Jeera Rice (Cumin Rice) and Soybean Korma

Hello friends,

Of all sorts of pilaf, jeera rice has always been one of my favourites. The subtle aroma of cumin along with the overall lightness of the popular Indian dish makes it an ideal accompaniment for any spicy side-dish.

My chosen side-dish for today was soybean korma. Korma is historically a Middle-Eastern dish. It is a rich curry made of yogurt, cashew-paste etc. It has been indianised and is featured regularly in the menu cards of most restaurants serving Mughlai cuisine.

Soybean korma is however, much rarer.

Trust me, even those who are scrunching their noses at the name of Nutrela or soybean, would absolutely love this preparation.

So, here we go:

Jeera Rice

Ingredients:

2 cups of good quality Basmati rice

4 cups of water

1 heaped teaspoon of cumin seeds

2 bay leaves

2 cloves

1 cardamom

1 inch stick of cinnamon

4/5 whole black pepper

4 green chillies (optional)

1 sprig of coriander

1 teaspoon of lime juice

2 tablespoon clarified butter (ghee)

1 teaspoon vegetable oil (or any flavourless oil)

Salt to taste 

Preparation:

Wash Basmati rice and soak for half an hour. Try not to stir the rice much. Basmati rice is very delicate and if you handle it roughly or stir it around too much there are possibilities of breakage. 

Heat ghee (clarified butter) and oil together in a heavy-bottomed pan/kadai/dutch oven which has enough room for the rice to fluff up. Add the whole garam masala (clove, cinnamon, cardamom, whole black pepper and bay leaves). Add the cumin seeds. Roast on medium heat. Don't let them burn. Here is where you need to follow your nose closely. The moment the aroma of cumin comes out, add the chillies and the drained rice. Lightly toast the rice, stirring gently with a spatula. Add salt, and most of the chopped coriander leaves (leaving some of it for garnishing). After a couple of minutes, pour in the water. The measurement of rice and water should always be 1:2. So for two cups of rice, you need to add four cups of water.

This is one of those rare cases that you absolutely cannot substitute water with chicken stock to enhance the flavour. Please don't! The rice is plenty flavourful and chicken stock will completely undermine the delicate flavour of cumin which is the whole point of this particular pilaf.

Crank up the heat. Cover the lid (if your lid doesn't have a steam escape hole then don't cover it fully). Bring it to boil. Now lower the heat and let it simmer for around ten minutes. Keep an eye on it for it doesn't take a long time to cook Basmati. After ten minutes, remove the lid and check. Again, do not disturb the rice. Gently move it a bit from the side with the help of your spatula and check how much moisture is there at the bottom. It should be ready within a couple of minutes. Remember the rice at the bottom continues to cook long after you have turned off the heat. So as soon as the rice of the top portion looks done, you should take it off the heat. 

I kept the lid of my kadai slightly askew. It helped the rice to dry out completely and not stick with each other. If the bottom portion still remains sticky, just dig in with your fingers (after it has cooled down of course) and break the clumps with very gentle hands.

Finally, garnish the rice with a little bit of chopped coriander leaves and serve with a side dish.

Soybean Korma

Ingredients:

2 cups of Nutrela soybean 

1/2 cup hung curd (1 cup normal yogurt placed in a piece of clean, cotton cloth and suspended for a couple of hours until the water is drained)

4 large onions (sliced thinly and deep-fried until crisp and brown)

7/8 cashew nuts

1 teaspoon Kashmiri red chilli (or paprika powder)

1/2 teaspoon of red chilli powder (or cayenne pepper powder)

3/4 teaspoon of turmeric powder

1 teaspoon of coriander powder

1 teaspoon of cumin powder

1 teaspoon ginger paste

1 teaspoon garlic paste

1/2 teaspoon of garam masala powder

2 bay leaves

4 cloves

2 cardamom

1 inch stick of cinnamon

4 green chillies (optional)

1 cup of clarified butter/ghee (I know, I know...but you are not making korma everyday and soybean doesn't have any fat)

A few drops of keora water/rose water

1/2 cup of milk

Salt to taste

Preparation:

Boil soybean in water mixed with 1/2 cup milk, one teaspoon of sugar and 1 teaspoon of salt for ten minutes. Drain and press down with the back of a spatula or a potato masher. Let it dry for at least half an hour. The key is to drain the water from the soybean as much as possible.

Blend half a cup of soybean and keep it along with the rest. It would give body to the the gravy.

Beat the hung curd until it reaches a creamy consistency. Soak the cashew nuts for half an hour in water. Blend together brown onion along with cashew and set aside.

Heat a nonstick pan and add clarified butter. Add the bay leaves, cloves, cardamom and cinnamon. Fry until they splutter. Add ginger and garlic paste. Stir for a few minutes and add the dry spices, that is turmeric, chilli powders, coriander and cumin powder. Stir on medium heat for a couple of minutes. Lower the heat and add curd. Mix gently with the spices. You can remove the pan from heat altogether while adding curd. Simmer it on very gentle heat for around three to four minutes or until oil separates from the curd. Add the brown onion paste and mix again. By now the spice mixture should look reddish brown and it should smell cooked. Add the soybean and salt and stir on high heat for three to four minutes. Add half a cup of water and put on the lid. Simmer in gentle heat for five minutes.

Open the lid and stir the korma. it should be done by now. If not, add some more water (very little at a time) and let it cook for five more minutes.

Finally sprinkle a few drops of keora water, garam masala and a tablespoon of clarified butter on top. Put on the lid and let it cook at low flame for two minutes. Take off the heat.

Garnish with coriander leaves (optional) and lemon wedges and serve with rice/naan/pita bread.




Enjoy...... :)