Xinjiang Mutton Rice Pilaf
Pilaf (also spelled as polov) is a national dish popular in many countries in Central Asia, including the western part of China - Xinjiang. In the local catering culture, this dish is often served without utensils, and you have to eat it with your bare hands; that's the name origin. After being mentioned in a Chinese food documentary, "A Bite of China," this dish became famous. Chinese name: 新疆羊肉手抓饭 (xin jiang yang rou shou zhua fan). Served with an onion-tomato salad.
⏱️ Prep: 60 min🍳 Cook: 70 min
Ingredients
| 400 g (2 cups) | Jasmine rice |
| 1 bulb | Whole big garlic bulb |
| 283 g | Purple onion |
| 200 g | Carrot |
| 680 g | Lamb stew meat |
| 54 g (1/4 cup) | Oil |
| 720-960 g (3-4 cups, depending on your cookware) | Water |
| 25.7 g | Salt (for pilaf) |
| 57 g | Raisins |
| 6.6 g | Cumin powder (for pilaf) |
| 11 g | Dark soy sauce |
| 280 g (about 2 medium) | Tomatoes (for salad) |
| 240 g (about 1) | Green bell pepper (for salad) |
| 80 g (about 1/3 medium) | Purple onion (for salad) |
| 12.5 g | Sugar |
| 16 g | Vinegar |
| 2.2 g | Cumin powder (for salad) |
| 1.2 g | Ground black pepper |
| 5.7 g | Salt (for salad) |
Instructions
Prep before cooking:
- Wash 2 cups of rice several times until the water runs clear. Soak the rice for 1 hour. I recommend using basmati or jasmine rice.
- Clean the messy roots of the whole garlic bulb. Peel off a few dried outer layers until you see the individual garlic cloves. Don't break the bulb apart.
- Slice the onion into 1/4-inch thick slices. Cut the carrot into strips that are 2 inches long and 1/4 inch thick. Set them aside.
- Cut the lamb into 1-cubic-inch pieces. Trim 2-3 Tbsps of lamb fat from the meat if you see any. Dice the fat into 1/4-cubic inch pieces. Set them aside.
Make the pilaf:
- Add cooking oil, the diced lamb fat, onion slices, and garlic bulb to the wok. Turn the heat to low and stir everything for 8-10 minutes or until the onion is caramelized to a brown color. Use a sieve to remove everything from the wok but leave the oil behind.
- Turn the heat to high and heat the oil until slightly smoking. Add the lamb meat and sear until golden brown, approximately 3 minutes on each side.
- Add the browned onion and garlic bulb back to the wok and pour in 3-4 cups of water. The amount of water depends on the cookware you use. If your pot can seal well, use less water. I use a big wok in which water evaporates fast, so 4 cups of water are needed.
- Bring the water to a boil and add salt to taste. Turn the heat to low and simmer the lamb for 20 minutes or until the meat is fork-tender.
- Add the carrot sticks and mix well. Take the garlic bulb out of the wok and reserve it for later.
- Drain the rice and then gently and evenly spread it on top of the lamb soup. Refrain from stirring the rice because you don't want the grains to drop to the bottom of the wok, or else they will burn.
- Use chopsticks to create holes in the rice bed to allow better circulation. Place the garlic bulb on top of the rice. Put on the lid and cook over low heat for 10 minutes.
- Use a turner to shovel and flip the rice because the top layer still needs to be cooked. Poke more holes in the rice bed for better circulation. Continue to cook on low heat for another 6 minutes.
- Add the raisins, cumin powder, and dark soy sauce. Mix thoroughly and turn off the heat.
Make the salad and serve:
- Cut the tomato, green bell pepper, and purple onion into 1/4-inch thick slices and then place them into a mixing bowl.
- Add the salt, sugar, white vinegar, cumin powder, and black pepper and mix thoroughly. Serve the Lamb Rice Pilaf with the Onion-tomato Salad.