madhur jaffrey's spiced rice with cashews

like most indian food, it's really easy to eat too much of this.

spiced rice with cashews

2 cups white basmati or other long-grain white rice
4 Tbsp vegetable oil
2 Tbsp raw cashews, split in half lengthwise
1 medium-sized onion, peeled, cut in half, and sliced thinly
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tsp peeled, grated fresh ginger
1/8 tsp cayenne
1 tsp salt
3/4 tsp garam masala
3 cups hot vegetable stock (make it by boiling 10 dried shitake mushrooms, 1/2 an onion, 2 carrots, for 20-30 minutes, then drain broth from veggies)

rinse the rice 4 or 5 times. cover rice with 4 1/2 cups of fresh water and leave to soak for 1/2 an hour. drain, and leave rice in strainer.

preheat oven to 325 degrees F.

use a heave ovenproof pot or 2-quart sauté pan with a lid. heat the oil over medium heat. Put in the cashews. Fry for a few seconds, until the nuts turn golden brown. remove nuts with a slotted spoon and set aside.

fry the onion slices in the same oil for a few minutes, until they begin to brown. add the drained rice, garlic, ginger, cayenne, garam masala, and salt. turn heat to medium low and stir and fry the rice for 7-9 minutes until rice is translucent and well coated with the oil.

add the heated stock. keep stirring and cooking on a medium-low flame for another 5-6 minutes. when the top of the rice begins to look dry (there will still be liquid left on the bottom of the pot), cover the pot with a well-fitting lid and place in the oven for 20-25 minutes until rice is cooked through. remove pot from oven, stir in cashews and leave, covered, for 10 minutes.

when ready to serve, break up clumps in rice and spoon onto plates.