Sindhi Peas and Carrot Pulao

Ingredients

• 400 g basmati chawal (basmati rice) (Washed and soaked 20 minutes)
• 3 medium gajar (carrots) (Cut into small batons or cubes — winter gajar is sweeter)
• 1 cup matar (green peas) (Fresh or frozen — both work)
• 2 medium pyaz (onion) (One sliced thin for the tarka, one finely chopped for flavour)
• 1 medium tamatar (tomato) (Finely chopped — adds a touch of acidity to balance the sweet carrots)
• 1 tbsp adrak lehsan paste (ginger garlic paste) (Fresh)
• 1 tsp zeera (cumin seeds) (Essential base note for Sindhi vegetable pulao)
• 1 tsp sabut garam masala (Bay leaf, cardamom, cloves)
• 0.5 tsp lal mirch powder (red chilli powder) (Light spicing — this is a gentle dish)
• 0.25 tsp haldi (turmeric) (Gives a warm golden colour)
• 3 tbsp oil ya ghee (Ghee preferred)
• to taste namak (salt) (Season water well)

Instructions

1. MAKE THE VEGETABLE TARKA: Heat oil/ghee in a pot. Add zeera and garam masala — let them splutter. Add onions and cook until golden. Add adrak lehsan paste and fry 1 minute. Add tamatar, haldi, lal mirch, and salt. Cook until oil separates, about 5 minutes. HINT: For this vegetable pulao, bhunao (frying) the spices in the tomato base creates a masala that will flavour the water and subsequently every grain of rice.
2. ADD VEGETABLES: Add gajar batons to the masala and stir well to coat. Cook 3 minutes. Add matar and stir. HINT: Adding carrots before peas is important — carrots take longer to cook. If you add them simultaneously, the peas will turn mushy by the time the carrots are tender.
3. ADD WATER AND BRING TO BOIL: Add 600ml water to the pot with vegetables. Taste the water and adjust salt. Bring to a rolling boil. HINT: The spiced vegetable water is your cooking medium — make sure it's well-seasoned at this stage.
4. ADD RICE AND COOK: Add soaked basmati. Stir once. Return to boil, then cover and cook on lowest heat for 18-20 minutes. Rest 8 minutes. HINT: The carrots and peas will naturally integrate into the rice during cooking — when you fluff at the end, they'll be beautifully distributed throughout.
5. FLUFF AND SERVE: Gently fluff the rice. The gajar should be tender and sweet, the matar bright and soft, and the rice perfectly separated. Serve on a wide platter to show off the colours.
6. FLUFF AND PLATE COLOURFULLY: After the rest period, open the pot and fluff with a fork. The bright orange gajar, green matar, and red/yellow shimla mirch will be distributed through the rice creating a naturally colourful dish. HINT: Transfer to a wide platter rather than a deep bowl to showcase all the colours — this dish earns admiration at the table. A final drizzle of warm ghee just before serving makes the grains glisten. Serve immediately while the colours are at their brightest.