How to cook pilaf: essential ingredients, recipes and cooking tips

2024 Author: Isabella Gilson | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:14

Pilaf is one of the most beloved dishes in Russia. It is served everywhere - from canteens at gas stations to fashionable restaurants, and the importance of this dish for the home table of every housewife can hardly be overestimated. At the same time, the classic pilaf recipes that the Internet is full of differ quite seriously. And the variability of the original versions of the traditional Middle Eastern dish is striking in abundance.

History of origin of the dish

The origin of pilaf is associated with the beginning of rice cultivation in the Middle East and is dated no later than the 2nd-3rd centuries BC. According to one version, the vegetarian version originally appeared in India, and it was supplemented with meat in Persia. One way or another, the descendants of Scheherazade are happy to mythologize the invention of the legendary dish. Here are the most common stories:

• According to the Persian version, the recipe was created by none other than Avicenna, on the instructions of the Great Khan. The dish was intended toto feed warriors on long campaigns, so it had to be easy to prepare, with a high energy value, and the products from which it was created - compact and well stored.
• Another legend connects the appearance of the dish with the name of Timur (Tamerlane), who was given a recipe for crumbly pilaf by a mullah before a military campaign against Ankara.
• The version, which is told to tourists in Samarkand, says that the recipe for pilaf was developed by Ugulbek, the cook of Tamerlane's father.
• There are also less heroic versions that do not contain glorious names. In particular, in Uzbek villages it is believed that pilaf is an invention of peasants grazing cattle in the mountains, because the calorie content and cheapness of food also played a major role for them.

None of the existing versions is practically impossible to either confirm or refute, since the exact biography of pilaf is very difficult to trace, because in every locality from ancient times to the present day there are rules in accordance with which pilaf is prepared. Everything is varied - from ingredients to dishes. In this light, the hypothesis of the simultaneous invention of the dish in several regions of the Middle East at once seems fair.

A Turkish proverb says: There are as many types of pilaf as there are cities in the Muslim world.

Etymology of the word "pilaf"

According to etymological dictionaries, the lexeme "pilaf" is derived from the Turkish "pilav". This borrowing is found in many European languages: the word pilaf is in English, German, Italianand French. By the way, some sources claim a dictionary relationship between pilaf and Spanish paella (a national dish of rice and seafood), but this is erroneous. Despite the coincidence of recipe components, these are two different dishes, the occurrence of which is not connected.

In the dictionaries of the Russian language, pilaf was first mentioned by Dal, who defines it as Tatar or Turkish rice porridge with raisins, notes friability, yellow color (from saffron) and the possibility of adding meat - chicken or lamb.

Today, historical anthropologists conditionally divide the oriental dish into Uzbek and Armenian. And it depends on how the pilaf is prepared: in the first case, all the ingredients are processed together, and in the second - separately.

The benefits and harms of pilaf

Theoretically, the classic ingredients of pilaf - rice, meat and butter - are useful. So, rice contains potassium, which promotes the removal of water from the body, meat is a source of iron, and vegetable oil contains omega-three fatty acids and other beneficial vitamins and minerals. But the fact is that the nuances of recipes called classics, such as adding a lot of s alt and frying fatty meat in oil, can not only negate all the benefits of the dish, but also make it dangerous for the figure and he alth in general.

One way or another, caution should be taken with pilaf in the traditional way for people prone to overweight, suffering from diseases of the heart and blood vessels, as well as the elderly.

Recommendations from nutritionists

If you cannot imagine life without pilaf, but your energy consumption leaves much to be desiredbest, use the following guidelines:

1. Nutritionists have long been saying that white rice does not bring much benefit and advise choosing unpolished, brown or wild varieties - it is in these types that the greatest amount of fiber and vitamins, in particular, group B, which have a beneficial effect on nervous system.



2. We recommend choosing lean meats. Adherents of proper nutrition may limit themselves to turkey and chicken, but beef, lean parts of lamb and even pork are also quite suitable for a he althy table. Offal is also great.
3. To reduce the calorie content of pilaf, you can replace the protein element (meat) with an equivalent product with a lower energy value, for example, mushrooms or Adyghe cheese.

Pilaf calories

As we have already said, the utilitarian reason for the invention of pilaf was the need to develop a recipe that would satisfy the needs of warriors and cattle breeders. Therefore, the high energy value of pilaf is one of the main indicators of the “correctness” of the dish. Of course, the calorie content depends on the ingredients used. Here are approximate calculations of the energy value per 100 g of pilaf with different types of protein products:

• mutton pilaf - 200 kcal;
• beef - 220 kcal;
• from pork - 300 kcal;
• from chicken fillet - 140 kcal;
• from mushrooms - 100-110 kcal.

