Aromatic Spiced Rice with Sella Rice

This dish is quite the chameleon: it will be at home paired with Indian style curries, a braai, seafood or a middle eastern stew. Inspired by India and the Middle East this rice is gently perfumed by aromatic spices, and enriched with jammy, buttery onions. The result is lip-smacking delicious 

Your Instant Pot is also a Rice Maker which guarantees a rice grain that is just the right soft, fluffy, and perfectly cooked texture every time!   This recipe uses the beautiful longer grain of the Tastic Sella basmati rice – fragrant and elegant – this will turn any meal into a culinary masterpiece! 
 
10 Ingredients – 12 Minutes Active Time – 8 Minutes Cook time
 
2 Tbsp butter
2 Small onions 
2 cloves garlic, grated
1 tsp cumin seeds
6 Cardamom
1 Cinnamon stick
1 Cup Tastic Sella Basmati rice
350ml stock
2 bay leaves
Almonds (optional)
Oil - salt - pepper as needed
 
Method:
 
Insert the inner pot, select the Sauté setting, then select “more” by pressing the Sauté button again. Once hot, add 3 Tbsp of olive oil into the pot. While the pot heats finely slice your onions and grate your garlic. Add the onion and grated garlic to the pot and cook for 10 minutes, adjusting the sauté heat as needed to prevent burning, until the onions are golden brown and jammy. 
 
While the onion cooks, gather the spices. Rinse your rice under cold water, in a sieve until the water runs clear. 
 
Once cooked, remove half the onions from the pot (reserve these for garnishing), then add the butter, rinsed rice, and spices to the pot. Toast the rice and spices for 1 minute on the highest heat of the sauté setting.
 
Add the bay leaf and stock to the pot, along with ¼ - ½ a teaspoon of salt (if your stock is seasoned, use a ¼ tsp). Stir the rice and stock together, to prevent the rice from settling at the bottom.
 
Press Cancel, then press the Rice Cooker setting once on the Instant Pot for “less”, it will automatically set the time (usually 8 mins), check the pressure level is on High. Once the timer is up, allow a Natural Pressure Release for 2 minutes.
 
Fluff the cooked rice gently with a fork. Remove the rice from the pot, and place it on a serving platter. Garnish the rice with toasted flaked almonds, and remaining jammy onions. 
 
Serve immediately. 

Serving suggestion: this dish is versatile and pairs well with many dishes, including curries and grilled meats.

Leftover spiced rice can be warmed to room temperature and tossed with a handful of raw baby spinach or rocket, some dried cranberries, and a zesty lemon dressing of choice for a delicious rice salad.