Today it is impossible to say exactly what national cuisine is pilaf. There are many myths and legends about the appearance of this dish. Judging by the available sources, it has existed for more than a thousand years: in the East, pilaf was prepared from time immemorial, as the annals of the X-XI centuries say. Not a single celebration was complete without rice with meat and spices. In this article, we suggest that you familiarize yourself with this dish and an unconventional recipe for pilaf with sausages.
Myths and Tales
We have already mentioned the existence of legends. We will tell you some of them.
The first legend is associated with the name of a noble doctor and scientist Avicenna. With the help of pilaf, he healed to know. It was believed that the dish has healing properties and can cure many diseases. Often, during recovery after an illness, patients were fed pilaf. The dish returned strength, strengthened the immune system and prevented the weakening of the body.
Another legend says that the recipe for pilaf was open and recorded by the cook of Alexander the Great when he made a trip to Central Asia. The king personally named the dish - "pilaf", which in Greek means "diverse composition".
Composition and calorie content
Pilaf contains a large amount of vegetable and animal fats, which makes it a truly high-calorie dish. You can make it more dietary by replacing pork, lamb with chicken. But today we’ll talk about the option with the addition of sausages. Sausages are always at hand in the refrigerator or in the freezer. This is very convenient when there is not much time left. One medium plate of pilaf with sausages contains about 480 kilocalories, 19 grams of protein, 26 grams of fat and 41 grams of carbohydrates.
Selection of ingredients
The main component of pilaf is, of course, rice. Any, both white and brown, will do. The most important source of calories is oil. It is better to choose refined, as it has no smell and taste. There are various types of oils: sesame, corn, walnut, fat tail fat. A special oil is even sold in Tajikistan - Zagiri Isfara. But for cooking pilaf with sausages, ordinary vegetable oil is also quite suitable.
Cooking
To prepare pilaf with sausages in a cauldron, you will need:
- rice (white or brown) - 250 g,
- sausages - 8 pcs.,
- carrot - 3 pcs.,
- bell pepper (red) - 2 pcs.,
- onions - 1 pc.,
- oil - 2 tbsp. spoons
- seasoning for pilaf, black pepper, salt - to taste.
- Sort the rice and rinse several times. Water should be clear. Leave in warm water for 15 minutes.
- Cut the sausages in circles, previously cleaned (if necessary).
- Rinse, dry, pepper, core and cut into strips.
- Wash the carrots and onions, then peel and dry.
- Peel and chop the garlic.
- Heat sunflower oil in a cauldron. Put onions, carrots and bell peppers.
- Add sausages to the vegetables, mix and fry for a few more minutes.
- Add chopped garlic, salt, pepper, spices for pilaf.
- Drain the water in a bowl of rice.
- Put rice on top of sausages and vegetables, evenly distribute, pour hot water. Leave on medium heat until rice takes half of the water.
- Make a minimum fire, cover the cauldron with a lid and leave until the liquid has completely evaporated.
- Turn off the stove and leave the pilaf under the lid for 15 minutes.
- Put the finished dish on plates. Enjoy your meal!
We examined the cooking method in a cauldron above, now we’ll talk about how to make pilaf with sausages in a slow cooker. The ingredients are the same, but the cooking method is slightly different:
- Pour oil into the bowl and set the “Baking” mode.
- Peel, wash and dry onions, carrots and bell peppers. Add the onions to the heated oil and fry for about 10 minutes.
- Sort the rice, rinse thoroughly. Sausages cut into circles. Put in a bowl to the fried vegetables, add chopped garlic, spices, salt, pepper and pour water.
- Change the mode to "Pilaf", wait for a signal of readiness.
- Pilaf with sausages is ready. Serve the dish hot!
Features of cooking in different countries
Each country has its own specifics of cooking pilaf.
For example, Uzbeks first heat the oil and wait for the smoke to become almost transparent. To neutralize the bitterness, they throw a whole onion into the oil. To get rid of the smell, add lamb fat. Then stew the meat. Seasonings bring to a boil over minimal heat, put a lot of rice on top without mixing with the rest of the ingredients. Only after cooking, salt is added to the rice and mixed.
In Afghanistan, rice is first cooked, and then seasoned with meat.
Tajik cooking is characterized by soaking rice for 3 hours. Dried fruits, grape leaves and quince are often added to pilaf.
And Indian pilaf is generally vegetarian.