Skip to main content

Summer Squash Biryani

This flavorful rice dish could be a nice vegetarian meal on its own, or a side dish as part of a bigger meal. This pairs beautifully with a rich curry.

1 sweet yellow onion, sliced
2 Tbsp ghee or butter


1 Tbsp ghee or butter
1 zucchini squash, cubed
1 yellow summer squash, cubed
1/3 cup frozen peas, thawed
1 tsp panchpuran (or 1/2 tsp cumin seeds plus 1/2 tsp fennel seeds)
dash crushed red pepper flakes


2 cups cooked basmati rice
fresh mint leaves for garnish (optional)


Cook the onions in the ghee or butter for about 15 minutes, until nicely caramelized and browned.  Initial cooking can be at slightly higher heat, but stir often.  After about 5 minutes, the heat should be fairly low to avoid burning.  Set onions aside in a bowl.


In the same skillet, brown the zucchini and summer squash in a bit more ghee or butter over relatively high heat.  This will brown the surface quickly, while keeping the structure of the squash firm.  Cook for only about 3-5 minutes.  Then return the onions to the skillet along with the peas, panchpuran seeds and red pepper flakes.

Gently fold the rice into the veggies and heat through. Garnish with fresh mint.
Serves 4 as a side dish.


Cook’s Note:  I actually used rendered lamb fat to brown the squash, left from sauce from a recently roasted leg of lamb.  This added a hugh boost of flavor to the dish.  You could also use chicken schmaltz if you have any (I always keep some frozen from making chicken broth).


I also used a 50:50 mixture of Basmati and Red Matta rice.  You can use whatever your favorite rice is.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Umami Beef Short Ribs Samin Nosrat

This is the penultimate prep for beef short ribs.  Based on the superb documentary by Samin Nosrat, Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat, this is the most umami rib dish you will ever have.  Its the combination of red miso and soy sauce that marinates and flavors the beef - give it a long time to work right - that means overnight in the fridge; it's worth the planning ahead. 6 beef short ribs on the bone, about 3-4 lb 1 large sweet yellow onion, diced 2 stalks celery, diced 1 jalapeño pepper, minced 4 cloves garlic, halved Marinade: 1/4 cup red miso 1/4 cup soy sauce 1/4 cup pale dry sherry or Mirin rice wine 1 Tbsp sesame oil 1 Tbsp honey 2 cloves garlic, minced Salt the ribs generously with coarse salt and let rest overnight in the refrigerator in a resealable plastic bag. Whisk together the marinade.   Pour into the plastic bag and allow to marinate on the counter for about 2-3 hours, or again overnight in the refrigerator. Preheat...

Haddock Roasted with Aioli and Tomatoes

This is a simple yet suculent way to roast fish. Here I use haddock, but you could use most any fish including cod or tilapia, or as I did on the west coast, wild-caught Rockfish (delicious). The tomatoes offer a fresh flavor complement to the fish slathered with a rich aioli topping. This is a quick, easy way to prepare fish on a busy weeknight. 1-1/2 lb haddock fillet (Captain’s cut preferred - thicker), patted dry Aioli: 1/4 cup good real mayonnaise 1 tsp Dijon mustard 1 Tbsp favorite hot sauce 1 pint grape tomatoes 1/2 tsp dried dill weed Fresh parsley, minced, for garnish Lemon wedges for garnish Preheat oven to 375F. Oil a medium baking dish (about 7x10-inch). Lay haddock fillet in dish. Whisk together the mayonnaise, mustard and hot sauce in a small bowl. Using a pastry brush, cover the fillet evenly with the aioli sauce. Toss the tomatoes with a dash of olive oil and scatter them over the fish. Season with dill and freshly ground black pepper to taste. Bake fish for about 20 mi...

'Back-of-the-bag' King Arthur Oatmeal Bread

This is one of the best loaves of bread I have ever made, based on a famous recipe.  Friends swear about King Arthur recipes, and now I do too.  I only modified King Arthur's recipe slightly, adding the yolk of the egg I used for the eggwash on the crust. Goes great with a big pot of bean soup.  And it toasts up so nicely - aroma therapy for the whole house! 3-1/4 to 3-1/2 cups bread flour 1 cup old fashioned oats 2 tsp active dry yeast 2 Tbsp honey 1-1/2 tsp salt 2 Tbsp butter, finely diced 1 egg yolk 1-1/4 cup lukewarm (about 100F) milk 1 egg white plus 1 Tbsp water about 1/4 cup old fashioned oats for topping Mix ingredients to a firm but still tacky dough.  You’ll have to adjust the final amount of dough to the humidity of your kitchen and flour - err on the sticky side for a lighter, moister loaf.  Knead dough 5 minutes.  Roll dough around in an oiled bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Allow dough to rise an hour. ...