Cooking time : 45 mins.
Preparation time : 30 mins.

Serves 12

Ingredients

3 uncooked teacups rice
2 teacups mixed boiled vegetables ( french beans, carrot, green peas and potatoes)
5 onions
1 teacup thick curds
3/4 teaspoon saffron
2 teaspoons milk
1 teaspoon sugar
6 tablespoons ghee
ghee for deep frying
salt to taste
To be ground into a paste
2 large onions
6 cloves garlic
2 teaspoons khus-khus
2 teaspoons aniseeds
25 mm. (1") piece ginger
4 red chillies
4 green chillies
7 curry leaves
7 cloves
2 sticks cinnamon
5 peppercorns
2 tablespoons grated fresh coconut
3 teaspoons coriander seeds
1 1/2 teaspoons cumin seeds (jeera)

Method

1. Boil the rice. Each grain of the cooked rice should be separate.

2. Slice the onions thinly. Deep fry in ghee to a golden brown colour.

3. Add salt to the rice and vegetables.

4. Warm the saffron in a small vessel, add 2 teaspoons of milk and stir until the saffron dissolves. Add this to the cooked rice and mix well.

5. Heat 2 tablespoons of ghee in a vessel and fry the paste for at least 3 or 4 minutes.


6. Cool, add the curds, sugar and salt.

7. Put 4 tablespoons of ghee in a vessel and sprinkle a few fried onions at the bottom.

8. Spread half the rice over the onions.

9. Spread the paste over the rice.

10. Sprinkle vegetables over the paste.

11. Cover the vegetables, with the remaining fried onions and rice. Put a lid on the top.

12. Bake in a hot oven at 400°F for 25 minutes.

13. Turn upside down on a big seving plate just before serving.

14. Serve hot.