More accurate calculations can be made if you accurately measure the weight of all the ingredients included in the dish. Don't forget that spices also have energy value.

The best spices for pilaf

Of course, the recipe for a traditional oriental dish cannot do without seasonings and spices. The right bouquet will not only give impeccable taste and aroma to pilaf, but will also affect the appearance, bringing colors and textures to it. In addition, pilaf spices help digestion, which is very important in our case, since we are dealing with a rather heavy and relatively fatty dish!

So, here is a list of the best spices that no housewife can do without if she wants to cook real pilaf:

1. Zira or cumin (do not confuse with cumin) is one of the main and most common spices for pilaf. Bittersweet grains (better to use whole, not ground spice) will set off the taste of meat.
2. Barberry – dried fruits add sourness and freshness to the dish.
3. Saffron is a spicy-burning spice that gives the dish not only spiciness, but also turns it into an appetizing yellow color.
4. Turmeric - like saffron, it is an excellent natural coloring agent, but does not have such a pronounced taste, but it will give the dish a pleasant aroma, which is often associated with Indian cuisine.
5. Pepper is an infrequent companion of Asian pilaf, more often paprika and a black variety of this seasoning are used by Europeans.
6. Garlic is a full and integral part of the "smooth" celebration.
7. Spicy herbs of Provence - rosemary, oregano and others - emphasize the taste of European-style pilaf.
8. Traditional Indian recipe must include butter-fried cinnamon and sandalwood.

Regardless of the choice of spices, the most important condition is that they must be fresh, because only in this case you can be guaranteed to get the expected effect.

Classic pilaf recipe

According to Roskomstat, the most popular in Russia is the so-called Uzbek pilaf - "correct", the ingredients of which are cooked together.

In Uzbekistan, any local resident, when asked how to cook pilaf, will first of all say that an open fire and a special large cauldron are required. But, since not every one of us can boast of the opportunity to go to the open air and conjure over the most correct pilaf, we will adapt the traditional recipe.

Ingredients:

• Lamb or other meat - 1 kg.
• Rice – 200g
• Onion - 4 heads.
• Vegetable oil - 300 ml.
• Garlic - 2 heads
• Carrot - 800g
• Spices (zira, barberry, s alt, pepper, etc.).

First you need to prepare the ingredients: peel the garlic from the husk, but leave the cloves undivided, cut 3 onions into half rings, chop the carrots into strips or cubes.

It is better, of course, to cook pilaf in a cauldron. As an alternative, a large pot is also suitable, in which it is necessary to heat the oil and fry the unpeeled onion until black, then pull it out. Sauté chopped onion until golden, then addlamb, cut into pieces, and fry together until a crust appears. An important point: do not turn down the temperature so that the meat juice remains inside. The key is to keep stirring.

Next, add the carrots and fry for about 3 minutes without stirring; then another 10 minutes, stirring constantly. Pour in boiling water so that the water level is 1 cm higher than the contents. Add pepper, reduce heat and simmer for an hour.

Add the rest of the spices, reduce the heat again and simmer for about 10 minutes. Put well-washed rice, pour boiling water (3 cm above the contents). You can press the garlic heads into the rice at this point, but you can also wait for the water to soak in. After about 30 minutes, make a few punctures in the rice to the meat and cook the pilaf on the stove for another half an hour under the lid on minimal heat.

Alternatives to rice

There are a great many alternative pilaf recipes that use completely different, sometimes very unexpected products instead of traditional ingredients.

So, rice can be replaced with almost any other grain: bulgur, wheat, lentils, millet, buckwheat, lentils and even corn. If time is running out, and guests are on the doorstep, you can even use couscous - it takes 5-10 minutes to cook it. In addition, in some regions only pilaf cooked with peas or at least with the addition of chickpeas is recognized. Turkish pilaf recipes often contain an ingredient with a difficult to pronounce name, which is small pasta - at the heart of the formerThe Ottoman Empire believes that only they are able to reveal the true taste of meat and seasonings.

