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04/16/08 |
                
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Basmati Rice Pilaf Yields a lot. 2 c. basmati rice 6 oz. golden raisins 4 oz. pine nuts, toasted 2 ea. Pink Lady apples, small dice 1 t. turmeric 5 ea. basil leaves, chiffonade 1/4 c. brewed coffee (make it strong, yo) 2 ea. cloves 1 T. butter 1/2 c. lychee liqueur water salt & white pepper to taste
Bring 2 c. water to a boil, add raisins, cloves and coffee. Cover with plastic wrap and leave out until this rest of this endeavour is done.
Rinse rice at least three times. Cover with water up to your first knuckle on your pointer finger (just trust me, okay?). Add turmeric and place over high heat until water starts to boil. When a boil is reached, turn heat to med-low and continue to cook stirring every so often until the rice is almost done. Keep just the slightest bit of crunch in the center of the grain.
Melt butter in a sauté pan over medium-high heat, add apples and toss for a few minutes. Basically, we're just softening the apples, so this is mostly practice for your awesome "tossing stuff in a pan" talents you can show off to your significant other later. Deglaze with liqueur (watch the fire, okay?), add in the pine nuts and set aside.
When rice is finished cooking, drain the macerating liquid from the raisins and mix the whole lot together in some manner of huge bowl. Add the apple/nuts mixture and the basil. Season to taste with S&P, and this stuff can go either savory or sweet depending on this step. I love versatility. Put everything into your walk-in...er, I mean "refrigerator" and let set until chilled. Makes an excellent base for a variety of dishes, or is good as a snack by itself.
Note from GG: Basmati rice is fun because it's not very glutinous. It's about the best pilaf/salad rice out there, and here's what I came up with while using it. I'd like to give shout outs to my babes Dianne and Anja at Mulleady's, who always bring in stuff for me to cook. They preface this with little more than "Make it delicious and vegetarian," and let my bizarre little mind go crazy. Granted, this is a pretty mundane recipe, but it can be used for SO much. Also, if you can't find any lychee liqueur at your local Asian grocery, feel free to substitute a bit of Amaretto, as the flavour is pretty close. In case you're wondering why this recipe is in the "Asian" section, it's 'cuz basmati rice is mostly from India. Deal.
This site was last updated 12/20/06 |
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