Eid Ul Adha Wishes and Saffron flavored Peas Pulao

Eid Mubarak to all my readers. For those who do not know about Eid ul Adha , it is one of the two major Muslim festivals. It is observed after the Hajj – the annual pilgrimage to Makkah in Saudi Arabia.
The celebration of Eid-ul-Adha is in commemoration of the command given by Allah to Prophet Ibrahim/ Abraham (may Allah be pleased with him) to sacrifice his first born son Ismael to him. The fulfillment of this noble command of Allah by Abraham signifies his faith in Allah.

Hajj is one of the five pillars of Islam. It consists of several ceremonies, meant to symbolize the essential concepts of the Islamic faith, and to commemorate the trials of prophet Ibrahim and his family.Like every year, this year too more than 3 million Muslims from all over the world, belonging to different colors, languages and races, came together in a spirit of universal brotherhood and sisterhood to worship the One God .

One significance of Eid-ul-Adha is that it is a time of sacrifice. Muslims commemorate prophet Abraham’s willingness to sacrifice everything for Allah including his beloved son, Ismael. Since Allah replaced Ismael with a lamb to sacrifice in place of his son, Muslims also offer the sacrifice of animals like goat, lamb, camel etc.

Eid ul Adha this year was one of the happiest as well as one of the saddest Eids that I have ever had, happiest because my husband along with other family members got to perform Hajj and saddest because I could not accompany him. May Allah accept his Hajj and give this opportunity to me too.
This Eid I hardly did any cooking except for some pulao and curry to take to a potluck lunch at my friend’s house. After that there was a dinner invitation too. I made sure that I bought lots of gifts for the kids so that they don’t miss their Baba (Dad) as much.

I think  Peas Pulao must be one of the most popular rice dishes in most north Indian Muslim households after biryani. It goes well with all kids of curries.I am sharing my version of Peas Pulao which includes a touch of saffron and kewra.

Ingredients:
Basmati rice – 1 cup
Whole Garam Masala, mixed – 1 tablespoon ( I use 1/4 tsp cumin, 2-3 peppercorns, 1/2 inch piece cinnamon, 2 cloves, 1 green cardamom, 1 black cardamom, 1 bay leaf)
Onion – 1/2 finely sliced
Frozen green peas – 1/2 cup
Oil – 1/4 cup
Salt – 1/2 teaspoon or according to taste
Water – 1.5 cups approximately (might vary depending upon the rice brand)
Kewra (Screwpine essence) – 1 tablespoon
Saffron – 1/4 teaspoon
Powdered Red food colour (optional) – a pinch

Method:
1) Wash and soak the rice for 20-30 minutes.
2) Soak the saffron in the kewra water and keep covered.
3) Heat oil and fry the sliced onion till golden brown.
4) Take out the onion with a slotted spoon and spread on paper towel so that all excess oil is absorbed.
5) Heat the remaining oil and add the whole garam masala. When it crackles, very carefully add the water. The water will splatter so it’s better to partially cover the pot with a lid.
6) When the water boils add the salt and the drained rice. Cook until almost all the water is absorbed and you can see ‘craters’ in the rice. Add the frozen peas, cover the pot and simmer on very low heat till rice is done.
7) Sprinkle the food colour and the kewra+saffron mixture over the hot rice. Fluff gently with a fork. Spread the fried onions over the pulao to garnish. Serve hot with curry.
If I do not have to serve the pulao right away , I  take out the rice in the serving dish , spread the fried onion on it ,  then cover and heat in the microwave before serving so that the onion softens a bit.

I am linking this post to :
Feast of Sacrifice hosted by My Healthy Happy Kitchen