I prepared this pulao for Diwali and it turned out awesome. It is a very simple and quick recipe of pulao with minimal spices but tastes really good.
Ingredients:
1 cup basmati rice,
2 small onions; halved and thinly sliced,
2 small carrots; diced into 1″ long pieces,
1 cup shelled green peas,
3-4 bay leaves (tejpatta),
4-5 cloves (laung),
8-10 peppercorns (kalimirch),
2-3 cinnamon (dalchini) sticks,
4 green cardamom (chhoti elaichi)
1/2 tsp caraway seeds (shahjeera),
1 tsp cumin seeds (jeera),
Salt to taste,
2 1/2 cups water,
3-4 tbsp ghee (homemade butter).
Method:
Wash the rice and set it aside till you prepare the vegetables.
Melt ghee in a large deep pan or a pressure cooker/pan on medium flame. Add the bay leaves, peppercorns, cloves, cinnamon and fry for 30 seconds. Now add shahjeera, jeera, onion and saute till it turns transparent (not brown). Then add carrots and green peas. Cover and cook for 2-3 minutes. Then uncover, add washed rice, mix well. Add water (2 1/2 cups if you are cooking in an open pan or 2 cups in a pressure cooker/pan) and salt, stir well and cover and cook (for open pan; cook for around 15-20 minutes by stirring at intervals or pressure cook upto 2 whistles). Serve hot with dum aloo, kofta curry, any vegetable curry or dal tadka.