Jeera rice From India

Jeera rice

Jeera rice or Zeera rice is an Pakistani and Indian dish consisting of rice and cumin seeds. This rice dish is known as Zeera rice in Pakistan. It is a popular dish in North India, an everyday rice dish. It is easy to prepare unlike a biryani. Jeera is the Hindi word for cumin seeds.

Ingredients:

1 cup Basmati rice (a long grain Indian rice)

3 cups water

Salt to taste

2 tbsps vegtable, sunflower or canola oil/ghee

1 large onion chopped fine

2 tsps cumin seeds

1/2 cup water

Coriander leaves to garnish

Wash the Basmati rice well in running water. Add the 3 cups of water and salt to taste to the rice and set it up to boil. Once the rice is almost cooked (test a few grains often to check - they will feel soft on the outside but very slightly hard on the inside), remove from fire and drain the water by straining the rice through a sieve or colander. Set aside. In another pan, heat the oil/ghee till hot and add onions. Fry till light brown and then add the cumin seeds. The seeds will splutter and sizzle to show they are done. Now add the rice and stir well. Add 1/2 a cup of water to the rice and cover. Simmer till all the water dries up. Allow the rice to stand for another 2-3 minutes and then serve garnished with coriander leaves.