How to replace meat in pilaf

We have already said that lamb pilaf is not the only option that can be considered correct. You can choose any meat, guided by your own principles. But many nations today prefer lighter versions of the national dish, adding raisins, other dried fruits and nuts (from peanuts to pine nuts) instead of meat. But in Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan they use fish or pieces of minced meat wrapped in grape or cabbage leaves. Exquisite varieties of pilaf are preferred in the homeland of haute cuisine - in France, adding shrimp or even snails to it.

In general, even the vegetable component of pilaf has variations: carrots are replaced or supplemented with tomatoes and potatoes, onions - cabbage and even apples, so this dish is a huge field for culinary experiments.

Sweet pilaf recipe

Let's give a recipe for the original sweet pilaf, which is popular in Azerbaijan. It is worth noting that ingredients that are rare for Russian latitudes can either be excluded or replaced with similar products.

Ingredients:

• Rice 200
• Wheat flour 100g
• Chicken eggs 4 pcs
• Butter 40g
• Raisins, dried apricots, prunes - 50g each
• Cranberries (you can take fresh, frozen or dried) 1 tbsp. spoon.
• Chestnuts (can be replaced with a mixture of walnuts, hazelnuts and pecans) - 40 g.
• Mango (you can takedried) - 50 g.
• Turmeric and other spices to taste.

Since the recipe comes from Azerbaijan, the ingredients are prepared separately and only mixed at the end.

First, you need to boil the rice until half cooked, then drain the liquid and rinse well with hot water.

Beat eggs with flour until the consistency of pancake dough, add a tablespoon of cooked rice and a pinch of turmeric. Melt one fourth of the butter in a large saucepan, reduce the heat and put the dough, which will turn bright orange as it is ready, and will be covered with a crust on top. Then it is necessary to lay out and carefully spread the rice on top, pierce it in several places with a wooden stick and put the butter cut into slices on top (about 20 g). Dissolve turmeric in hot water (a third of a glass) and pour over cereal. Wrap the lid with a wet towel, close tightly and put on low heat for 15-20 minutes.

At this time, combine the washed fruits in a pan with 1 glass of water, the remaining oil and a pinch of turmeric, put on low heat and simmer covered for about half an hour, then fry for 10-15 minutes.

Serve this version of lean pilaf on the table by laying it in layers: rice, bottom crust and fruit.

Pilaf with mushrooms

In general, the method of preparing a traditional oriental dish with mushrooms is not much different from the classic pilaf recipe, but it takes much less time, because mushrooms cook much faster than meat. Take 1 kg of champignons and follow the instructions above, considering that for stewingmushrooms before falling asleep rice will take only 10-15 minutes.

Chefs Secrets

Finally, here are some tips from the world's top chefs to help you become a true kitchen fairy.

Many housewives are faced with the fact that instead of a traditional oriental dish, the output is ordinary rice porridge with meat. The secret of the recipe for crumbly pilaf lies in the intricacies of cooking rice: it is very important not to open the lid, and after the water has been absorbed, leave the cereal to steam for at least 30 minutes. Theoretically, you can cook the right pilaf from any variety of rice, but experts advise choosing types with a low starch content and soaking cereals in cold water for 2-3 hours, periodically changing the water.

Pilaf is a very satisfying dish that is poorly stored - rice dries out, vegetables lose their elasticity, so chefs advise preparing a dish for one meal, without trying to stock up for future use. How much rice to take for pilaf depends on the number of people: 250 g of raw cereal is enough for 10 medium servings.

Meat (or its substitutes) in pilaf should turn out juicy, so special attention should be paid to choosing a fresh product, ideally not frozen. It is necessary to cut the meat into large pieces - with a side of at least 1.5-2.0 cm.

Of course, there is no better way to cook pilaf than in a cauldron. But you can use other thick-walled dishes - only true connoisseurs and gourmets will be able to guess about it.

Proper Uzbek plovcooked on animal fat (in particular, on mutton fat), but the dish not only becomes very difficult for digestion, but also acquires a sharp characteristic smell. To avoid this, you can either use only vegetable oil, or mix oil and animal fat.

Many housewives, in order to save time and energy, grate carrots, but real chefs do not allow themselves this, because it is in the orange vegetable that the beauty of pilaf lies for many oriental gourmets.

Raisins, figs, chickpeas and other nationally favorite vegetable ingredients are added not only to lean pilaf, but also to meat variations. Delicacies should be introduced after the meat is fried - before adding water.

Some spices should be diluted in water before adding. This, above all, applies to natural dyes - saffron and turmeric. This method will achieve uniform coloring and a more harmonious taste.