offer to cook pilaf in any utensil that comes to hand. Yes, a cauldron, especially a cast iron one, is the most optimal and most convenient “container” for preparing pilaf, especially if the pilaf is cooked over a fire and the cauldron is installed correctly. Optimal, but by no means resolving the issue of the “correctness” of pilaf, much less resolving the issue of choosing dishes. For anyone who cooks pilaf regularly (once or twice a month, because pilaf from being healthy can easily turn into a dish that is the opposite of healthy), and at a fire, there is a reason to get a cauldron - either cast iron or duralumin (there is a difference between them, but not so mythologically monstrous). But what should someone do who does this much less often, on major holidays, and not on a fire, but, say, on an electric stove and does not want to have a heavy 8-liter container on the kitchen shelf? Or goes to someone to “make pilaf”, but there is no cauldron there? Dry the oars? After all, proper pilaf can only be cooked in a cauldron?
As an argument, I could give my own example of cooking more than proper pilaf in an ordinary (admittedly steel) pan, and my homemade aluminum cauldron with a wide flat bottom and almost vertical walls (I have an electric stove) is more of a pan than a cauldron. But this argument, of course, will not work. Therefore, let's see: what, in fact, can prevent the preparation of good pilaf not in a cauldron.
Basic technological stages The preparation of pilaf is, of course, known to everyone. This is a) frying seeds, meat, onions and carrots, b) forming a zirvak (sauce) and then stewing the roast in it, and c) boiling rice in a zirvak and finally cooking it under dam (steam), which is also called boiling the rice and which is described in quite detail by the classics of cooking. All these stages can be easily combined either in one vessel (steel pan, thin- or thick-walled, in a wok and in another suitable container) or separated by frying in a large frying pan and continuing all other steps in a steel pan.
Of course, using non-traditional utensils for pilaf will require more careful control of the temperature (we are not talking about the fire method of cooking pilaf in a saucepan) and other manipulations with both the equipment and the stove. But we assume that the “gasket” between the slotted spoon (kapgir) and the dishes is a fully accomplished cook. Because, I’m afraid, even a five-star cast iron cauldron won’t help a poor cook. Thus, the statement that good pilaf can only be prepared in a cast iron cauldron is a myth.
The second myth, which says that real and correct pilaf is made exclusively with fat tail fat.
This myth most likely “grew” from ignorance of the true Uzbek realities, which, alas, developed during the years of Soviet power (as a Marxist I sprinkle ashes on my head) - there is no need to go deeper into earlier periods. Paradoxical as it may seem, in Uzbekistan it was sometimes easier (and cheaper) to buy fat tail fat than cottonseed oil, which, by the way, is of lousy quality. For the kishlak people, vegetable oil (cotton oil, there were no others) was sometimes considered a luxury, especially since not every general store had it. But lard - fresh or melted - was much more accessible.
I’m not saying that this was a universal phenomenon, although once upon a time people went to Moscow to buy sausage – for some reason it was not available in the periphery. But the fact took place. And pilaf cooked in pure fat tail fat was very common. But it was widespread not because fat-tailed pilaf is correct and the best, but because sometimes there was no choice (I won’t go into the exoticism associated with zigirög (specially prepared linseed oil) for now).
From personal feelings from pilaf cooked in pure fat tail fat. It freezes almost before our eyes, although there is more than forty degrees of heat around and no degrees inside (well, maybe two or three bowls). It's hard on the stomach. It (sorry) guarantees a not-so-pleasant burp the entire next day. “Fat tail is worse than fatty meat; it is poorly digested” - This is Abu Ali Ibn Sina (“Canon of Medical Science”, book two, p. 379.)
And I’ll end with a quote from the modern classic of piping - Karim Makhmudov (“Pilaf for every taste” according to the 1987 edition, p. 25): “An excess amount of fat can greatly hinder the development of the wonderful bouquet of aroma of these products (meaning cumin, barberry and others, including seasonal components of pilaf - my note). In fatty pilaf you cannot properly feel the heat of capsicum and its unique aroma; the feeling of normal saltiness is also lost in it.”
Can you make pilaf with pure fat tail fat low-fat? Then I will come to you, if you allow me :) But seriously: the statement that proper pilaf is cooked only with pure fat tail fat is a myth.
Myth three, which says that before preparing pilaf, vegetable oil must be heated to a bluish haze and that for proper pilaf you need to use only cottonseed oil.
