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Dec
29
Mitti Chawal (”Dirty” Rice)
December 29, 2009 |
Black Cardamom (Kali Elaichi)
Recipe Marathon: Day 5.
This recipe is plagiarised from two guys I have a crush over - Raghavan Iyer and Alton Brown. Both are smart, funny and gosh darn it, they can cook.
We Indians do ridiculous things sometimes. We add all these aromatic spices with wonderful health benefits - like cardamom, cinnamon, bay leaves, cloves - to our pulaos and biryanis whole. Then, we pull them out or work around them while eating.
A recipe in Raghavan Iyer’s 660 Curries called Mitti Chawal has the solution. Use fewer spices, crush them, and gasp … EAT THEM. In Hindi, mitti = mud, chawal = rice.
This recipe, inspired by Cajun Dirty Rice, can be converted into a one-pot meal with veggies/seafood/meat. We ate it with lentils.
Crushing the spices means that your rice won’t look pristine like Kareena Kapoor’s butt, but who cares? (As IndiaTimes breathlessly informs us, “Kareena got back her butt.”. Who knew it had gone loitering somewhere?)
I just made mitti chawal and my house is enveloped in the wonderful rich aroma of caramelised onions and ground cardamom. Talking of cardamom, this recipe has both types - the sweeter smaller green type and the smokier larger black type.
Raghavan’s recipe is with white basmati rice. I, however, prefer the flavour and texture of brown rice.
Brown rice pulaos and biryanis made on the stove-top always piss me off. Thirty minutes after you turn on the stove, it’s still chewy and if you add more water, it ends up all sticky. So I stole Alton Brown’s baked method.
Or pressure cook it. I’ve listed both methods.
Various ways to snag a good south Indian guy cook rice.
“DIRTY” RICE, INDIAN STYLE
(Serves 4)
OVEN-BAKED
1. Preheat the oven to 375F. (or 360F on convection setting)
2. Wash 1 cup brown basmati or short-grain rice and set aside to drain.
3. Heat 1 tbsp oil (or ghee) in a pan and fry 3/4 cup chopped onion with 1/2 tsp organic sugar on medium heat until the onion is caramelised. Stir often to make sure it does not stick or burn.
4. Meanwhile, powder coarsely in a mortar and pestle
1 green cardamom, 1 black cardamom, 1/4 tsp cumin seeds, half tsp peppercorns, a couple cloves, a pinch of saffron and a small piece of cinnamon.
5. Add this spice mix to the caramelised onion along with the rice and salt to taste (1/2 tsp).
6. Mix it all together and put it in a wide oven-safe bowl.
7. Heat 1.5 cups water until it is very hot and pour it over the rice. If you use short-grain brown rice (which I prefer), you may need a tad (a tablespoon or two) of extra water.
8. Cover tightly with foil or an oven-safe lid and put it in the oven.
9. Bake for an hour until done. Remove from the oven and let it sit for another ten minutes before fluffing with a fork.
PRESSURE-COOKED
Use 1.75 cups water.
Do not put the rice directly in the cooker. Put about 3 cups water in the cooker and put the rice and liquid in another pan inside the cooker. Cover the rice. Pressure cook for 2 whistles. Let it cool and open. Fluff the rice with a fork and serve.
- bee
660 Curries: The Gateway to Indian Cooking, black cardamom, brown-rice, cardamom, cinnamon, clove, India, Onion/Shallot, Raghavan Iyer, Rice, Saffron
I have never used big cardamoms, have to try them. Very interesting to see rice cooked in an oven. Rice looks simple and aromatic.
I prefer the rice dirty. I love the color as well. No veggies?
The bake method is what I do for dum but prefer the pressure cooker method for the time and greenness.
I love the aroma of black card. use in all non-veg dishes!
I never tried to bake in oven- interesting way to cook brown rice!
well gosh thanks for your support - i think you forgot “cute” - smile
hi, cutie.
i hope you two have a great new year - i love your blog - keep up the delicious work. When you get to Minneapolis, hope to see you at OM
What a coincidence! I made a Raghavan Iyer Daal and posted about it! Mitti Chawal is on my list too.
I somehow could never get down to liking brown rice, too chewy. I use it for dosas. Maybe I shold try ur method, might end up as gorgeous as urs looks.
Wish U and Jai a HAPPY NEW YEAR! Hugs!
Bee, technically if you give credit to the original cook it is not plagiarism.
That way we Maharashtrian are the ShaNa types. Our Masale bhat uses ground spices and that too without toasting. Yeah but it is a medley of spices.No wasting of precious spices. Have you tried it yet?
This way with double the ghee I make the ghee rice! Its simple and flavorful and with a spicy vegetable kurma its a treat!
gosh… the cardamom and saffron must have smelt and tastes fab… must try this out… i’ve always had a problem cooking brown rice… lemme try the baked method
I was just going over the ingredient list for the sweet potato rolls and had a question. Does the jaggery/ maple syrup combined with the sweetness of sweet potato puree make the rolls sweet or enhance the flavor of the potatoes?
it makes them sweet and helps the yeast rise.
Mitti Chawal looks yumm..and easy to make is what attracts me more or these days makes me cook! Pregnancy is too tiring!
Bee, you have no idea how happy it makes me to see a new posts one after another on jugalbandi. I learn something new out here.
Here’s wishing you both a splendid 2010, and many more ‘gyan’ generating posts.
Mud rice! Love it. (With a nice thick viand on the side of course…) I’m trying to figure out how “two whistles” on the pressure cooker goes. Doesn’t it whistle continuously once it starts?
Not really. Quite different from a traditional kettle in that sense. Once a first burst of steam comes out, the weight settles down and the pressure builds up again. On the other hand, whistle may not be the best term - “release of hot air” may be more appropriate!
-Jai
This sounds like you get to enjoy it twice. Once for aromas and then in your mouth.
Would it be absolutely scandalous to suggest cooking the rice (with ingredients added) in the microwave?
I know people typically love/hate nuking their food but there is some credence (I think!) to the idea that this type of cooking preserves certain nutrients that other longer exposures to heat does not. And I’ve never once had the microwave technique miss the mark and/or yield a layer of rice cooked to the bottom of the pan for instance…
Just asking… : )
I used to cook rice in the m/w all the time. not scandalous at all. what was that saying about language “… should be used to communicate, once the meaning is conveyed, the words don’t matter…”
whatever floats your boat.
-Jai
i am craving for some of this now,..;-)
I can’t seem to digest brown rice
but still cook for the hubby - so the oven baked version seems like a great idea - takes for ever to cook on the stovetop!
Wish you both a very Happy New Year!
Miri
My ‘Smell-O-Vison’ sensors just went off!!!!
I am salivating and in desperate need of locating the larger cardamon. In the meantime, I’m just going to reach through the monitor and grab some.
try the gaba rice