In Peshawar, which has a huge population of now assimilated Afghan refugees, you see Afghani culture everywhere. All the naan shops are Afghan owned now, Afghani wedding couture shops with their western style wedding gowns stand out in my memory and the absolutely awesome, transports-you-to-another-place Kabuli pulao. 

Afghani Wedding Couture in Peshawar

You can make it with lamb or beef, although in Peshawar it is made with beef alone, but it must be made with sela (parboiled) rice. See my Chana Mewa Pulao Post for more about the difference between sela and basmati rice. 

Simply, you fry the meat, add the spices and cook it, reserving the stock. Then cook the rice in the stock and top with carrots and raisins.

Sautéed, caramelized carrots & raisins.

However, these days I just prefer to make ‘yakhni pulao’ in general, so I use that method to make this pulao too, and it’s kind of like taking the above method and flipping it over on its head. Either way, you end up with a killer pulao… haha this reminds me of the Afghani cloth sellers doing business in Lahore, who sometimes described the really vibrant colors as ‘zakhmi‘ or lethal! It’s a lethal pulao! Lethal! One bite and you will be in culinary heaven! 

The lethal shopping experience of Lahore. (Photo: Yasmin)

The most important thing is for the meat to be of good quality, and for it to be fall off the bone, melt in your mouth tender! I have even used nihari gosht for this pulao, for the unbeatable quality, although I generally prefer meat with bones for pulao for its flavor. 

Oh, I’m sure you all realize that it’s named for its place of origin: Kabul, Afghanistan.

Kabuli Pulao

2015-02-01 20:53:08

Write a review

Save Recipe

Print

Ingredients

1. 1 lb beef with bone
2. 2 cups sela rice
3. 1 small onion
4. 1 tbsp minced garlic
5. 1½-2 tsp garam masala (cloves, cinnamon, black cardamom)
6. 1-2 bay leaves
7. 1 tsp cumin
8. 4-5 whole peppercorns (I just love these in pulao)
9. 1 tbsp salt
10. ½ tsp red chili powder
11. ⅓ cup oil
12. 1 cup shredded carrots
13. ½ cup raisins (NOT golden raisins)
14. ¼ cup sliced blanched almonds

Instructions

1. Soak the rice in a generous amount of water for at least 4 hours. It will really increase in volume.
2. Chop the onion and fry in the oil until browned.
3. Add the salt and give it a stir.
4. Add the meat and sear on both sides on medium heat until nicely browned.
5. Add the rest of the spices and garlic and give it a little stir but don't let the spices burn.
6. Add about 3½ cups of water and bring to a simmer.
7. Cover and cook on low-medium low until the meat is absoluuuuuutely tender. Some liquid will remain; the rice will be cooked in this stock.
8. In the meantime, fry the carrots in a couple of tablespoons of oil to caramelize the sugars. Stir fry on medium low until tender. Add the raisins and stir fry for another 5-8 minutes.

For the pulao

1. Once the meat is tender, measure out about 3¾ cups of the beef stock, adding plain water if there isn't enough. Add the meat.
2. Taste the soup. It should be slightly over salted, to compensate for the rice that will be added. Adjust the salt accordingly.
3. Bring it to a bubbling boil.
4. Once it's boiling, drain and add the rice. Give it a light stir to distribute it evenly.
5. Partially cover the pot, keeping the heat at medium low.
6. Cook until the water level drops to just under the level of the rice; you will first see bubbles on the surface of the pulao, and then holes.
7. When you see holes, cover the rice and reduce the heat to the lowest setting.
8. Cook for a further 10-15 minutes, until all the water has evaporated and the rice is cooked through.
9. Transfer to a serving dish and top with the carrots, raisins and also almonds if you like (I didn't put in almonds because of food allergies in the house).
10. Serve steaming hot!
11. If you are leaving it in the pot/not serving it straight away, then very carefully, using an appropriate spoon or spatula, fold the rice 2-3 times, otherwise the bottom layer will keep getting softer and softer. Redistributing it will keep it even.

Notes

1. I will be honest. I rarely stick to the original recipe for this pulao.
2. I always add a small tomato/2 tbsp yogurt.
3. And I always add coriander powder, a pinch of fennel and a touch of oregano.
4. These days I am using the yakhni pulao method, recipe below.

By Amina Shah

Zabiha Bites http://zabihabites.com/

Yakhni for the pulao.

Fry the meat in the masala.

Kabuli Pulao

2015-02-01 21:32:00

Write a review

Save Recipe

Print

Ingredients

1. 1 lb beef with bone
2. 2 cups sela rice
3. 1 small onion, chopped
4. 2 tbsp yogurt
5. 1 tbsp salt
6. 1 tsp garam masala
7. 1-2 bay leaves
8. 1 heaped tsp cumin
9. 1 tsp coriander powder
10. ¼ tsp oregano
11. ½ tsp red chili powder
12. 4-5 whole peppercorns
13. A pinch of fennel
14. 4-5 stalks of cilantro
15. 3 cloves garlic
16. 2-3 green chilies (optional)
17. ⅓ cup oil

For the topping

1. 1 cup shredded carrots
2. ½ cup raisins
3. ¼ cup sliced blanched almonds

Instructions

1. Soak the rice in a generous amount of water for at least 4 hours.
2. Put the meat in a pot with the garlic, half the salt, cilantro, peppercorns and 3½ cups of water.
3. Bring to a simmer and cover and cook on medium low-low until the meat is fall-off-the-bone tender.
4. In the meantime, fry the carrots in a couple of tablespoons of oil to caramelize the sugars. Stir fry on medium low until tender. Add the raisins and stir fry for another 5-8 minutes.
5. In another pot, fry the onion until browned. Add the yogurt, salt and remaining spices.
6. Add the cooked meat and garlic and fry on medium heat without stirring too much otherwise it will fall apart.
7. Lightly fry it- the garlic will dissolve in the masala.
8. Strain the meat stock (if you want- I don't) and measure out 3¾ cups of liquid, adding water if there isn't enough stock. Add to the meat.
9. Taste the soup. It should be slightly over salted to compensate for the rice that will be added. Adjust the salt accordingly.
10. Cover it and bring it to a bubbling boil.
11. Drain the rice and add it to the soup.
12. Give it a light stir to distribute it evenly, lower the heat to medium low and partially cover the pot.
13. Once you see holes on the surface of the rice, cover the pot, reduce the heat to the lowest setting and cook for 10-15 minutes until all the water has evaporated and the rice is cooked through.
14. Transfer to a serving dish and top with the carrots, raisins and nuts. Serve immediately!

Notes

1. The color of the pulao depends on how much you brown the onions. For a brownish color, you will have to brown the onions. If the onions are golden, then the pulao will be a light color.
2. You can skip the regular masala and just use garam masala and cumin if you like.
3. I also have to admit that I have used 1 lb of beef for making pulao using up to 3 cups of rice (there are 2 cups of rice in this recipe). There is less meat to rice ratio in that case, but I do that when I am serving it with another meat dish or kababs.

By Amina Shah

Zabiha Bites http://zabihabites.com/

For all the latest updates, please ‘like’ Zabiha Bites on Facebook by clicking here.

Comments

comments