Zarda Pulav / Meethe Chawal

Zarda Pulav/ Meethe Chawal

Zarda Pulav / Meethe Chawal is a sweet rice which is dressed with chopped nuts and flavoured with cardamom and saffron. This recipe is prepared for Vasanth panchami in North India. 

Ingredients:

Basmati rice - 1 cup

Sugar - 1/4 cup

Ghee - 3 tablespoons

Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp

Clove - 2 nos

Cinnamon - 1 inch

Bay leaves - 2-3 nos

Cashew & almonds - 1/4 cup

Raisins - 2 tablespoons

Cardamom powder -1 tsp

Saffron strings - few

Milk - to soak saffron strings

Method:

# Wash and soak basmati rice for 1/2 hr.

# Boil 3 cups of water add 1 bay leaf, cinnamon, clove, cardamom, add soaked basmati rice. Cook until it is 70 percent. Remove excess water from cooked rice.

# In a heavy bottom pan add ghee, bay leaves, fry cashew, almonds. Remove the nuts in separate plate.

# In the same ghee add turmeric powder, 1/2 cup water, sugar. Once sugar melts add half cooked rice.

# Allow it to cook on slow flame for 10-12 minutes.

# Once the rice soaks the sugar syrup add cardamom powder, saffron strings soaked in milk. 

# Mix chopped nuts. Serve Zarda Pulav/ Meethe Chawal.

Please do try and provide your comments.

Thank you!