Pilaf is a very ancient dish, the exact origin of which has not yet been established. It is only known that the first such preparations began to be prepared in the 2-3 centuries BC in India and in the Middle East.
In the classic version, pilaf is made in a special thick-walled container - a cauldron. In addition, red meat, such as beef, is usually used for the recipe. However, in the modern world, the traditional recipe for pilaf has undergone many changes. Now there are many options using white chicken meat, you can also add dried fruits or mushrooms to such a dish.
Ingredients for chicken pilaf
- The main condition for making delicious pilaf is the choice of a suitable type of rice. Devzira is considered the best rice for pilaf. It is grown in the Fergana Valley, and for the best quality it is kept for 2-3 years in bins and only then is it used for cooking.
- Another variety of rice suitable for making pilaf is indica. The groats are narrow and long grains and are one of the most popular in the world. A dish made from such rice always turns out to be crumbly. Indica is suitable not only for pilaf, but also for side dishes and salads.
- The jasmine rice variety can also be used successfully for making pilaf. It belongs to the aromatic varieties and is especially widely known in Southeast Asia. This type of rice sticks together a little during cooking, but it does not boil over and keeps its shape perfectly.
- Another suitable variety of rice for pilaf is Basmati. It is characterized by long and thin grains, which lengthen even more during cooking. Basmati is extremely popular in India.
- Uzbek rice varieties - kakir, laser, khanabad, avant-garde - are also good for pilaf.
- To prepare pilaf with chicken, you can use both the whole carcass and individual parts, for example, drumstick and wings. However, fillets are prepared the fastest.
- Chicken for pilaf can be cooked separately from rice, if a whole carcass is used (this is called pilaf in Baku), or fried along with other products, if you have taken chicken fillet.
- The most suitable spices for pilaf are cumin (or cumin), turmeric and barberry. You can also add saffron and curry to the dish. All these spices go well with chicken.
Is it possible to replace a cauldron for pilaf with a pan?
- If your house does not have a cauldron, then a duckling can serve as a more or less equivalent replacement for it - it has thick walls and a streamlined shape that ensures uniform heating. Nevertheless, many housewives got used to using an ordinary pan for cooking pilaf, which must necessarily have a thick bottom and an inner coating to which food does not burn.
- It is believed that food is heated unevenly in a saucepan, so the taste of pilaf can be inferior to a dish cooked according to all the rules - in a cauldron. However, there is an interesting trick here. You can cook a fry on the stove, add rice and liquid, bring to a boil, and then place the pot in a properly preheated oven turned off. Here pilaf will gradually reach readiness. However, this method is only suitable if your oven keeps heat well inside.
- If it is not possible to bring the dish to readiness in the oven, then during cooking on the stove, you can use a special flame divider, which is placed on the kitchen burner. At the same time, the likelihood that the food at the bottom of the pan will burn is significantly reduced.
Pilaf with chicken in a saucepan (step by step recipe)
Ingredients:
- 350-400 g chicken fillet
- 240 g long grain parboiled rice, suitable for pilaf
- 1 large carrot
- 1 medium onion
- 1 head of garlic
- 3 teaspoons with a slide of seasoning for pilaf
- water
- salt
- vegetable oil
Cooking in stages:
one. Rinse the onion, remove the husk and chop into small cubes. Put in a frying pan with vegetable oil and fry - the onion should become transparent. Do not spare oil.
2. Rinse carrots, peel and grate. Stir in onion and fry a little. By the way, in the traditional recipe for pilaf, they usually use not vegetable, but ghee, or fat, which can be cut from meat beforehand.
3. Rinse the chicken meat, cut into pieces and add to the carrot and onion frying. Season with salt and fry until lightly blush. Then add 2 teaspoons of pilaf seasoning (you can use either the ready-made mixture or make it yourself, which, of course, is a little more difficult). Stir the contents of the dish. You can add all the spices from the recipe at this stage, if you are not afraid that the dish will turn out to be spicy.
