Saffron and Mushroom Pilau Rice

The is a deceptively simple and very tasty rice to go with a curry.

With no meat it can fit any dietary plan or requirement.

I have also made this with cauliflower rice. In this case I treat it as a stir fry and use stock to stop it from sticking and to stay moist. I used a tsp of ground cinnamon instead of a cinnamon stick.

Ingredients

• 300g white basmati rice
• Low calorie cooking spray
• 300g sliced shiitake mushrooms (any mushroom will do)
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 6 cardamom pods
• 10 black pepper corns
• 1 bay leaf
• 3 cloves
• 1 tsp turmeric
• A large pinch of saffron
• 100g frozen peas
• 600ml vegetable stock

Method:

1. Rinse the rice under cold water and drain throughly.
2. Spray a heavy based pan with low calorie spray oil and place over a medium heat.
3. Add the mushrooms, cinnamon stick, cardamom pods, peppercorns, bay leaf and cloves and cook for five minutes. Stir gently as they cook.
4. Add the rice, turmeric, saffron, peas and stock plus salt to your taste.
5. Bring to the boil over a high heat.
6. Stir well and cover and cook on a low heat for 10 minutes. If your kid is not tight add tin foil below the lid to seal the pan. Weigh it down with the lid.
7. Remove from the heat and leave for 10-12 minutes.
8. Fluff up with a fork and serve.