Cumin and Coriander rice…

This is quite beautiful and stunning in its simplicity and ease of preparation. When I am held up with work or am loathe to stand in a hot kitchen, this is the lunch I invariably end up making. With a couple of masala coated eggs (which can also be cooked up in a jiffy) this is the best way to live. I hate all the coconut scraping and the grinding and the avial /theyil/ poriyal drama. 

Anyway, first wash and soak your rice. Measure the quantity of rice, you’ll have to add double the quantity of water later on while cooking. 

Wash and grind a whole bunch of coriander leaves…

Now heat some oil in a pressure cooker, add some jeera / cumin seeds, a little garam masala powder and mix it around. Then add the coriander leaves paste, saute a few minutes.

Add double the quantity of water to this green masala…

Take a cube of vegetable or chicken stock in the spoon… 

Take a little of the warm water from below and using a knife, break it down…

until it disintegrates, then drop it in and mix the whole thing.

Now drain the rice and add it here… add a little salt. The vegetable stock is already salty by nature, so taste and add appropriate quantity of salt.

There is this man who comes around selling awesome home made ghee, it looks like liquid gold when he mixes it and pours it into the container, smells wonderful too.

Some of the awesome ghee goes in and then you can pressure cook it, on high flame for one whistle. Then lower the flame all the way to its lowest level and let it cook for 5 minutes after which you switch off the stove and allow the steam to escape by itself. 

There the coriander and cumin rice is all ready, garnish with a few sprigs of freshly chopped coriander leaves…

And these are the masala coated eggs that go so well with the rice.