I have already mentioned cottonseed oil above. Anyone who has ever dealt with this oil will not let you lie: the worst vegetable oil in existence should have yet been invented. Even in a well-cleaned, refined and deodorized version, this oil feels like cotton – with a characteristic rancid taste, a bouquet of sour tones and undertones that only intensify after heating. Why in the historical homeland of pilaf almost all existing frying was carried out only on it, I think, is understandable: cotton is a local crop, so the oil from its seeds was and remains (even now) the most accessible, including in terms of availability and price. Largely “thanks to” the disgusting quality of this product, before preparing the pilaf it was heated up strongly - until the aforementioned bluish haze, in order to somehow soften the taste of the oil and make it less pronounced. Moreover, again, in order to remove unpleasant odors and tastes, the oil was flavored with animal fats or by frying onions in it.
These techniques, often associated exclusively with the correction of the taste of a particular oil, later migrated to the pilaf literature in the form of a mandatory technique when preparing pilaf, regardless of the oils and fats used. Well, the literature surrounding the pilaf has already given rise to further myth-making regarding the “blue haze” and cottonseed oil, without which the pilaf is “not real.”
I will not dwell on what happens to oils and fats after they are heated up, how they change chemical composition and how dangerous it is for health - those interested in this question, I think, will find where to look for the answer. A sense of proportion is necessary in everything, and the oil should be heated only to values that ensure the initial intensive frying of the products, but not to a “blue haze.” And secondly: if there is something to choose from existing refined and suitable for frying oils - be it sunflower, corn or olive - you should not fall into a falsely understood authenticity and rush in search of the worst option (and for such, cottonseed oil is already imported, and by no means non-cotton regions).
Thus, the statement that proper pilaf can be prepared only with cottonseed oil and that any oil for pilaf should be overheated is a myth, and a harmful myth.
Myth four: rice, after placing it in a zirvak and during subsequent cooking, should under no circumstances be mixed until the pilaf is fully cooked, especially with meat and vegetables. Otherwise, the rice will cook unevenly.
Not only the myth-makers, but also the classics of cooking speak about the undesirability of “pulling” rice after putting it in a zirvak, although, to be precise, the classics do not insist on this undesirability, while the myth-makers fiercely advocate the inviolability of rice (of course, they do not mean pilafs that are cooked separately or if the point of serving pilaf is to make it look like a layer cake).
One can understand the classics: in Uzbek cuisine there are dishes that are prepared similarly to pilaf (some types of mashkichiri, for example, or shavli), where mixing rice with other ingredients is not only desirable, but also mandatory. And nothing out of the ordinary happens with a dish in which rice is the main component. The rice cooks quite evenly and does not stick together (if this is provided for by the technology, as, for example, in crumbly mashkichiri). At what point, excuse me, could unwanted metamorphoses with rice occur in pilaf?
Any reasonable explanation for this can hardly be found among the myth-makers, who are blinded by the inviolability of the myth they themselves invented. It's a pity! Mainly, the technique that excludes mixing rice with zirvak is a tribute to tradition or, let’s say, culinary culture, which, of course, did not arise out of nowhere, but was largely dictated by the conditions for preparing pilaf. One of the main conditions in the context of the mentioned tradition is a special temperature regime, special because the pilaf is cooked over a fire and in a properly installed cauldron. Given these conditions, especially if they are created correctly, the rice really does not need any stirring.
The situation, however, changes dramatically if the pilaf is cooked on a gas or electric stove, and the cauldron is not only not adapted to this, but also experiences heat loss (we don’t even need to talk about the size of the cauldron and the large amount of pilaf). If the rice, at least partially stirring it, is not “helped” to reach the desired temperature and the uniformity of its cooking is not ensured, it will be partially cooked a priori, but partially it will remain half-raw. And no amount of reproach can bring him to condition. And if it does, then that part of the rice that has managed to cook may turn out to be overcooked.
Therefore, unconditional adherence to the myth-makers’ statements that in “proper pilaf” the rice is not stirred, can lead to the fact that the pilaf itself turns out to be conditionally edible, and the mood of your guests will be spoiled.
