Meera Sodha’s vegan recipe for simple vegetable pulao | The new vegan

A percentage of my bones are made up of vegetable pulao. It’s a daily part of Gujarati life that I’d overlooked until a recent trip to see my parents. My mum now has arthritis in her hands and her cooking has had to adapt. She can’t, for example, make chapatis any more, with all the kneading and rolling they require, and even the ginger, garlic and chillies that she uses for today’s recipe are processed in a blender in bulk then frozen until needed. Pulao, however, for all its ingredients, is actually a very simple recipe that remains at the heart of her family cooking.

Simple vegetable pulao

You’ll need a large saute pan (mine is 28cm), pot or saucepan with a tight-fitting lid. If you do all the preparation up front, it’s just a question of putting it all into a pan ingredient by ingredient.

Prep 15 min
Cook 45 min
Serves 4

300g basmati rice
4 tbsp sunflower oil
5 cloves
1 stick cinnamon, broken into pieces
1 large onion (about 275g), peeled and finely chopped
4 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
3cm x 3cm piece fresh ginger, peeled and finely grated
3 green finger chillies, slit lengthways
1½ tbsp tomato puree
¼ tsp turmeric
1½ tsp ground coriander
1½ tsp ground cumin
1 large potato, peeled and cut into 1cm dice (200g net)
2 medium carrots, peeled and cut into 1cm dice (200g net)
150g frozen petit pois
2 tsp fine sea salt
Lemon slices, vegan yoghurt and fresh coriander, to serve

Put the rice in a bowl, cover with cold water and gently swirl with your hands until the water goes cloudy. Drain and repeat a few more times, until the water remains relatively clear, then drain and cover with fresh cold water and put to one side.

Put four tablespoons of oil in a wide frying pan for which you have a lid, and put on a medium heat. Once the oil is hot, add the cloves and cinnamon, leave them them sizzle for a few seconds, then add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, for 10-12 minutes, until the onions begin to brown.

Add the garlic, ginger and finger chillies, cook for three minutes, then stir in the tomato puree and the dry spices (turmeric, coriander and cumin), and cook for a couple of minutes longer. Add the potatoes and carrots, and mix everything well.

Pop the kettle on. Drain the rice really well, then tip the rice, peas and salt into the frying pan, stir and add 520ml just-boiled water. Bring to a rolling boil (this should take about three minutes), then pop on the lid and turn down the heat to a whisper. Leave to simmer for 15 minutes, then take off the heat and leave, still covered, to rest for 10 minutes.

Fluff up the rice with a fork (or spaghetti fork), then serve with lemon slices, vegan yoghurt and fresh coriander.