Authentic Rice Pilaf Recipes

RICE PILAF

Steps:

• In a dutch oven or pot, melt butter over medium heat. Add onion, celery, and mushrooms and cook until vegetables have softened and just started to turn brown, about 5 minutes.
• Add garlic and cook for 1 minute more.
• Add rice, salt, and pepper and cook until rice starts to look slightly transparent, about 2-3 minutes.
• Stir in broth. Increase heat to high and bring to a boil.
• Once boiling, add bay leaves, cover pot with a lid, and decrease heat to low.
• Let rice simmer, covered, for about 15 minutes.
• Once all liquid appears to have been absorbed, turn off heat and let sit, covered, for 5 minutes.
• Discard bay leaves and fluff with a fork. Stir in parsley. Serve immediately.

CLASSIC RICE PILAF

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Melt butter and olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add onion; cook and stir until onion is lightly browned, 7 to 8 minutes. Remove from heat.
• Combine rice and onion mixture in a 9x13-inch casserole dish placed on a baking sheet. Stir thoroughly to coat the rice.
• Combine chicken stock, salt, saffron, and cayenne pepper in a saucepan. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, and simmer for 5 minutes.
• Pour chicken stock mixture over rice in the casserole dish and stir to combine. Spread mixture evenly along the bottom of the pan. Cover tightly with heavy-duty aluminum foil.
• Bake in the preheated oven for 35 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to rest, covered, for 10 minutes. Remove foil and fluff with a fork to separate the grains of rice.

RICE PILAF

Steps:

• Combine broth, parsley and butter in a saucepan; bring to boil. Stir in rice; cover. Reduce heat; simmer 20 minutes.

AUTHENTIC RICE PILAF

Steps:

• Melt butter in 2 qt saucepan.
• Crumble vermacelli and add to melted butter.
• Saute until vermacelli is golden brown.
• Add rice, broth, water.
• Bring to a boil.
• Reduce heat to simmer.
• Cover and cook for 25 minutes.
• DO NOT PEEK!

GREEK RICE PILAF

Steps:

• Heat the oil in a medium size skillet over medium high heat. Add the rice and onion and sauté until both are translucent, about 5 minutes.
• Stir in the water with 1 heaping tablespoon of tomato paste, bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to low and cover the pan. Simmer until the rice is just done, 20 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste, and the nutmeg, if using. Sprinkle with the parsley, if desired. Fluff with a fork and serve.
• NOTES: Not caring much for the flavor of plain water, a Greek cook who does not have stock on hand will usually flavor the water with tomato paste: about 1 tablespoon tomato paste to 1 cup water. This can be used for bulgur pilaf as well.
• As with bulgur pilaf, the quantity can easily be doubled, tripled, or more: Use 1 1/4 times as much liquid as rice. Be sure to increase the amount of olive oil and onion as you increase the rice and liquid.
• Adventures In Greek Cooking.

ARMENIAN RICE PILAF

Steps:

• Melt butter in large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the egg noodles and stir until they begin to brown, being careful not to burn the butter. Stir in the rice. Continue stirring until rice is coated with butter.
• Pour in the chicken broth and add the bouillon cubes. Bring to a boil; reduce heat to low and cover tightly. Cook without uncovering pot until all the liquid has been absorbed, about 20 minutes.

AUNTIE'S ARMENIAN RICE PILAF

Steps:

• In 2-qt. heavy saucepan with tight-fitting lid, melt butter over medium heat until foam subsides.
• Add vermicelli noodles and saute until dark and reddish in color.
• Stir in rice and saute in butter until rice is fragrant and nutty in aroma.
• Raise heat to medium-high; pour in boiling chicken broth and stir.
• Add salt and pepper, tasting a bit of the broth to ensure desired seasoning.
• Cover and bring to a boil.
• Once boiling, reduce heat to keep broth at a simmer and cook for exactly 20 minutes.
• After 20 minutes, remove cover and taste a few grains of rice for doneness. If still a bit hard, replace cover and cook for two additional minutes.
• When rice is tender, remove pot from heat. Place a paper napkin directly on top of the pilaf and replace cover; let sit undisturbed for 5 minutes.
• After rest-time has elapsed, remove cover, discard the paper napkin, and stir the pilaf before serving.

INDIAN RICE PILAF

Steps:

• Bring water and chicken broth to a boil.
• Combine rice, curry powder, garlic powder, cinnamon, paprika, and cloves in a bowl; stir to mix. Add spiced rice and onion to the boiling broth. Cover and cook until rice is tender, 20 to 25 minutes.

LEBANESE RICE PILAF

Steps:

• Saute the spaghetti in the clarified butter or olive oil until light brown. Stir constantly to avoid burning.
• Stir in the uncooked rice, then add the boiling water. Stir and allow to come back to a boil. Cover, turn the heat to low, and simmer until the rice is cooked, about 20 minutes.
• Uncover and fluff the rice gently with a fork. Place in a serving dish and top with the pine nuts and a light sprinkle of ground cinnamon.