Jeera Rice | Cumin Rice Recipe
Jeera Rice is a delightful rice dish that can be paired with your favourite dal or any gravy. It is a basic rice preparation using tempering of cumin seeds along with few other whole spices like bay leaves, cardamom and cloves.
Ingredients
- 1.5 cups basmati rice
- 1 tbsp cumin seeds
- 1 no black cardamom
- 3-4 nos cloves
- 1-2 nos bay leaves
- 3 cups hot water
- 1 tbsp ghee (clarified butter) vegetable oil for vegan option
- salt as per taste
Instructions
- Thoroughly wash the rice under running water.
- Soak the rinsed rice for 20-30 minutes; it helps in easily cooking of rice.
- Once rice is soaked for 15 minutes or so, start preparing tempering for jeera rice.
- Take a wide saute pan over high-medium heat. Add ghee or clarified butter into it. Incase you want to avoid dairy product replace ghee with vegetable oil (or any neutral taste oil).
- Once oil or ghee is hot enough; add cumin seeds into it.
- Turn heat to low and add remaining whole spices ie, bay leaves, cardamom and cloves.
- Sauté few seconds until fragrant. Meanwhile, strain the soaked rice and add into the pan.
- Once rice is transferred into the pan, gently toss or mix it to combine with whole spices. Be gentle while mixing the rice and avoid breaking any rice granules.
- Once rice is well combined with spices, add hot water into the pan. Always use hot water while cooking to maintain the temperature.
- Once water is added into the pan, season with salt. Turn heat to high and allow rice to cook over high heat.
- Rice will start bubbling in hot water and absorbs most of the water in about 5-7 minutes.
- Once water is almost absorbed, turn heat to low and cover with lid.
- Cook the rice over low heat with lid on for another 4-6 minutes.
- At this point, rice is almost cooked. Remove the lid and gently stir using fork. (If rice is too dry, you might want to add few tbsp of water.)
- Put the lid back and simmer for another 2-3 minutes.
- Now, turn off the heat but keep the lid on and allow it to rest for 3-4 minutes. Then remove the lid allow rice to rest for another 5-7 minutes. This helps rice to hold its shape and it cooks thoroughly. Do not mix or stir the rice with spoon at this point; else it will break its shape.
- Once 5-7 minutes are over, gently mix the rice using fork and finally garnish with freshly chopped coriander leaves. Jeera Rice is ready.
- (PS. There might be slight variations in stovetop or gas temperatures. Thus; if rice still looks undercooked; then sprinkle few tbsp water and cook with lid on until rice is thoroughly cooked.)
Notes
Tips for cooking & serving the Rice:
- Rice to water proportion should be 1:2. Once half way cooked if rice is too dry or sticked to the bottom of pan; you may add few tbsp of hot water.
- Always serve warm Jeera Rice (or any rice) as it turns dry and lumpy once cooled.
- You can re-heat the rice in a microwave; just sprinkle some water over the top and stir with fork.
- Do not stir the rice for longer while cooking or re-heating as it may squish the grains.
- Also, do not use a spoon to mix the rice as it makes it mushy. I prefer to use fork while cooking the rice. Just stir it few times while cooking to get fluffy texture.
- You can use the flat spoon to serve the warm rice. While serving; scoop up the rice from sides of the pan, just to avoid squishing the rice (as no one loves mushy rice 😜).