February 22, 2013

{Simple and Easy} Achari Chana Pulao | Pickle Spiced Chickpea Rice Recipe | Pressure Cooker Recipes


If there is one kitchen gadget that I can never imagine myself without is my beloved pressure cooker. I have seen my mom use not one, but two of them simultaneously and to this day she swears by its efficiency. Same is the case with my mother in law too. I literally wake up every single morning with whistle whooshing across the kitchen till our bedroom. ;-) 

That my friends is the role of a pressure cooker played in our lives. In one word - Quintessential.

Now, when I read Jaya's post on how an cookbook author claimed that Indian-made pressure cookers are unsafe to use and tended to blow up in people’s faces. I was like - What The! That is a total exaggeration.  Nothing in this world in perfect, I agree on that but whenever I heard people telling me stories of their pressure cookers blowing up, its always the case where there was a human error. 

To err is human...Isn't it?

In order to prove the cookbook author wrong and to put across a point that pressure cookers, especially indian-made are indeed safe, Jaya has asked us to cook a dish in our cookers. Hence, today's recipe - Achari Chana Pulao a.k.a Chickpea Rice spiced with Mango Pickle. That sounds a little bizarre  but trust me it tastes wonderfully delicious and no one would believe it has achaar in it ;-). My mom especially was pleasantly surprised.

Go on, take out your pressure cookers today and try this super simple pulao for your meals.

Enjoy!

Also sending this as an entry to The Wellness Weekend and Healthy Vegan Fridays.

Doesn't that look yummi-li-cious? :-)

not just mango pickle, you can use any mixed pickle for this recipe..

my cute little 3 ltrs pressure cooker. It never looked this glamorous before ;-)

all whole spices, mango pickle, veggies and beans sauteed. next comes the rice..

out and done.. ready to be fluffed with a fork..

Achari Chickpea Pulao is ready and served..


{Recipe} Achari Chana Pulao | Pickle Spiced Chickpea Rice

Adapted loosely from Tarla Dalal 
Serves 2-3



Ingredients:

1 tbsp instant mango pickle (or any pickle on hand)
1 cup long grained (basmati) rice
1 tomato, cut in long wedges
2 tsp oil
1 tsp cumin seeds
few whole spices - I used 3 bay leaves, two star anise pieces and a piece of cinnamon stick
1 medium onion, thinly sliced
2 garlic cloves, finely minced
1 cup soaked, boiled chickpeas (any variety is fine)
1/2 tsp turmeric powder (haldi)
1/2 tsp chilli powder
1/2 tsp garam masala (optional)
salt to taste

Preparation:

Wash and soak rice for 10 to 15 minutes. Keep aside.

Note: If you are using freshly boiled beans (instead of canned or frozen) for this recipe, reserve the cooking liquid (or) just use water. 

Put 2 cups of water or cooking liquid to boil.

In the pressure cooker, heat oil. Add bay leaves, cumin seeds, star anise and cinnamon. Saute for a minute. Once they start to crackle, add sliced onions and garlic. Let them brown for few minutes.

Add chickpeas, mango pickle, tomatoes, turmeric powder, chilli powder and garam masala (if using). Saute for 3-4 minutes. Adjust salt. Then the drained rice goes innand saute for few more minutes.

Add the hot water/cooking liquid and pressure cook for 2 whistles. Allow the steam to escape before opening the lid. Lightly fluff with a fork.

Serve hot with raita on the side.


“I boiled chickpeas and also cooked the Achari Chana Pulao with my Indian pressure cooker and it didn’t blow up in my face”..:-)

wanna grab the plate and sit down for a meal with me? :-)

This is Recipe 14 added to my 2013 Recipe Archive. Check out the rest of the recipes too!

The other day I was checking out few coupons for a pizza party at work. I have got a few good discounts here - Coupon Raja.com. Check them out and save a few bucks on your next pizza! 

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until next recipe,







14 comments :

  1. oh yum!!! very tempting!! love the ingredients, bilkhul chata chat!!!

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  2. I LOVE this recipe! I'm pinning it for later!

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  3. lovely clicks tempting to me to taste...

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  4. Hi Siri, Never heard of pickle in Pulav..sounds interesting. Will try this soon.

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  5. Thank you so much for this delicious entry Siri. I am not a pickle person but hubs likes it once in a while. I will have to raid his stash to see if I can make it. And like I told you before I love the pressure cooker shot. Just beautiful.

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  6. yummy.. i can feel the taste of pickle in my mouth ;)

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  7. siri, can i come over for lunch ...this looks sooo good and love the pick of the pressure cooker. and really Indian PC's are unsafe - what is wrong with people ! am glad you did this post You rock !

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  8. I recently inspired my Filipino colleague to use pressure cooker and she is so excited about it. I believe people should realize how they can save time and gas. My mom used the same pressure cooker for more than a decade, probably she is still using it. And everyone I know use a pressure cooker in India and have never heard any bizzare stories. For that matter even the blenders are dangerous, do we stop using it? No. Thank you for writing this post and I support Jaya's cause.

    That mango pickle got me drooling.

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  9. True it does look glamourous Siri!
    BTW I also loved the matka serving bowls! :-)

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  10. hey your recipe is awesome,i tried it and loved it. your presentation is very very good!! keep up the good work!!!

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  11. Hey Siri, your recipe is awesome. I tried it and loved it, thank you. your presentation is also very very nice. keep up your good work.

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    Replies
    1. Thanks Lakshmi for your trying the recipe and for taking time to let me know. :-)

      Siri

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