(Not everyone can be called classic)
Let me make a reservation right away that my recipe does not claim to be the most “correct” and most original. I am a Russian woman and have never lived in Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, or anywhere else, where each family has its own recipes for “the most correct pilaf in the world.” It’s just that out of many methods I chose for myself the simplest, fastest and least complicated. Therefore, anyone who wants to know how pilaf is prepared “for real” is not for me, but for example here - http://blog.kp.ru/users/geroma/post147781131/?upd. I cook pilaf, so to speak, in Russian. It is very tasty, crumbly, moderately fatty, in general - just what you need!
So, I take any meat - pork, beef, lamb, duck or chicken. I make whatever I have in the refrigerator. Today I have chicken pilaf.
Important! The utensils for pilaf must be correct - a cauldron or a duck pot or something like that. I have this wok - an expensive German vessel, with a special titanium coating, only 8 cm high (including the convex lid), but large in diameter, with a capacity of 4.8 liters.
Ingredients:
Half a (rather large) chicken
3 large onions,
3 large carrots
800 g rice (Krasnodar, round)
About 2/3 cup odorless vegetable oil
Salt, pepper to taste
Cooking:
Cut the chicken into small portions.
Chop the onion as you like, but relatively finely; I cut it into medium cubes.
Separately, grate the carrots into small strips or on a Korean grater; you can also use a regular coarse grater, which is what I did today (the carrots were a little limp and I didn’t torture them).
Rinse the rice thoroughly in several stages.
Put a full kettle of water, we will need boiling water.
Pour a lot of vegetable oil into the cauldron (who has what), approximately as I indicated - 2/3 cup, put it on medium gas and wait until the oil warms up. To do this, I throw an onion feather there and watch when it actively bubbles in the oil. When the oil is hot enough, put our meat in it and, stirring, fry it until golden brown.
Then add the onion and, continuing to stir so that the onion does not burn, continue to fry everything together until the onion is slightly golden brown.
Then add carrots and mix.
At first, the carrots will absorb almost all the oil, don’t be alarmed - this is necessary, very soon they will give it back. Not as much as I took, but it will be noticeable. And it will be much faster than frying the onions, so don’t go anywhere!
I definitely mix it all, at this moment I add salt, a little pepper and sometimes add raisins or barberries. Today I did classic version, without additives.
Now we need hot water(the hotter the better), I often pour boiling water directly over 2-2.5 cm, and not over 2 fingers, as is often written. 2 fingers is almost 4 cm, too much water.
I stir and wait for it to boil, the faster the better, that’s why you need boiling water. The goal is for the rice to absorb water as quickly as possible, without having time to give up the starch.
Let it all boil on a fairly large gas, the main thing is that it does not spill over the edge. I stir and still don’t go anywhere. Rice takes up water very quickly and when there is almost no water on the surface, something like this,
Reduce the gas to the minimum possible, close the lid tightly and do not touch for 15 minutes.
We open the lid and try, if suddenly it happens that you didn’t add water (like my husband last time, I took a photo on purpose because this happens extremely rarely for me) and the rice is almost ready, then we make these holes until bottom (5-7 pieces over the entire surface), I made them directly with a spoon and pour boiling water into it, strictly only into the holes! Close the lid and do not touch the pilaf for another 10-15 minutes on the same minimum heat. He'll come in a couple.
That's it, my pilaf is ready! As you can see, there is nothing complicated, writing takes longer than doing.
It is done very quickly, about 30 minutes.
I'll say one more thing about color. Carrots come in different varieties, but this time mine was not very bright, which is why the pilaf is a bit pale. It usually comes in a beautiful orange color.
And if you do all this without meat, you get a great side dish - stewed rice, I make it very often.
Bon Appetit everyone!
A hearty second course of rice with meat.
- 1000 g meat (see below)
- 700 g rice (long grain)
- 600 g carrots
- 400 g onion
- 200 ml vegetable oil
- 1 tbsp. l. barberry
- 1 tbsp. l. cumin (cumin)
- 1 tsp. turmeric (without slide)
- 1-3 heads of garlic
- salt
- pepper
Preparation:
Rinse the rice several times cold water to wash away all the starch (the water should drain clear at the end). Pour in cold water and leave while everything else is prepared.
Cut the onion into thin half rings.
Cut the carrots into medium cubes.
Cut the meat into pieces (rather large).
In a large, thick-bottomed saucepan (or cauldron), heat about half the vegetable oil well. Add the onion and fry for about 5 minutes until translucent and lightly golden.
