Rice Pilaf

[Andy M.]

There are as many recipes for pilaf as there are cooks who make it. What follows is my mom's recipe that I grew up on.

Pilaf

1 C Rice, long grain
4 Tb Butter
2 Nests of Angel Hair Pasta
2 C Chicken Broth

Thoroughly rinse and drain the rice.

Melt the butter in a 2-quart pan. Crumble the pasta nests into the butter. Brown the pasta in the butter. The butter and the noodles should turn a fairly dark brown (more than golden brown but less than burned). It is the browning of the butter and noodles that really gives the pilaf its flavor.

Add the rice and cook over medium to medium low heat for a few minutes, stirring occasionally.

Add the broth and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce to a simmer, and cook, covered, for 25 minutes. Don't open the pan to look or stir.

At the end of the cooking time, turn off the burner and let it rest in the pan (covered) for 5 to 10 minutes before serving.

 

[pacanis]

Very nice. Like chicken rice-a-roni.

 

[Andy M.]

I think there was pilaf before there were Rice-a-Roni or Near East products. FWIW, the Near East products are pretty good.

 

[Dawgluver]

Hey, no dissing of the San Francisco Treat. It got me through college, along with ramen.

Your pilaf sounds wonderful, Andy! I like Near East products too.

 

[purple.alien.giraffe]

Nice an simple and sounds really good two.

 

[spork]

Real Hawaiian rice pilaf is nearly identical, except that you crumble a nest of dried mung bean noodles. It's what gets often served on a mom-and-pop-shop lunch platter. But searching for it online will mostly return exotic recipes with pineapple, mangoes, macadamia nuts and the like.

 

[PrincessFiona60]

Sounds great, copied and pasted!

 

[msmofet]

I do it the same way but I add onion and sometimes mushrooms. I make chicken and beef and sometimes the pasta is orzo. Gotta get it nice toasty brown.

 

[Andy M.]

I do it the same way but I add onion and sometimes mushrooms. I make chicken and beef and sometimes the pasta is orzo. Gotta get it nice toasty brown.

I agree, it's also very good with beef broth.

 

[pacanis]

How exactly do you break up the angel hair/vermicelli? Do you get those nice 1/2" pieces? Not that it has to duplicate Rice a Roni, but it would be nice to get even pieces. I can see me losing little pieces all over the kitchen floor, lol. I wonder what would happen if you folded a kitchen towel over straight boxed vermicelli and rolled it with a rolling pin...

 

[msmofet]

I also get straight vermicelli/angelhair pasta. I just grab a nice bunch, place it into a large bowl (to help with the fly aways) and snap it into small lenghts. I never measure, it doesn't have to be uniform. I just recently found imported angelhair nests. I will probably place it into a ziplok bag and just crush it.

 

[pacanis]

It has to be uniform for me

Seriously, I'd at least like it close, without having to pick 2" pcs out and break them a few more times individually.
I'll have to play around with this and develop a technique.

 

[Andy M.]

Breaking up the straight angel hair or vermicelli is a pain. Especially if you want the pieces to be uniform.

I buy this and just crush them one at a time in my hands:

 

[pacanis]

When you said that you used the nests I had a feeling they would break "better" just by the nature of being curved and three dimensional.

 

[Andy M.]

When you said that you used the nests I had a feeling they would break "better" just by the nature of being curved and three dimensional.

...and they fit nicely in the palm of your hand.

 

[Timothy]

I imagine the ratio of rice to pasta is important to the outcome of this dish. It sounds wonderful, but how much is a "nest" or "nice bunch" of pasta when using one cup of rice?

TIA!

 

[Andy M.]

I imagine the ratio of rice to pasta is important to the outcome of this dish. It sounds wonderful, but how much is a "nest" or "nice bunch" of pasta when using one cup of rice?

TIA!

The nests I use (pictured above) are about one ounce each. I use two for a cup of rice. So two ounces of straight angel hair would be fine. I've also seen it made with vermicelli (a little thicker than angel hair) or even spaghetti in a pinch. Orzo would also work.

 

[Timothy]

The nests I use (pictured above) are about one ounce each. I use two for a cup of rice. So two ounces of straight angel hair would be fine. I've also seen it made with vermicelli (a little thicker than angel hair) or even spaghetti in a pinch. Orzo would also work.

Thank you Andy! This one will be made in my home! I always watch carefully for your recipes. Your tastes seem to coincide with my own.

 

[Andy M.]

Thank you Andy! This one will be made in my home! I always watch carefully for your recipes. Your tastes seem to coincide with my own.

Thanks. We also both like sushi, although you're eons ahead of me in expertise.

 

[spork]

interesting quick wiki-search tidbit...

pilaf is called pilaf, with minor variations in pronunciation and accent, in just about every language and corner of the world. talk about the universality of food!