Vegetarian Kabuli Pulao Recipe – Rice Layered With Chickpea Curry

Kabuli Pulao is a traditional dish from the Kabul region of Afghanistan. It is usually cooked with meat. However, here we have replaced the meat with the healthy chickpeas for a vegetarian twist, with Vegetarian Kabuli Pulao Recipe. Course : Main Course Ingridients : 2 cups Basmati rice , soaked in water for 10-15 minutes 2 cups Kabuli Chana (White Chickpeas) , boiled 2 Onions , thinly sliced 5 sprig Mint Leaves (Pudina) 1 Bay leaf (tej patta) 2 inch Cinnamon Stick (Dalchini) 4 Cloves (Laung) 2 Cardamom (Elaichi) Pods/Seeds , lightly crushed 1 Black cardamom (Badi Elaichi) , lightly crushed 1 tablespoon Ghee Salt , to taste Ingredients to make Kabuli Chana Masala 2 Onions , finely chopped 2 Tomatoes , pureed 2 tablespoons Ginger Garlic Paste 1 teaspoon Paprika powder 2 teaspoon Coriander Powder (Dhania) 1/2 teaspoon Cinnamon Powder (Dalchini) 2 teaspoons Cumin powder (Jeera) 2 teaspoons Garam masala powder 1 tablespoon Ghee Salt , to taste Instructions To begin making the Vegetarian Kabuli Pulao Recipe (Rice Layered with Chickpea Curry), wash and soak the kabuli chana overnight. In the morning, pressure cook with enough water for 3 whistles or till cooked al dente or mildly soft but not mushy, and keep aside.Wash and soak the basmati rice in water before proceeding further.Heat a tablespoon of ghee, add the sliced onions and saute until it turns brown and crispy. Keep aside. We will use it while layering the rice.Now, we proceed to making the kabuli chana masala.Heat ghee in a pan, and add the finely chopped onions on a medium low heat and saute until they turn translucent.Add the ginger garlic paste, saute until the raw smell goes away.Add the tomato puree and cook until the mixture comes together from the sides of pan.Add the paprika, cinnamon, roasted cumin, garam masala and red chilli powder, and mix well.Now add the boiled kabuli chana, about a cup of water, season with required salt and let it simmer for about 10 minutes.Keep cooking further till you have a thick consistency of the garvy. Once the curry thickens, switch off the heat and keep it aside.Now to make the aromatic rice, heat ghee in another wide pan, add the cinnamon stick, cloves, green and black cardamoms and let it flavour the ghee.Drain the water from the soaked rice, add it to the pan.Season with salt, add 1.5 cups of water and let it cook with the lid on till 3/4th in medium heat. This will take around 15-20 minutes.Once the rice is cooked to al dente, drain all the water with the help of a colander.Now, to layer the Vegetarian Kabuli Pulao, place half the portion of the prepared kabuli masala in the same wide pan.Add half of the cooked rice above it, add half of the fried onions and mint.Layer again with the kabuli masala, rice, fried onions, and mint leaves.Close it with the lid and let it cook in dum with a lid on for 10 minutes.Serve the Vegetarian Kabuli Pulao Recipe (Rice Layered with Chickpea Curry), along with Cauliflower & Cucumber Raita Recipe and Paneer Stuffed Millet Patties Recipe and Dhaniya Pudina Chutney Recipe for a weekend meal.