Add meat, fry with active stirring, for about 5 minutes.
Add the rest of the oil, add the carrots, fry for about 5-10 minutes.
Add barberry, cumin (I rub it with my fingers to release the aroma).
Also add turmeric, salt and pepper well.
Stir, pour in about a glass of boiling water so that the meat is slightly uncovered.
Insert the garlic heads, peeled from the outer layer of peel. Simmer over low heat, covered, for about 30-50 minutes or until the meat is completely soft (be sure to check this moment).
Carefully, so as not to disturb the layer of rice, pour boiling water from the kettle so that the rice is covered with water by 2 cm (do not stir). Add some more salt.
Cook for about 10-15 minutes over low heat (during this time, most of the water will be absorbed into the rice).
Then make several holes with the handle of a spoon to allow steam to escape, close the lid and cook until cooked for about 15-20 minutes.
Please note that during the process of preparing pilaf, we absolutely do not stir it, that’s when you will get real pilaf, and not rice porridge with meat.
Gently stir the finished pilaf, literally in two or three movements, from bottom to top, just enough to barely mix the rice with the meat. Or, if it is expected that a large number of people will eat the pilaf at once, attach a large deep dish to the pan, and in one sharp movement turn the pilaf onto the dish (the meat will be on top).
Pilaf is a self-sufficient dish; you can only serve it with fresh tomato salad and hot tea.
Hearty, crumbly, aromatic and very tasty pilaf will pleasantly warm the stomachs and souls of your loved ones or guests, and thereby create an atmosphere of mutual understanding and kindness in your home!
Uzbek pilaf is not just a name, but a real national food brand - like, for example, Provencal cabbage, Siberian dumplings, Gurian lobio and so on. The aroma of spices, the unique consistency of the pilaf, where the rice is both crumbly and slightly sticky, the delicious taste - this is all about Uzbek pilaf. Although to be precise, there are many varieties of this dish. It is prepared in its own way in Tashkent and Bukhara, Samarkand and Andijan. Nevertheless, there are several common ideas that unite all types of Uzbek pilaf. We will tell you how to prepare real Uzbek pilaf while maintaining all the traditional cooking features.
In addition to the fact that it is prepared differently in different areas, there are also traditions of preparing pilaf from different components. In Uzbekistan, you can find wedding pilaf and pilaf with dolma, dried fruits and other ingredients. However, Russians are accustomed to the classic Uzbek pilaf, which is prepared from rice, meat with carrots and onions. This is what we will talk about.
In Uzbek pilaf, the meat can be different, even chicken, but classic recipe suggests lamb or beef.
But here are the differences that are characteristic of this particular pilaf:
- carrots are taken not orange, but yellow;
- meat and vegetables are simmered in a sauce called zirvak, and then combined with rice and cooked all together;
- Vegetable oil is used, but usually the dish is enriched using a mixture of different oils. It can be sunflower, sesame or nut;
- lamb pilaf is prepared using fat tail fat combined with vegetable oil;
- Proportions are strictly observed - carrots and meat are taken in equal quantities, and there should be approximately the same amount of rice.
Important! The choice of rice is an important point. For traditional pilaf, you should not spare time and find the real rice that Uzbeks use to prepare pilaf - this is devzira rice, long-grain and transparent. It will not turn into porridge and will not be dry; this rice steams perfectly, increasing greatly in volume.
Real Uzbek pilaf in a cauldron with lamb
A cauldron is used for cooking - it can be either on the fire or on a regular stove. The thick cast-iron walls of the cauldron retain heat for a long time, and quick and uniform heating of all the walls of the cookware ensures that the dish turns out to be the most delicious and aromatic. Perfect option- a copper outdoor cauldron on an open fire, but if there is no such thing, then a heavy cast iron cauldron-saucepan will do. The vessel must have a well-fitting lid so that the pilaf simmers covered for as long as possible.
You will need:
- kilogram of rice;
- kilogram of carrots;
- 4 large onions;
- 2 liters of water;
- vegetable oil 300 g;
- salt, pepper, cumin and other spices to taste, a head of garlic.
And here’s what the step-by-step preparation of pilaf looks like:
- Place the rice under running water to rinse. It is very important to rinse the rice until the liquid is transparent, so that not a trace of rice flour remains, then it will be crumbly and at the same time moderately sticky.
