Passport & Plate - Achiro's Pilau rice with Irish Potatoes
Uganda | Thursday, February 13, 2014 | 5 photos
Ingredients
• I cup rice
• 1 clove garlic
• 3 onions
• One table spoon pilau masala
• 1 tea spoon coriander
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon vinegar
• 3 table spoons sunflower oil
• 1 teaspoon soy sauce
• 2 large Irish potatoes cubed
How to prepare this recipe1. In a hot sauce pan, heat the oil and cook onions till brown
2. Add garlic and cook till garlic is browned
3. Add all dry ingredients
4. Add soy sauce and vinegar
5. Add Irish potatoes and rice
6. Add two cups of water and bring to the boil
7. Cover rice and lower heat and cook till water dries and rice is cooked
8. Serve with vegetable of choice
The story behind this recipeWhen my father passed I was 13 and it was hard for my Mom to raise me and my five brothers by herself. We had developed a habit of buying rice in bulk so no matter what, we always had food in the house.
After a while, rice became boring but we didn’t have money to buy anything else, so my Mother taught me how to cook rice different ways. She said, “It may always be the same food but it can have a different taste each time. Just because you are poor does not mean you cannot dine like a King”.
That was how the idea to play with rice was birthed in me. To this day, I can never have a rice dish the same in one week. All I do is play with ingredients and create a new rice dish each time I cook. This pilau rice dish, I can cook with meat, chicken, beans or vegetables. Today I have chosen to cook it with Irish potatoes. The beauty about this dish is that one can eat it as is, without sauce or a side dish or with depending on choice and availability.
