I’m leaving you today with this ridiculously simple and not to mention delicious Jeera Rice Recipe Restaurant Style!!….Also known as Zeera Rice, it’s one of the easiest seasoned rice dishes that anyone can cook and make it in a jiffy. It’s so versatile that you can serve it to accompany anything really….any curry of your choice, or just some Raita if you’re pressed for time. However, you can also eat it by itself without any side dish as it’s rich in cumin and ghee flavour.
According to wikipedia, Jeera Rice was introduced to Indian cuisine by Moghlai cuisine. Later on, this flavourful Rice was adopted predominantly in the North Indian cuisine….it has one of the most popular dish tags and is available in many restaurants all over the world.
I’ve kept my Jeera Rice Recipe Restaurant Style simple. But, by all means you can experiment with spices & other ingredients to see what you prefer. You can also take this simple dish to the next level by including some onions and adding in a handful of mixed veggies/chicken/prawns/eggs at the stage where you fry the onions before adding in the rice. This will definitely add more colour and flavour to the rice. As I always say, throw in your favourite spices, there are no hard and fast rules when it comes to cooking; Star Anise, Mace, Kalpasi, Whole Black Peppercorns, Curry Leaves, Mint, Coriander etc….It will give a new dimension to this otherwise simple recipe!!
Off to Jeera Rice Recipe Restaurant Style!!
Easy Steps to follow for Jeera Rice Recipe Restaurant Style:
- Clean the rice thoroughly and wash.
- Soak in water for half an hour. After half an hour, drain to remove the excess water.
- Heat ghee in a pan or a deep vessel over medium heat.
- When ghee is hot enough, add a few dry spices (2-3 bay leaves, 1 black cardamom & 4-5 cloves) and 1 Tablespoon cumin seeds.
- Sauté for a minute till you get a nice aroma (make sure you don’t burn the cumin seeds).
- Now, add in the drained rice and sauté for 2 minutes while stirring constantly.
- Now add 1.5 cups of water, some salt and lemon juice to the rice. Mix well.
NOTE:
- Increase water by half a cup if you want your rice grains to be softer.
- Adding lemon juice is optional. It enhances the colour and flavour of rice and also prevents the rice grains from sticking.
- Cover and cook rice on low heat for 5 minutes. Open the lid and check the rice. Gently stir the rice.
- Cover again and cook for 5 more minutes or until done.
- Check the rice now. There should be no water left in the rice, the rice grains puff up nicely and turn soft.
- Jeera Rice is now ready, turn off the heat.
- Cover the rice and let it rest for 10 minutes.
- Open the lid after 10 minutes, gently stir with a fork or a ladle.
- Garnish with some coriander/mint and serve.
- Pair it up with any creamy curry like Butter Chicken, Dum Aloo or just a simple Onion Raita or Boondi Raita.
- You can also serve Jeera Rice with any daal or even Chole will taste good!!
WATCH VIDEO
A Quick Summary:
Jeera Rice Recipe Restaurant Style | How to make Jeera Pulao - Jeera Rice Video
Ingredients
- 1 Cup Basmati rice
- 1-2 Tablespoons Ghee or oil
- 1 Tablespoon Cumin Seeds
- Whole Spices 1 black cardamom , 4-5 cloves & 2-3 bay leaves
- 11/2 Cups Water to cook rice
- 1 teaspoon Lemon juice Optional
- Salt to taste
Instructions
- Clean the rice thoroughly and wash.
- Soak in water for half an hour. After half an hour, drain to remove the excess water.
- Heat ghee in a pan or a deep vessel over medium heat.
- When ghee is hot enough cumin seeds and whole spices.
- Sauté for a while (make sure you don't burn the cumin seeds).
- Now, add in the drained rice and sauté for 2 minutes while stirring constantly.
- Now add 1.5 cups of water, some salt and lemon juice to the rice. Mix well.
- Cover and cook rice on low heat for 5 minutes. Open the lid and check the rice. Gently stir the rice.
- Cover again and cook for 5 more minutes or until done.
- Check the rice now. There should be no water left in the rice, the rice grains puff up and turn soft.
- Jeera Rice is now ready, turn off the heat.
- Cover the rice and let it rest for 10 minutes.
- Open the lid after 10 minutes, gently stir with a fork or a ladle.
- Garnish with some coriander/mint and serve.
My Notes:
- If you cook rice on high heat, then water evaporates and rice does not cook well. So, cook rice on medium low heat only.
- Adding lemon juice is optional. It enhances the colour and flavour of rice and also prevents the rice grains from sticking.
- If you want rice to be softer, increase water by half a cup while cooking.
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Check out How to Cook Perfect Plain Rice and How to Cook Basmati Rice for Biryani with all the tips and tricks for beginners!!
Check out other RICE RECIPES and ONE POT MEALS from blog.
Many more to come!!…..STAY TUNED!!
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Happy Cooking 🙂
Cheers!!
Padma.