- Meanwhile, cut the lamb into cubes, cut the carrots into medium-sized strips about 1 cm thick. Cut the onion into half rings, taking three heads.
- Heat a cauldron and put oil in it. Uzbek pilaf is always quite fatty; cooks pour two glasses of vegetable oil into a five-liter cauldron, adding fat tail fat to it. If there is no fat, and you are not a fan of excessively fatty foods, then you can limit yourself to less oil. This recipe uses 300 g. To check if the oil is well heated, throw in a little dry salt. It starts to crackle - it's ready.
- Place the washed and dried remaining onion in hot oil and fry it directly in the husk until black. After that, take it out and throw it away. The point of frying this way is so that the oil is saturated with the intensely fried taste of the onion.
- Add chopped onion to oil and fry until dark golden brown. This will take about seven minutes, after which add pieces of meat to the onion and quickly fry them until evenly browned.
- Add carrots and continue frying for another three minutes without stirring. Then mix everything and fry for another 10 minutes with constant stirring.
- Pour in a little boiling water, pepper, salt (about two level tablespoons of salt) and add spices. Uzbek spices are cumin (1 tsp), barberry (2 tsp), a pinch of turmeric or saffron for color.
- As soon as the meat is almost ready (you need to bring it until soft), add the rice and smooth it out with a slotted spoon. Stick in an unpeeled head of garlic. If the heads are small, then two are possible. Add the rest of the boiling water, bring to a boil and leave over low heat until the rice has absorbed all the water.
- When the rice is almost ready, collect it in a cauldron in a mound, pierce it in several places with the handle of a slotted spoon to allow steam to escape, and then cover with a lid and let it cook over low heat or wrapped in a warm blanket. You can put the dishes under the pillow. But the best option- this is Uzbek-style pilaf in a cauldron standing directly in the oven when the boiler is built into the firebox. Then its hot walls will retain all the necessary heat.
- Before serving, the contents of the cauldron are mixed, placed on plates and sprinkled with finely chopped cilantro.
Important! The classic way to serve pilaf in the East is with a salad of thinly sliced tomatoes and onions. Vegetables, as a rule, are not seasoned with anything other than salt and freshly ground black pepper.
Uzbek pilaf with beef
Of course, the best pilaf is lamb. It has a special oriental aroma and delicate taste. However, as true Muslims, Uzbeks avoid pork, but respect beef. Uzbek pilaf with beef can be made with lamb flavor if you add a little fat tail fat.
The Uzbek version with beef is prepared from the following products:
- meat - 0.8 kg, including a small piece on the bone;
- rice - 0.6 kg;
- half a kilo of onion;
- carrots - 0.6 kg;
- vegetable oil and tail fat - 250 g in total;
- spices - salt, pepper, cumin;
- garlic.
Finely chopped pieces of fat tail fat are heated in a cauldron, the cracklings are collected and discarded. Place the meat with the bone and fry until deeply browned. Next, oil is added, heated, and then everything proceeds in the same way as in the previous recipe. This pilaf is slightly different in proportions; it is also called Fergana pilaf.
Uzbek pilaf with pork
Pilaf with pork is, rather, a Russian derivative of the famous Uzbek one. However, the dish turns out no worse than the classic version.
To prepare, you will need 700 g of pork, onions and rice, 300 g of carrots and 200 g of vegetable oil. Fry the pulp cut into pieces in oil, add chopped carrots and onions, fry well and then simmer with a little water. Place long-grain rice, pre-washed, into the prepared zirvak. Salt and pepper. Add bay leaf (optional) and spices you like. Pour two fingers of boiling water over the rice and cook covered.
How to cook with chicken?
You can also make Uzbek pilaf with chicken - this is the fastest and most win-win dish. In equal quantities we take rice, carrots and chicken breast 3 x 500 g. Onions are enough 300 g. Spices are taken to taste, but usually it is pepper, cumin, you can also take ready-made seasoning for pilaf.
In a cauldron in hot oil (1 cm at the bottom), first fry the chopped onion until golden brown, then add the chicken, cut into small pieces. If you don’t have breast, then meat from the chakhokhbili kit or any other chicken meat will do. Cover the fried chicken with coarsely grated carrots and simmer for another 15 minutes, then add washed rice, salt and pepper, add spices and the whole head of garlic. Pour boiling water over two fingers over the rice and simmer until done. Wrap the pilaf well and leave for another forty minutes.