The Taste of Laughter and Memories

I think the first time I tasted peas pulao was when me and my friends were at some restaurant and wanted to order something different than the usual jeera or fried rice. The other dishes I forget but I still remember the taste of white steamed rice flecked with green peas and cumin and the way it meshed well with the curries and sides that we had ordered. I remember I had then gone back home, found the recipe from the internet and begged my mother to make it. She did, one Sunday lunch, with chicken curry, paneer makhani and dal fry served with assorted papads and salad. From then on, it became a family favorite.
That particular dish now, being so far away from home, has become flavored with those sunny days of play and no work when you did not have to worry about the next paper or conference. You could read all your beloved classics well into the afternoon until called to the family table - overflowing with food and where there was no dearth of conversation.

Now that winter is here, peas make an appearance back to the markets where you can see the green pods smiling happily among the shiny red peppers and cauliflowers and just essentially opening your mind to all those memories and with it culinary inspirations. So it was no wonder that I came back laden with a load of green peas for a light and I should say healthy dinner. What I did was divide the peas for two dishes - the favorite peas pulao and lightly spiced Aloo matar to go along with it. The pulao has been made simpler by the use of the rice cooker. While the rice bubbles away, you can toss spices, onions, potatoes and peas into a hot pan and voila! By the time the rice is done the curry side dish will be ready and everything will be served together instead of any sequential waiting around for the dishes to be finished.

Mise-en-place:
Shell peas. Slice onions. Slit chilies. Chop tomatoes. If using, boil potatoes with a little salt for twenty minutes.Otherwise, dice potatoes into small cubes. Boil peas[ for the curry] for ten minutes.

Peas Pulao:

Ingredients:
2tbsp mustard oil
1tsp cumin seeds
1 medium onion
1 slit green chilly
1 cup peas
1 cup rice soaked
2 cups water
salt to taste

Method:
This is a little tricky but making the rice in the rice cooker cuts down on so much cooking time.
Turn on the cooker. Add the mustard oil and heat for a minute.
Splutter cumin seeds. Add the onions and cook till they are translucent. The onions should not brown but should have just softened. This should take around five minutes.
Add the chilly and peas and fold everything together. Add salt to taste.
Drain the rice and then add to the cooker. Fold in. Add the water. Cover and let the rice cook. When the cooking button goes off, open the lid and fluff the rice with a fork.

Aloo Matar:

Ingredients:
2tbsp oil
1tsp cumin seeds
1 cinnamon stick
1 bay leaf
1 medium onion
2 slit green chilly
2 small tomatoes
2 large potatoes
1 cup peas
2tbsp ginger-garlic paste
1tsp Red chilli powder
1tsp Coriander powder
1tsp Garam masala
salt to taste
water as required

Method:
Heat oil in a frying pan. Splutter the whole spices.
Add onions and brown for fifteen minutes. Add the ginger-garlic paste and green chilies.
Cook for five minutes. Add the tomatoes and a little water in case the masala sticks to the pan.
Cook until the tomatoes have melded into the masala. Add the spice powders and the salt. Cook for two minutes.
Add the peas and potatoes and coat them with masala. If you are using uncooked vegetables, add 1/2 cup water and let the potatoes cook for twenty minutes. If using boiled ones then cook for five minutes to let the flavors soak into them. Adjust seasonings as necessary. The resultant curry should be somewhere between a dry and gravy dish with just enough sauce to coat the pulao.
The dining experience was heady with flavors and memories - definitely something to go back to and enjoy.