Bengali Veg Pulao Recipe
Bengali Veg Pulao is a flavorful combination of Gobindobhog rice, vegetables, dried nuts & fruits, and spices. Serve it on its own or with a Bengali curry. Here is how to make it.
Servings: 3 people
Ingredients
- 1 cup Gobindobhog rice of any other fragrant white rice
- 2 tablespoons ghee use oil for vegan
- 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
- 2-3 green chilies slit in half
- 5-6 cashew nuts (kaju) halved
- 10-12 raisins (kishmish)
- 2 whole green cardamoms (hari elaichi)
- 1 whole black cardamom (badi elaichi)
- 1 inch piece of cinnamon stick (dalchini)
- 2-3 cloves (laung)
- ¼ cup cubed carrots
- ¼ cup frozen green peas
- ½ cup cauliflower florets
- ¼ cup peeled and cubed potatoes
- ¼ cup green beans cut into 1-inch piece
- 1 teaspoon freshly squeezed lime juice
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon granulated white sugar
- 2 tablespoons chopped cilantro (fresh coriander leaves)
Instructions
- Rinse the rice with water 2-3 times until the water runs clear, and soak it in 3-4 cups of water for 15 minutes.
- Heat the ghee in a pan over medium-high heat.
- Once the ghee is hot, add cumin seeds and green chilies and let them crackle for 3-4 seconds.
- Add cashew nuts and raisins and fry until slightly browned.
- Add green cardamoms, black cardamom, cinnamon, and cloves, and fry for 3-4 seconds.
- Now add carrots, peas, cauliflower, potatoes, and green beans, and cook for 3-4 minutes, stirring frequently.
- Drain the water from the rice, then add the soaked rice to the pan along with lime juice, salt, sugar, and 2 cups of water.
- Reduce the heat to low.
- Cover the pan with a tight-fitting lid and cook undisturbed until all the water is absorbed by the rice and the rice is tender (20-25 minutes).
- Remove the pan from the heat and let the rice rest for 5 minutes.
- Open the lid and fluff the rice gently using a fork and serve hot.
Video
Notes
If Gobindobhog rice is unavailable, you can use other short-grain rice varieties, but for the traditional taste, I recommend making it with Gobidobhog rice only.
You can add more veggies such as bell peppers, mushrooms, broccoli, etc.
Replace ghee with oil to make it vegan.
Nutrition
Calories: 389kcal | Carbohydrates: 64g | Protein: 7g | Fat: 12g | Saturated Fat: 7g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4g | Cholesterol: 26mg | Sodium: 896mg | Potassium: 345mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 1948IU | Vitamin C: 23mg | Calcium: 50mg | Iron: 2mg
