Rice Delight: Five Unconventional Ingredients That Will Make Plov Fantastic
Plov is a hearty and popular dish all over the world, the recipe for which originated in eastern countries before our era. There are thousands of recipes for making plov. It is usually made from rice and meat, but there are exceptions.
On December 1, 2016, the Uzbek and Tajik versions of plov were contributed to the UNESCO Intangible Heritage List.
Mussels
The basis for pilaf can be not only meat, but also seafood. Pilaf with mussels is unusual, but very appetizing. Mussels will add tenderness to the pilaf, and such a dish will definitely become the highlight of the festive table and surprise your guests.
To prepare mussel pilaf you will need:
- Long grain rice - 200 g
- Mussels in shells - 500 g
- Tomato - 2 pcs
- Carrots - 2 pcs.
- Bell pepper - 1 pc.
- Onion - 2 pcs.
- Garlic - 1 head
- Vegetable and ghee - 2 tablespoons each
- Fish broth - 150 ml
- Parsley or other herbs to taste
- Salt, pepper and other spices to taste
To prepare mussel pilaf, heat two types of oil in a saucepan or multicooker bowl, then add the vegetables cut into strips: onion, pepper and carrot. While the vegetables are frying, grate the tomatoes and add the resulting mass to the vegetables. Then add the spices and stir. After stewing the vegetables for a while, pour the rice into the saucepan.
The next stage of preparation is adding cleaned and washed mussels. Rice with mussels and vegetables should be poured with hot fish broth, then add chopped garlic, salt and pepper the pilaf. All ingredients are added, it remains to slowly simmer the pilaf over medium heat until the rice is fully cooked.
You can also use frozen mussels without shells. They should be defrosted before cooking.
Red fish
Fish pilaf can both decorate a festive table and become a wonderful part of the Lenten menu. To prepare such pilaf, you need to take a piece of salmon or other red fish, your favorite vegetables, spices and, of course, rice.
Ingredients:
- Red fish - 200-300 g
- Rice - 200 g
- Onion, carrot, red pepper - 1 each
- Vegetable oil - 1 tbsp.
- Salt, pepper, spices to taste
Wash the rice and cut the vegetables into strips or cubes. Heat the oil in a frying pan and fry the fish pieces. It will take only a few minutes to cook. Transfer the finished fish to a plate and sprinkle with spices.
Take a saucepan and fry the vegetables in it, stirring them constantly. After 7-10 minutes, add the rice and stir. Pour two or three glasses of boiling water here and cook the rice over low heat until done, adding salt and pepper to the pilaf. When the water is absorbed, put the fish in the container and cook the pilaf for another five minutes. Before serving, carefully stir the pilaf, trying not to spoil the shape of the fish.
Chicken liver
Another non-standard recipe for pilaf, for the preparation of which you will need these products:
- Rice - 200 g
- Chicken liver - 250 g
- Onion - 1 pc.
- Vegetable oil and butter - 1 tablespoon each
- Salt, pepper and spices to taste
To prepare this pilaf, cut the liver into small pieces. Heat butter and vegetable oil in a saucepan, fry the onion until golden brown. Then add the pre-prepared liver to the onion and fry for about two to three minutes until golden brown. Salt and pepper the liver. Now add the washed rice and stir the dish gently. Pour boiling water over the pilaf so that it slightly covers the rice. Cook the pilaf on low heat until the rice is ready. If desired, you can add any vegetables to the recipe.
Pumpkin
A wonderful option for vegetarian pilaf is pilaf with pumpkin and dried fruits.
To prepare this pilaf you will need:
- Rice - 200-300 g
- Pumpkin - 200 g
- Onion - 1 pc.
- Carrots - 2 pcs.
- Dried apricots, raisins - 100-150 g each
- Vegetable oil - 2 tbsp.
- Salt, pepper, spices to taste
To prepare pilaf, rinse the rice. Then pour vegetable oil into a saucepan. When it heats up, start frying chopped onion, carrot and pumpkin cubes. Pour a glass of boiling water into the container, add salt and spices. Add rinsed raisins and dried apricots to the future pilaf. Then add rinsed rice. Cook the pilaf until the rice has completely absorbed the water.
Apples
Plov can be not only salty, but also sweet. Anyone who has not yet tried this variation of plov should appreciate its taste. Apples will add a pleasant sourness to such plov.
Ingredients for sweet pilaf:
- Rice - 200-300 g
- Apple - 2 pcs.
- Raisins - 100 g
- Cashews or other nuts - 50 g
- Cloves, cinnamon, cardamom - to taste
- Vegetable oil - 2 tbsp.
- Sugar - 200 g
To prepare sweet pilaf with apples, first add sugar to 200 ml of water and cook sugar syrup. Then wash the rice and peel and core the apples. Cut the apples into cubes. Mix the washed raisins with chopped nuts.
Fry cloves, cinnamon and cardamom in a saucepan in heated oil. After 2-3 minutes, add rice and mix everything. Pour a glass of boiled water over the rice and cook for about 10 minutes. When the rice is halfway done, add apples, raisins and nuts to the saucepan. Pour sugar syrup over the pilaf and cook until the rice is fully done.
Bon appetit!!!
