Zarda Rice Recipe

Zarda is a  popular Indian, Pakistani sweet rice dish. The word zarda is derived from the Urdu word zard meaning yellow hence the colour of the rice compliments the name. Zarda is mostly served after a meal as a dessert, but it's also a popular dessert on wedding menus.


Zarda is aromatized with cardamom, cinnamon and rose water and finally studded with glazed fruit and nuts. A perfectly adorned dish to celebrate a wedding. Separately boiled rice is added to the sugar syrup and then decorated with nuts and fruit.

If I need to use colour in my food. I try to use vegetable colours as they are safe to use.  So why risk your health when you have safer options. Let's give this recipe a try. Below is the ingredient list.
                                                                                 
                                                                                                            Preparation time: 1 hr
                                                                                                            Yields: 5 servings
                                                                                                            Difficulty: easy




Ingredients:

• 300g basmati rice boiled with 1 tsp yellow colour and drained (boil as per package directions)
• 4 tbsp oil
• 5-6 cardamom pods split open
• glazed cherries as needed
• mixed dried fruit and nuts
• Thinly sliced dried coconut as needed

For Sugar Syrup:

• 400g sugar
• 5 cups water
• 1-2 sticks cinnamon

Cook with 2 sticks of cinnamon till reduced to a syrup. Set aside. The syrup should be of medium consistency.

Method:

•  Boil rice with colour, add more colour if you require an intense yellow coloured rice. Otherwise use the colour as needed. Set aside.

• Heat oil in a heavy based pot with cardamom pods when cardamom releases aroma add sugar syrup.                                                                                                                                

•   Add boiled rice, place a heavy based pan below the rice pan and cook till sugar syrup is totally absorbed into the rice. Takes about twenty minutes. Now add nuts, glazed fruit, dried coconut cut in thin flakes and raisins.

• That's it zarda rice is ready to serve. This dish is best served hot.

Hope you will try this recipe in your kitchen. Please feel free to share your zarda rice experience with me. Thanks for visiting my blog and I hope you will revisit.