Bengali
Pushpanna
- Duration: 25 min
- Serves: 4 people
Authenticity Slice
Traditionally pushpanna’s rice is prepared with Gobindo Bhog rice which gives the rice that aroma of sweet buttery flavour.
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Trivia Tadka
One of the most opulent of Bengali rice dishes, it is called pushpanna because the rice is fragrant and colourful like a bouquet of flowers and Bengalis add pieces of chopped dried fruits to heighten the colour. This recipe is also offered to Lord Krishna in temples of Iskcon too.
Ingredients
- Gobindo bhog rice, cooked (4 cups)
- Green peas (matar) (1/2 cup)
- Black pepper powder (kali mirch) (1 tsp)
- Cloves (laung) (1/2 tsp)
- Cardamom powder (elaichi) (1/2 tsp)
- Fennel seeds (saunf) (1/2 tsp)
- Cumin seeds (jeera) (1/2 tsp)
- Cinnamon (dalchini) (1" piece)
- Asafoetida (hing) (1/4 tsp)
- MTR Lal Mirch/Red Chilli Powder (1/2 tsp)
- Paneer cubes (1 cup)
- Shredded coconut (nariyal) (1 tbsp)
- Saffron (zafran/kesar) (1/2 tsp)
- Milk (1/4 cup)
- Salt ( to taste)
- Oil (1 cup)
- Clarified butter (ghee) (2 tbsp)
For tadka
- Clarified butter (ghee) (2 tbsp)
- Raisins (kismis) (2 tbsp)
- Cashew nuts (kaju), chopped (1 tbsp)
- Almonds (badam), sliced (1 tbsp)
Method
- Warm the milk and add saffron to create an infusion. Pour this milk over the cooked rice and gently stir to colour the rice. Set aside.
- Boil the green peas in one cup of salted water for 3–4 mins, drain the water and allow them to cool.
- Deep fry the paneer cubes in oil until golden brown, place on an absorbent paper to remove excess oil.
- Heat ghee in a large kadhai, add fennel seeds, cumin seeds, cinnamon stick, cloves, cardamom powder, black pepper, asafoetida and MTR Lal Mirch/Red Chilli Powder. Cook for about a minute.
- Next, add the cooked peas, paneer cubes, coconut and salt; cook further for 3–5 mins.
- Finally add the saffron rice and cook on a low flame for 5 mins.
- Heat ghee in a pan and lightly sauté the almonds, cashews and raisins and sprinkle them on top of the cooked rice.
- Serve the deliciously rich pushpanna with your favourite raita and cholar dal.
