Brown Rice Pilaf with Almonds
Posted on 25. Aug, 2011 by cmeine in Featured, Side Dish
My friend Kathy had us over for dinner the other night. When I asked what I could bring she suggested Rice Pilaf. She had bought some fresh salmon and was going to barbeque it so rice sounded good. That was great with me since I love rice pilaf and I think it’s easy to make. Of course I had to make mine with brown rice to make it a little healthier but you can certainly just substitute white rice if you like it better. I also finished mine in the oven because of what I had planned that day but you can finish it on the stove top if you like (just make sure you turn it down to low and put a tight fitting lid on it).
I added almonds to this along with my regular veggies of onions and carrots but I have found you can add so many different items to rice pilaf and it’s really tasty. Since it’s main definition is rice cooked in a broth with vegetables and sometimes meats, you can add almost anything to this and still call it rice pilaf.
I think the version that I made is one of the more common recipes in America with the exception of the brown rice and the almonds. Have fun with the recipe and let me know what you like to add to your rice pilaf.
In this recipe I take some butter and melt it in a saute pan and saute the sliced almonds until they are golden brown.
Then set them aside and take another TBSP of butter and melt it and saute the onions and carrots. When they are almost done add the garlic and saute until they are golden brown.
Set them aside and melt the last of the butter. Saute the rice until it is golden brown.
Once rice is brown add back in the carrots, onions, almonds and garlic mixtures.
Stir until well mixed together. Add Chicken broth to mixture and stir. Add salt and pepper to your liking.
Bring to a boil on the stove top. Cover with foil and place in the oven ( Or cover with tight lid and turn stove top to low) for 45-50 minutes until all liquid is dissolved. Let sit for at least 10 minutes before taking off the lid.
After the 10 minutes stir with a fork and serve.
Brown Rice Pilaf with Almonds
3 TBSP Butter
1/2 Cup Sliced Almonds
1 small yellow onion (diced)
3 garlic cloves (diced small)
1/2 Cup carrots (diced)
1 Cup long grain brown rice
2 1/2 Cups Chicken Broth
Salt & Pepper
Preheat oven to 350 degrees (unless you’re going to finish this on the stove top). Heat a medium size saute pan on med high heat. Melt 1 TBSP of butter. Saute’ the almonds until they are golden brown. Set aside. Melt another TBSP of butter and saute the carrots and onions. When they’re just about done add the garlic. Saute until golden brown. Set aside. Melt last TBSP of butter and saute the brown rice until golden brown. Add back in the onion mixture and sliced almonds and salt and pepper. Stir well and add the chicken broth. Stir mixture occasionally until it comes to a boil. At this point either cover with a tight lid and turn heat to low or cover with foil and place in oven for 45-50 minutes or until moisture has evaporated. Let set for 10 minutes covered. Then stir and serve.
You read my mind. My absolute favorite thing to add to rice pilaf is toasted almond slivers for that texture. Looks great!