This Easy Rice Pilaf with Caraway Seeds is a delicately flavoured savoury rice that’s infused with aromatics like onion, garlic, caraway seeds and cumin. It goes perfectly with a variety of family meals, including casseroles and curries. It’s a really versatile rice side dish! Quick to assemble and then oven-baked in chicken stock until the rice is light and fluffy, this easy rice pilaf is full of flavour and super satisfying.
Why you’ll love this pilaf rice
Pilaf is delicious! Rice is sautéed in butter before being cooked in flavoured stock/broth, in this case chicken stock. So it’s buttery, savoury and so much tastier than plain white rice!
It’s kid-friendly too – tasty, but not too overpowering.
It’s quick and easy to assemble. Just a little bit of sautéing before most of the cooking is done in the oven! With this recipe in your collection, you’ll never buy packet-mix flavoured rice again 😊.
Ingredients in this Easy Rice Pilaf
Just a few simple ingredients make up this savoury rice recipe:
Basmati rice – Basmati rice is the preferred variety for pilaf, because the grains stay light, fluffy and separate.
Onion – Use brown/yellow onion.
Garlic – Substitute the garlic cloves for 2 teaspoons of minced garlic if needed.
Butter – Unsalted.
Caraway seeds – Caraway seeds have a warm, earthy, and slightly sweet flavour with a hint of anise or liquorice-like undertones. I love their distinctive flavour!
Cumin seeds – Cumin is common in Mexican, Indian and Middle Eastern cooking. It has a lovely warm and slightly spicy flavour.
Ground turmeric – This adds flavour and colour. If you substitute with fresh, use about 1/4 inch of fresh turmeric, grated.
Chicken stock/broth – Use no-salt or salt-reduced stock if serving to family under 2 years of age. If you’d rather a vegetarian side dish, substitute with vegetable stock/broth.
How to make Rice Pilaf
This really is a quick and easy rice pilaf to assemble, before oven-baking. Here’s a summary of how to make it.
Scroll down to the recipe card below, to find exact ingredient amounts and full detailed steps for both regular and thermo cooker methods.
Step 1: In a saucepan over medium-high heat, sauté the onion and garlic in butter.
Step 2: Add the spices and rice and cook for just a minute, until the rice is coated and spices are fragrant.
Step 3: Transfer the rice mixture to a casserole dish with lid. Pour over chicken stock and then bake in the oven.
Thermomixer? You can use your machine to prep the rice. Chop the onion and garlic in your machine, and then sauté them in butter. Add the spices and rice and cook for just a minute, until the rice is coated and spices are fragrant. Transfer the rice mixture to a casserole dish with lid. Pour over chicken stock and then bake in the oven.
Serving
Serve Rice Pilaf as a side dish alongside grilled meats, casseroles and curries. It really adds to a meal, more so than plain white rice!
I love serving it with Apricot Chicken – the savoury rice compliments the sweet sauce of the casserole perfectly.
Storing and reheating
STORING: Leftover rice can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. It can also be stored in the freezer for up to 3 months. The rice will become more dry the longer that it’s stored – see the reheating tip below!
REHEATING: From the fridge or defrosted, Rice Pilaf can be reheated easily in the microwave or oven. Just add 1 tablespoon of water for every cup of leftover rice. Either cook on high in the microwave for a minute or two, or reheat in the oven in an oven-safe dish with lid at 170°C/340°F (150°C fan forced) for 15-20 minutes. Stir and check that the rice is heated through.
Looking for more easy side dishes for family meals? Try this Mashed Sweet Potato and Cauliflower. It’s a smooth mash that has the natural sweetness of sweet potatoes and hidden cauliflower, a hint of garlic and a touch of butter.
If you make this Easy Rice Pilaf please leave a 🌟 star rating and a 📝 comment below. I love hearing how my recipes work for you and your family! Don’t forget to follow me on Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest too for more kid-friendly side dishes.
Happy cooking,
Chloe x
Easy Rice Pilaf
Category: SidesIngredients
- 2 tbs butter unsalted
- 1 brown/yellow onion finely chopped (Thermomixers: peeled and quartered)
- 2 garlic cloves minced (Thermomixers: peeled)
- 1 cup basmati rice
- 1 tsp caraway seeds
- 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
- 1/4 tsp ground turmeric
- 375 ml chicken stock/broth (low sodium, Note 1)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 200°C/390°F (180°C fan-forced).
- Heat 2 tbs butter in a large skillet or saucepan, and sauté 1 brown/yellow onion and 2 garlic cloves over medium-high heat until the onion is translucent.
- Add 1 cup basmati rice, 1 tsp caraway seeds, 1/2 tsp cumin seeds and 1/4 tsp ground turmeric. Cook for 1 to 2 minutes, stirring until rice is fully coated.
- Transfer rice to a casserole dish with lid. Pour over 375 ml chicken stock/broth and gently stir. Spread mixture evenly along the bottom of the pan. Cover with lid.
- Bake in the oven for 25 minutes, until the stock/broth has been absorbed and the rice is light, fluffy and starting to turn crispy around the edges. Fluff with a fork and serve.
Thermomix Instructions
- Preheat the oven to to 200°C/390°F (180°C fan-forced).
- Put 1 brown/yellow onion and 2 garlic cloves into the mixing bowl. Chop for 6 seconds, speed 5, MC on. Scrape down the mixing bowl.
- Add 2 tbs butter. Cook for 5 minutes, 100°C, speed 1, MC off.
- Add 1 cup basmati rice, 1 tsp caraway seeds, 1/2 tsp cumin seeds and 1/4 tsp ground turmeric. Cook for 1 minute, 100°C, speed 1, reverse, MC off.
- Transfer rice to a casserole dish with lid. Pour over 375 ml chicken stock/broth and gently stir. Spread mixture evenly along the bottom of the pan. Cover with lid.
- Bake in the oven for 25 minutes, until the stock has been absorbed and the rice is light, fluffy and starting to turn crispy around the edges. Fluff with a fork and serve.
One Response
I made this again this week to go with a curry, and it was so good! Easy to put together, and so much tastier than plain rice. I love this pilaf recipe!