4. Next, put the prepared frying (zirvak) in a saucepan with a thick bottom (you can, for example, use a container from a pressure cooker). Add thoroughly washed rice and smooth the surface.
5. Fill with a sufficient amount of filtered water - it should completely cover the layer of rice grits. Bring the dish to a boil. Do not stir.
6. Take a whole head of garlic, rinse it very thoroughly. Cut off the part where the roots were with a sharp knife. You do not need to peel the husk from the garlic, remove only those parts that have burst.
7. Place the head of garlic in the center of the cooking dish. Reduce heat on the stove, cover the pan with a lid and cook for about 20-25 minutes - all the liquid should be absorbed into the rice without leaving any residue. You still cannot stir the dish.
8. Remove the cover and test for readiness. When the dish is ready, remove the head of garlic and stir the rice and fry.
9. At this stage, you can add another 1 teaspoon of spices, if you have not used them before. Cover the finished mixed pilaf again and let it brew for 10 minutes. Then you can serve it to the table.
Pilaf with chicken and dried fruits
Ingredients:
- 1 chicken
- 3 cups rice, such as basmati
- 250 g dried apricots
- 100 g seedless raisins
- 100 g dried figs
- 50 g prunes
- 200 g ghee
- 2 eggs
- 2 onions
- 1 tbsp. spoon of cumin seeds
- 1 tbsp. spoon of barberry
- salt
Cooking step by step:
1. Rinse basmati rice thoroughly in several waters. Pour two liters of filtered water into the kettle and heat it up. Put the rice in a saucepan, cover with water, add salt, put on fire and cook for about 10 minutes or a little less - the rice should be slightly soft. Then fold the cereal in a colander and let it dry.
2. Get a heavy-bottomed toasted saucepan that doesn't burn food. Put it on the stove, grease the inside with ghee (a little). Wash chicken eggs well, break them into a bowl, shake with a regular fork or whisk. Now pour the resulting chatterbox into a preheated saucepan.
3. Place the layers of rice on top of the eggs. Sprinkle each layer with the remaining ghee (150 g), then sprinkle the top layer with cumin and barberry and smooth. Cover and simmer over low heat for 20-25 minutes. The eggs should be crispy at the bottom of the pot. Remove the pot from the stove and wrap it up with a warm blanket or blanket.
4. Rinse all dried fruits thoroughly, fold to dry. In a skillet with high sides, heat 3 tbsp. tablespoons of oil, add dried fruits and fry them for about 5 minutes. Then pour in one and a half cups of boiled water and cook over medium heat until they are tender enough - this will take about 10 minutes. When extinguished, gravy is formed.
5. Rinse the chicken, cut into portions of a fairly large size. Salt to taste, fry in the oil that is left until tender - this can take up to half an hour. Peel the onions, chop finely and sprinkle on the chicken, cook for another 7 minutes.
6. On a large dish, place the rice along with the egg crust in a slide, place the fried chicken and onions in the center, and soft stewed dried fruits around the edges. Garnish with herbs as desired and serve immediately.
Pilaf with chicken and mushrooms
Ingredients:
- 500 g chicken legs
- 150 g long grain rice for pilaf
- 100 g of mushrooms
- 100 g cream
- 1 1/2 cups chicken stock
- 30 g almond leaves
- salt, spices for pilaf
- vegetable or ghee
Cooking in stages:
1. Rinse the chicken legs thoroughly, free from the skin. Salt, rub with spices. Place in a greased, thick-bottomed saucepan and fry on one side. Then turn it over.
2. Rinse the rice well in several waters. Rinse the mushrooms and cut. Add rice and mushrooms to a saucepan with chicken legs, then pour in hot broth (you can use broth made from a cube). Close the lid with a steam outlet and simmer over low heat until the cereal has absorbed all the broth.
3. Remove the finished pilaf from the heat and let the dish stand for a while. Pour the cream into a saucepan, place on the stove and bring to a boil. Pour the cream over the pilaf. Fry almond leaves in a dry frying pan, sprinkle on pilaf on top.
