Fragrant, comforting, and easy to serve as a complete meal, Kaju Pulao | Cashew Pulao is a gluten-free, vegetarian North Indian main course made with simple everyday ingredients in about 40 minutes. The recipe lays out the ingredients and each cooking step clearly, so you can adjust seasoning, texture, and serving size for your own kitchen.

Recipe Snapshot

  • Prep time: 30 minutes
  • Cook time: 10 minutes
  • Total time: 40 minutes
  • Yield: 2
  • Category: Main Course
  • Cuisine: North Indian

Ingredients

  • 1 cup basmati rice ((heaped)- 200 grams, soaked in enough water for 30 minutes)
  • 2 tablespoons ghee (or oil)
  • ½ cup thinly sliced onions (- 65 grams onion or 1 medium to large onion)
  • ½ teaspoon ginger garlic paste (or 2 to 3 garlic cloves + ½ inch ginger crushed in a mortar-pestle)
  • 25 to 30 cashews
  • salt (as required)
  • 1.75 cups water (- for pressure cooking)
  • 2 tablespoons coriander leaves (- for garnish)
  • 1 tej patta (- small to medium)
  • 5 to 6 black peppercorns
  • 1.5 inch cinnamon
  • ½ teaspoon caraway seeds ((shahi jeera))
  • 1 black cardamom
  • 2 green cardamom
  • 3 cloves
  • 1 or 2 single strands of mace

Method

Preparation

  1. Rinse basmati rice very well in water till the water runs clear of starch.
  2. Then soak the rice in enough water for 20 to 30 minutes. After 20 to 30 minutes, drain all the water from the rice and set aside.
  3. Also thinly slice the onion and crush garlic cloves and ginger in a mortar-pestle. You can also use ½ teaspoon ginger-garlic paste instead. Keep all the spices ready.

Making kaju pulao

  1. Heat ghee in a 2 litre pressure cooker.
  2. Then add all the whole spices mentioned above and saute till they crackle and turn fragrant.
  3. Now add the sliced onions and saute stirring often, till the onions turn golden.
  4. Add ginger-garlic paste. Saute till the raw aroma of ginger-garlic goes away.
  5. Add the cashews and saute for a minute.
  6. Add the soaked rice. Season with salt.
  7. Mix the rice gently with the rest of the ingredients. Pour water and gently stir.
  8. Cover and pressure cook the pulao for 2 to 3 whistles or 7 to 8 minutes on medium heat.
  9. When the pressure settles down on its own, remove the lid, gently fluff the rice.
  10. Serve kaju pulao garnished with some chopped coriander leaves. You can serve with any vegetable or paneer gravy or shorba of your choice.

Kiyaan Singh’s Kitchen Note

Keep this recipe as a working base: cook once as written, then adjust spice, texture, and serving style for your own table.