This recipe is part of the Kerala Style Lunch Platter that I had dished out and shared in my earlier post.
I am sure most of you have heard about this lush green state, located in the southern part of India, surrounded by either sea or lakes on all sides and known for its ayurvedic centres and off course it's vibrant, gorgeous, piquant cuisine. It's a very beautiful and culturally rich state which offers a very distinct cuisine of its own. If you are planning to visit India do make it a point to definitely include KERALA in your itenary to experience its rich bounty of spice gardens, freshly caught fishes, delectable food and age old system of rejuvenation through Ayurveda.
Nei Choru is basically rice cooked in Clarified Butter/Ghee sprinkled with an overdose of nuts. It's so fragrant that when it's cooked or served the entire house us enveloped in its aroma. Whenever I have been invited my by Malyali ( People from Kerala are called) friends over for a sumptuous spread of food NEI CHORU is definately present in the Menu. In fact it is so versatile that it can be paired with any meat dish , fish & seafood or Vegeterian curries and taste equally fantastic with each one. I on many lazy days have just paired it with a CUCUMBER YOGURT DIP/RAITA and trust me it tastes yum and very fulfilling.
So go ahead and try this Kerela Style Rice and serve it with any of your curries or mains for your lunch and dinner parties.
RICE INFUSED WITH CLARIFIED BUTTER/GHEE RICE / NEI CHORU RECIPE :
SERVES - 4
CUSINE - INDIAN
TYPE : SIDES / RICE
TIME - 5 MINUTES PREPARATION+ 30 MINUTES COOKING
INGREDIENTS:
1) 2 Cups Long Grain Rice/ Basmati Rice/Biryani Rice
2) 5-6 Tsp Clarified Butter/Ghee
3) 1/2 Cup of chopped Almonds and Pistachios. You can use Cashew Nuts also.
4) 4-5 Pieces of Clove
5) 4-5 Nos. of Black PepperCorns crushed
6) 1/4 Cup Raisins ( I have not used in my NEI CHORU )
7) 2 Tsp Ginger Garlic Paste
8) 1 Juice of Lime
9) 2 Medium sized red/white/yellow Onion sliced ( I have used red)
10) 2 Bay Leaf
11) 2 Green Cardamom
12) 2 Brown Cardamom
13) 4 Cloves
14) 1 1 inch Stick of Cinnamon
15) 1/4 th Cup finely fresh chopped coriander/cilantro
16) 31/2 Cups of Water to cook the rice.
17) Salt to taste
COOK WITH ME IN SIMPLE AND EASY STEPS:
STEP 1:
Wash and clean the rice and keep it aside. In a pan add 1 tsp of clarified butter, add a little of the chopped onions, nuts and raisins and fry it till everything turns a golden brown. Do this on medium heat as you are using a little clarified butter and therefore the ingredients may burn if not careful on high heat. Once done set aside as this is the garnishing of your Rice.
STEP 2:
In a heavy bottom pan pour the remaining clarified butter and add the whole spices, Cloves, Green & Brown Cardamoms after slightly crushing them, Cinnamon, Bayleaf and wait till they all become fragrant and the cloves double in size. Utmost care should be taken not to burn the whole spices cause if they burn they will make your rice odoriferous. Next add the entire remaining onions and sauté them till they become soft and transparent.
STEP 3:
Add crushed Black Peppercorns, Salt and mix. Now add the rice and using your spatula coat each grain nicely with the remaining ingredients in your pan.
STEP 4:
After washing and finely chopping the fresh coriander leaves add them to the pan and give all the ingredients in the pan a couple of hearty mix so that all the ingredients are well incorporated to each other. Pour the measured water into your pan to enable the rice to cook. Cover and Cook the rice till fluffy and well done.
STEP 5:
Once done, open the cover and fluff up the rice with your spatula. Plate the rice in a serving dish and garnish with the golden coloured onions and nuts and raisins, frued and reserved before. Serve piping hot with the Main Dish of your choice or just a yogurt dip/RAITA
INGREDIENTS:
1) 2 Cups Long Grain Rice/ Basmati Rice/Biryani Rice
2) 5-6 Tsp Clarified Butter/Ghee
3) 1/2 Cup of chopped Almonds and Pistachios. You can use Cashew Nuts also.
4) 4-5 Pieces of Clove
5) 4-5 Nos. of Black PepperCorns crushed
6) 1/4 Cup Raisins ( I have not used in my NEI CHORU )
7) 2 Tsp Ginger Garlic Paste
8) 1 Juice of Lime
9) 2 Medium sized red/white/yellow Onion sliced ( I have used red)
10) 2 Bay Leaf
11) 2 Green Cardamom
12) 2 Brown Cardamom
13) 4 Cloves
14) 1 1 inch Stick of Cinnamon
15) 1/4 th Cup finely fresh chopped coriander/cilantro
16) 31/2 Cups of Water to cook the rice.
17) Salt to taste
COOK WITH ME IN SIMPLE AND EASY STEPS:
STEP 1: Wash and clean the rice and keep it aside. In a pan add 1 tsp of clarified butter, add a little of the chopped onions, nuts and raisins and fry it till everything turns a golden brown. Do this on medium heat as you are using a little clarified butter and therefore the ingredients may burn if not careful on high heat. Once done set aside as this is the garnishing of your Rice.
STEP 2: In a heavy bottom pan pour the remaining clarified butter and add the whole spices, Cloves, Green & Brown Cardamoms after slightly crushing them, Cinnamon, Bayleaf and wait till they all become fragrant and the cloves double in size. Utmost care should be taken not to burn the whole spices cause if they burn they will make your rice odoriferous. Next add the entire remaining onions and sauté them till they become soft and transparent.
STEP 3: Add crushed Black Peppercorns and mix. Now add the rice and using your spatula coat each grain nicely with the remaining ingredients in your pan.
STEP 4: After washing and finely chopping the fresh coriander leaves add them to the pan and give all the ingredients in the pan a couple of hearty mix so that all the ingredients are well incorporated to each other. Pour the measured water into your pan to enable the rice to cook. Cover and Cook the rice till fluffy and well done.
STEP 5: Once done, open the cover and fluff up the rice with your spatula. Plate the rice in a serving dish and garnish with the golden coloured onions and nuts and raisins, frued and reserved before. Serve piping hot with the Main Dish of your choice or just a yogurt dip/RAITA
NOTE:
* Different rice varieties require different amount of water to be cooked. If you don't want your rice to be soggy follow the instructions on the rice packet and accordingly use the required quantity of water for best results.
CHECKLIST :
1) BASMATI/LONG GRAIN/ BIRYANI RICE, 2) CLARIFIED BUTTER/GHEE,
3)ALOMONDS/PISTACHIOS/CASHEWNUTS(NUTS OF YOUR CHOICE),
4) CLOVES, 5) BLACK PEPPERCORNS, 6) RAISINS, 7) GINGER GARLIC PASTE, 8) LIME JUICE, 9) ONIONS, 10) BAY LEAF, 11) GREEN CARDAMOM,
12) BROWN CARDAMOM, 13) CLOVES, 14) CINNAMON,
15) FRESH CORIANDER/CILANTRO, 16) WATER, 17) SALT
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