Who said frozen food microwave dinners has to look like, well, frozen food microwave dinner? When I served this kebab pilau on the dinner table, it certainly didn’t look like it nor tasted like it. Personally, I’m not the biggest fan of microwave foods, but sometimes you may occasionally come across some decent quality ones which you can conveniently turn around into a proper meal.
I used frozen kebabs from Zulekha Foods, which only requires a few minutes in the microwave to cook through. But instead of microwaving them, I steamed them away to cook together over a bed of pilau rice. In addition to basmati rice, I also added a touch of broken vermicelli because I love a good vermicelli rice pilau – extra texture, why not? Though you can totally leave it out and only use rice if you like.
How to make One-Pot Kebab Pilau
Ingredients:
- Frozen Kebabs of your choice
- Ghee – use vegetable oil/sunflower oil/butter if you don’t have ghee
- Cloves, Cumin Seeds, Black Peppercorns, Cardamoms, Bay Leaf – spices for tempering the oil/ghee
- Onion, Ginger Paste & Garlic Paste, Green Chillies – the aromatics
- Salt, Turmeric Powder, Coriander Powder, Cumin Powder, Paprika, Garam Masala – the spices and seasonings
- Rice – Basmati Rice would be ideal. If not, you can use other long-grain rice varieties
- Broken Vermicelli – optional
- Water – for cooking the rice
- Fresh Coriander Leaves – more for garnish
- Lemon Wedges – to serve
Recipe notes
- By tempering the spices in hot oil/ghee, you get to extract the essence of the spices and really add a layer of flavours to cook the dish. That being said, do not burn the spices. Otherwise, that would then add a burnt taste to your dish!
- Take your time to cook the aromatics and allow the onions to soften up till browned. The onions really add a depth of flavours and give a subtle sweetness from the caramelisation.
- Wash the rice till the water runs clear before cooking. This helps to wash away the starch and keeps the rice fluffy.
- When cooking the rice, once you put the lid on, keep it closed and let it steam away without disturbance.
Easy One-Pot Kebab Pilau Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 heaped tbsp Ghee
- 3 Cloves
- 1 tsp Cumin Seeds
- 1 tsp Black Peppercorn
- 2 pods Cardamom
- 1 piece Bay Leaf
- 1 large Onion chopped
- 1 tsp Ginger Paste
- 1 tsp Garlic Paste
- 2-3 Green Chillies
- 1 tsp Salt
- ½ tsp Turmeric Powder
- ½ tsp Coriander Powder
- ½ tsp Garam Masala
- ½ tsp Paprika
- ½ tsp Cumin Powder
- 1 cup Rice washed and drained
- ½ cup Broken Vermicelli (optional)
- 1½ cup Water (use 1 cup only if not adding broken vermicelli)
- 4-6 Frozen Kebabs
- 10 g Fresh Coriander Leaves plus more for garnish
- 1 Lemon
Instructions
- Heat ghee in a pot over medium heat. Add cloves, cumin seeds, black peppercorns, cardamom, and bay leaf. Allow to cook until crackling and the bay leaf browned.
- Add in chopped onions and sautee for 5-10 minutes until golden and softened.
- Stir in ginger paste, garlic paste, and green chillies. Saute for another 5 minutes till the raw smell cooks off.
- Season with salt and stir in turmeric powder, coriander powder, paprika, cumin powder, and garam masala.
- Add in rice and vermicelli. Stir until evenly combined.
- Pour in water and bring to a boil. Lay the frozen kebabs on top and cover. Turn down to low heat and allow to steam away for 15 minutes.
- Remove the lid. Add in chopped coriander leaves and a squeeze of lemon. Toss to combine and serve immediately.
Notes
- If you don’t have ghee, you can use vegetable oil/sunflower seed oil/butter.
- If you don’t have basmati rice, you can use other long-grain rice varieties.
- When tempering the spices in hot oil/ghee, do not burn the spices. It is ready once it starts crackling and the bay leaf has browned in colour.
- Wash the rice till the water runs clear before cooking. This helps to wash away the starch and keeps the rice fluffy.
- When cooking the rice, once you put the lid on, keep it closed and let it steam away without disturbance.
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