How to cook real Uzbek beef pilaf

How to make pilaf so that it becomes a table decoration, and not an ordinary rice porridge with meat? Everything is simple! It is necessary to know the subtleties of cooking that have been practiced by oriental craftsmen for centuries.

In the east, pilaf is cooked from lamb and fat tail on a large street. For cooking, it is customary to use pork, beef, even duck or turkey meat. Each one turns out tasty and unusual in its own way. To make pilaf crumbly, saturated with all the tastes of its constituent ingredients, it is necessary to familiarize yourself with the cooking technology and apply it in practice.

Training

To make pilaf really tasty and crumbly, it is important to choose the right ingredients.

• The meat must be juicy. A shoulder blade, neck or dorsal notch is suitable.
• For loose pilaf, choose the right rice. Long grain or round with a low starch content. It is better to choose transparent grains that are clearly visible when compared with other varieties. They are denser, do not boil during long-term heat treatment, while absorbing water well and remain friable after cooling. If this is not the case, ordinary rice should be washed well and soaked several times in water to remove starchy properties.
• By tradition, real pilaf is cooked with fat tail fat, but the classic recipe uses ordinary sunflower oil, preferably without a pronounced specific smell, so as not to interrupt the aroma of the dish.
• There is a standard set of spices, but this is not the limit, the “flight of fantasy” of the hostess is important here, taking into account the specific tastes of the family. Standard seasonings include - curry, cumin, pepper, barberry. Cumin (zira) - to give an oriental taste (do not pour, it has a pronounced aroma). Barberry - provides sourness with pleasant notes of bitterness. Additionally, saffron, thyme, turmeric are used (to give goldenness).
• A set of vegetables. Carrots - the main ingredient, cut in the form of large straws, sometimes in cubes (optional). No grater in the cooking process. Onion in the form of small half rings. Garlic is put whole with a clove at a certain stage of preparation.
• In some recipes, dried fruits are found: raisins, prunes, dried apricots - give a kind of sweetness against the background of other components. They are added after the process of frying meat and vegetables, before pouring water.
• The main dishes are cauldrons made of cast iron or aluminum with a thick bottom. At home, a cast-iron frying pan with a thick bottom, a capacity for stewing, like a ducklings, is suitable. A thick bottom is necessary so that the rice does not burn, but slowly and evenly languishes. Pots and other dishes with a thin bottom are not recommended; rice will burn in them and will not reach the required condition.
• Estimated cooking time 1 hour. The time depends on the selected meat and rice. The dish is simmering over low heat.

Classic loose beef pilaf in a pan

• Peel and wash the vegetables. Cut the onions into half rings, carrots - into strips.
• Cut the meat into slices of the right size.
• Pour oil into a heated pan. Wait for heating. Pour onion and fry until golden.
• Spread the meat and continue roasting until browned.
• Pour in carrots, continue to fry. Salt, add spices. Pour in hot water, wait for boiling, leave to simmer for about half an hour.
• Pour rice into the pan, add water 2 cm above the rice.
• Allow to boil and let simmer over low heat.
• When the liquid evaporates, make holes in the rice, put the garlic.
• Check the readiness and complete evaporation of the liquid. Leave to be in good condition with the lid closed.

Traditional beef pilaf in a pan

An ideal pilaf is obtained in a cauldron, but it does not matter if it is not there. Allowed cooking in a pan. The only condition is that the pan should be with a thick (double) bottom. Usually made of stainless steel.

• meat - 0.6 kg;
• one carrot medium;
• rice - 0.45 kg;
• spice;
• 1 onion;
• salt;
• garlic - a couple of cloves;
• oil - 110-120 ml;
• water.

1. Peel and wash the vegetables. Cut the carrots in the form of a long straw. Onions - half rings.
2. Peel the meat from the films and cut into slices, size 2x2. Finely chopped meat is not very juicy.
3. Wash rice several times. The steamed variety does not need to be washed.
4. Pour oil into a saucepan, heat and pour onions. Fry until golden brown.
5. Add chopped meat. When browned, add carrots. Salt and add the necessary spices.
6. When everything is fried, pour a few glasses of hot water and simmer for about half an hour.
7. Pour washed rice. Add fluid if necessary. The water level should be 2 cm above the rice.
8. After boiling, leave to simmer over low heat until the liquid boils completely.
9. Collect the pilaf with a slide, make holes, put pieces of garlic in them. To cover with a lid.
10. Check the complete evaporation of the liquid at the bottom of the pan and the readiness of the rice. After turning off, let it brew.

Delicious pilaf in a cauldron

To cook pilaf in a traditional oriental dish - a cauldron, it is unforgettably delicious.

• beef - 0.55 kg;
• carrots - medium;
• rice - 0.45 kg;
• barberry - a teaspoon;
• one onion is large;
• zira - on the tip of a spoon;
• turmeric - 0.3 tsp;
• pepper;
• vegetable oil - 140 ml;
• garlic a couple of cloves;
• salt.

1. Wash and peel vegetables. Cut the carrots into strips, onions - in half rings.
2. Cut the beef into small pieces so that it remains juicy.
3. On a fire, heat a cauldron with oil well. Fry the onion until golden.
4. Add meat and fry until golden brown.
5. Sprinkle carrots, spices and fry for about 15 minutes.
6. Pour hot water, simmer for about half an hour. Beef should be soft.
7. Rinse the rice. Soak opaque grains several times in water.
8. Add to cauldron. Add hot liquid if necessary. The water level should be 2 cm above the rice. Do not mix the contents of the cauldron.
9. Cover, after boiling, leave to simmer until the liquid completely disappears.
10. When there is no water, make holes in the rice and put pieces of garlic in them.
11. Check with a spoon, if all the liquid has evaporated, try for preparedness. Turn off, leave under a closed lid to cool.

How to cook beef pilaf in a slow cooker

Pilaf in a slow cooker will save time and energy of the hostess. The volume of the bowl is 5 liters.

• meat - 0.44 kg;
• carrots - 1 pc.;
• rice - 0.3 kg;
• onion - 1 pc.;
• spice;
• oil - 80 ml;
• garlic;
• salt.

1. Peel and cut vegetables. Carrots in the form of straws, onions - in half rings.
2. Cut the meat to the size of a walnut.
3. Turn the slow cooker on the "Fry" mode. Pour in oil.
4. After heating, start frying the onions. Then put the beef and fry until golden brown.
5. Fry the carrots. Salt, add spices.
6. Put washed rice on the meat.
7. Pour hot liquid to a level 2 cm above the rice.
8. Put the cloves of garlic.
9. Close, enable the "Pilaf" mode.
10. After the end of the regime, let it brew for about 30 minutes without opening the lid.

Calorie content

The calorie content of this Uzbek pilaf depends on the fat content of the meat, and averages 219 kcal per 100 grams. It can vary depending on additional ingredients, for example, dried fruits: raisins, dried apricots, prunes.

Useful Tips

1. Oriental craftsmen advise: when the liquid evaporates, collect the pilaf with a slide, make holes and put pieces of garlic in them.
2. If steamed rice is used, it does not need to be soaked.

Do not be afraid to cook pilaf. If it doesn’t turn out the way you wanted for the first time, you don’t need to be upset. All comes with experience. We try, hone our skills.