What is Rice Pilaf?
Rice pilaf, also known as pilau is a savory grain dish, often served as a side at meals. Pilaf is made by cooking rice with broth, diced vegetables, and seasonings. The result is a light and flavorful dish with a hint of saltiness against the vegetables and grains. The dish is cream-white with specks of color and is served hot.
Ingredients
Chicken stock is made by simmering chicken bones, vegetables and seasonings, such as herbs and salt. This combination is set to simmer for 6-8 hours. The result is a thin broth with a golden color and a meaty, vegetal and comforting flavor, with hints of salt. Chicken broth is used in many dishes and is a main ingredient in soups and stews.
Rice is a grain that is used across the world. It is roughly 5mm in length and white. Some varieties of rice are thin, while others are more rounded and fat. Rice is a starch and when uncooked it is dry and hard. Many of these tiny grains are needed to make one serving size. White rice has the hull, bran and cereal germ removed. When cooked, rice becomes soft while still holding its form. The flavor of rice is mild, and bland. It goes well as a side dish to spicier items and is incredibly versatile as an appetizer, main course and even dessert.
Celery is a light green vegetable with tall, thin fibrous stalks and green leaves at their tips. They are extremely juicy and comprised of 90% water. They grow in clusters, sharing a base with about eight or nine ribbed stalks. The texture is crunchy, juicy and has a refreshing flavor that is light, sweet and vegetal. Celery can be eaten raw or cooked into soups and other dishes.
Scallions, also called green onions are a thin onion formed into a stalk with a white bottom that sprouts out into two or three thin, tubular branches. They are less than a foot in height and three quarters of the scallion is green. It is easy to cut and chew and is dry with a hint of juiciness. The flavor is spicy and sharp with a green taste. Scallions are used to flavor to savory foods.
Parsley is an aromatic herb with slender green stalks and sturdy, small green leaves. There are two common types of parsley, curly parsley and Italian flat leaf parsley. Italian parsley has a more robust flavor than curly parsley. Though each type tastes green, spicy and vegetal, with a hint of bitterness. Parsley is used as and herb to flavor dishes and as a garnish.
Salt is a mineral composed mostly of sodium chloride. It is the main flavoring used in food and is naturally occurring in certain foods, such as cheese, beets, meat and celery, plus many others. Salt is white and has finer granules than sugar. Many commercial salts include iodide, while others exclude it. Most salts are white, while some are naturally pale pink with minerals. Salt brings out the flavor of something and can create a tangy mouthfeel, if used in excess.
Olive oil is extracted from the fresh olive, which grows on a tree. Many olives are needed in the extraction of the oil. This is done by a mechanical process and sometimes by a chemical process, though the mechanical method is highly preferred. Olive oil is a golden color and changes slightly due to whether it is extra virgin, or first cold pressed. The flavor of olive oil depends on how it was processed. Lower quality oils will taste mild, while high quality olive oils will have a robust flavor that is green, or may have a spicy quality. Extra virgin and first cold pressed or preferred. Olive oil lends a depth of flavor to any savory dish.
The peppercorn plant grows in tropical climate and produces tiny black fruit. The fruit is dried and become hard. At this point it is ground into a textured powder comprised of black and grey dots. It has a flavor that is spicy, pungent and sharp. Pepper is an extremely popular spice, especially in Western cuisines and lends a gentle heat to dishes. There are different varieties of black pepper and the flavor changes subtly because of this.
Cayenne is a small and moderately hot chili pepper. When mature it is bright red in color and has a thin tapered body that is between 2-3 inches long. On the Scoville heat scale for hot peppers it is considered 'scorching'. Cayenne has a crunch to it when raw, though is best cooked to reduce the heat of the plant, it is also sold as a powder. This hot pepper is used commonly in Central and South America, as well as Africa.
