Roti and chawal are two most popular staples of Indian cuisine. Rice accompanies the Indian bread in every Indian thali. Sometimes, we only crave for rice and we have a host of options available. Plain rice with rajma or dal, or we can pick biryani with curd or salan. But, when we want something quick and easy, pulao is the best rice dish that is flavourful as well as fulfilling. There are many pulao recipes that are popular in Indian households; aloo pulao, matar pulao, vegetable pulao being the most common ones. Paneer pulao may not be as popular as the rest but is another delicious variant of pulao that is worth every bite.
Paneer pulao packs a punch of proteins coming from paneer or cottage cheese. Also, paneer hardly takes any time to cook, so this recipe is also time-saving as compared to making other rice dishes like vegetable pulao or biryani. You can add other vegetables if you want extra flavour in the pulao.
(Also Read: Make Kashmiri Chicken Pulao With This Easy Recipe)
Roast the paneer till they turn brown in colour.
Here's the recipe of paneer pulao that you can try making at home:
(This recipe will make serving for two people)
Ingredients:
Half cup Basmati rice
1 cup water
100-150 grams paneer, cubed
2-3 black peppercorns
Half inch cinnamon stick
Half teaspoon cumin seeds
2 bay Leaves (tej patta)
2 green cardamoms (elaichi)
2 green chillies
1 teaspoon ginger-garlic paste
2 onions, sliced
Salt to taste
Half teaspoon garam masala
Ghee to fry paneer
Some coriander leaves for garnishing
Method of preparation:
Step 1 - Soak rice in water for at least 15 minutes.
Step 2 - Put some ghee in a pan and roast paneer cubes till they turn brown in colour.
Step 3 - Remove paneer and keep aside.
Step 4 - Add some more ghee in the pan and roast bay leaves, cardamoms, black pepper till they begin to crackle.
Step 5 - Add onion, green chilies and ginger-garlic paste and fry them.
Step 6 - Drain water from rice and add it in the pan. Add salt and garam masala and pour two cups of water.
Step 7 - When the rice is cooked, add paneer cubes and mix well. Turn off the stove after two minutes. Sprinkle coriander leaves on the pulao and serve.
This paneer pulao will work best with raita or plain curd. You can also serve it with aloo sabzi or any other sabzi of your choice. It is a simple and quick meal you can make for lunch, dinner or for your kid's tiffin box.