Pilaf in Caucasian Style

Many people love pilaf and there are many recipes for its preparation, mostly Central Asian recipes. I want to tell you about pilaf, which I call Caucasian.

So, we need the following products:

1) White rice , or any that is available in your store - 200 gr. (1-1.5 cups);

2) Meat (lamb) - 500-600 gr.;

3) Onions - 4-6 heads (depending on size);

4) Carrots - 3-4 pieces;

5) Garlic - 1 head;

6) Bay leaf - 2 leaves;

7) Salt - ½ teaspoon (or to taste);

8) Ground black pepper (or peas) - ¼ teaspoon;

9) Vegetable oil - 100 ml .;

10) Drinking water - 300-400 ml.

Rinse the rice in a bowl by rubbing it lightly with your hand in cold water and periodically draining the water (up to 10 times) until the water is clear. Cut the meat into small pieces. Cut the onion into half rings and cut the carrots into "strips" (or optionally). Peel the head of garlic by cutting off the top (but not separating the cloves) and rinse.

Take a deep dish with a lid (a cast iron pot is better , but you can also use a saucepan or deep frying pan). Pour vegetable oil into a bowl and heat it over medium heat. You can check if the oil has warmed up with a drop of water (“shooting” indicates readiness). Gently add the meat to the heated oil and fry it with the lid closed for 3-5 minutes, remembering to stir periodically. Now add the onions, spreading them in an even layer on the meat. Put the carrots on top of the onion in the same layer and cover with a lid. Reduce the heat and simmer the meat and vegetables for 10-15 minutes. The next step is to add water (1.5-2 cups), it all depends on the quantity and variety of rice. Pour salt, pepper into the water (additional spices are possible), a head of garlic and mix. Close with a lid and bring to a boil over medium heat. Now it's rice's turn. Rice should be covered with an even layer (leveled with a spoon) and add bay leaf to it (it is better to divide the leaves into halves and add in 4 places). We cover the dishes with a lid and over low heat bring our pilaf to readiness for 15-25 minutes. The rice should completely absorb all the water. After you determine the readiness of pilaf, as they say, by eye and by tooth, you must turn off the heat. Hold the pilaf with the lid closed for another 10-15 minutes.

Pilaf can be served in two ways: - on a large round dish (tray), knocking over all the pilaf and decorating with fresh herbs and vegetables; - laid out on plates with fresh herbs.

I hope you can do it too and like it. Bon Appetit!

You can use beef instead of lamb. I even cooked pilaf with chicken.