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Cranberry Pistachio Pilaf / Christmas Pilaf

Last Updated on May 3, 2022

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Cranberry and pistachio pilaf. Nothing says Christmas like cranberries & pistachios.The caramelized onions and the aromatic rice just ties everything together.

Holidays are the time when a lot of cooking happens and nobody wants to toil  on a single dish. Here is something easy to make and conveys the spirit of holidays.If you use a rice cooker then the recipe is a breeze.

Since all the other dishes would have a fair amount of spices the pilaf  flavors are kept pretty mellow, a  slightly sweet & nutty taste stands out.

Ingredients :
Rice - 2 cups (Use Basmathi or good quality long grain rice)
White onion - 1 sliced very thin
Butter -3- 4 tsp
Cranberry( dried and sweetened) - 1/2 cup or more if u like
Pistachios - 1/2 cup (I used some cashew nuts too)
Spring onion- 2 chopped
Lemon juice -1 tbsp
Salt and white pepper powder to taste.

Method:
1. Wash and soak rice for 30 minutes.
Cook rice adding salt and pepper .I prefer to cook  in the rice cooker. Once cooked let it cool little bit then gently fluff with a fork.
2. Heat butter when it melts add onion sliced and fry it till golden brown also the cashews until they turn golden.Turn in the cranberry and pistachio and switch off flame.keep aside 1/3 of  the fried mix to spread on top.In the rest add the rice,lemon juice and gently mix .
3.Transfer it into a serving dish and spread the rest of the fried onions, cranberry,nuts and spring onion.
Serve warm along with other drool worthy dishes.
I have a chicken dish coming up in the next post so  make sure you come back.

Hope you lovely people out there would give this a try.
Meena

Here are the links to other awesome recipes from blogger friends :
Feed Me Phoebe: Stir-Fried Collard Greens with Ginger and Jalapeno

The Heritage Cook: Sweet & Lightly Spicy Corn Pudding
Jeanette’s Healthy Living: Clean Eating Holiday Side Dish Recipes
Weelicious: Cranberry Apple Chutney
Dishing: Roasted Sweet Potatoes with Honey and Spices
Elephants and the Coconut Trees: Cranberry-Pistachio Pilaf
Taste with the Eyes: Fresh Green Beans, Mexican-Style
Napa Farmhouse 1885: Italian Green Beans with Tomatoes and Pesto
Red or Green? Green Chile Pork Stew (v2) and Tamales 
Virtually Homemade: Cheese Ravioli with Roasted Brussels Sprouts and Pomegranate
Domesticate Me: Farro Risotto with Prosciutto, Parmesan and Brussels Sprouts
The Sensitive Epicure: Butter Dipped Radishes with Sea Salt
Daily*Dishin: Best Holiday Dressing
FN Dish: No-Brainer Holiday Sides

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Linsy Patel

    December 19, 2013 at 7:32 pm

    very delicate flavor pilaf. nice clicks as always. I also like to add cashews with pista goes very well together, just like husband and wife.

    Reply
  2. Meena Kumar

    December 19, 2013 at 7:38 pm

    Thank you Divya. I know ..butter paneer and pilaf should be really yummm..

    Reply
  3. Meena Kumar

    December 19, 2013 at 7:40 pm

    He hee...thank you Linsy.U put it right it is delicate.

    Reply
  4. Meena Kumar

    December 19, 2013 at 7:50 pm

    Thank you Priya 🙂

    Reply
  5. Divya Shivaraman

    December 19, 2013 at 6:35 pm

    this is one yummy pilaf with some sweetness...ah cannot imagine how good will that taste with some butter paneer on the side 🙂

    Reply
  6. Droolsss...

    December 19, 2013 at 7:47 pm

    Such a colourful pilaf..red, green, white...truly a Christmas feel has arisen.

    Reply
  7. Sathya Priya

    December 19, 2013 at 9:16 pm

    They look just awesome .Realy a nutty sweet pilaf .hmm ...i smell it now.

    Reply
  8. Veena Theagarajan

    December 20, 2013 at 3:48 am

    I am going to try this this weekend..looks so festive

    Reply
  9. Manjula Bharath

    December 20, 2013 at 12:21 am

    wow thats an delicious pilaf with cranberries looks so yumm !! very beautifully presented meena 🙂

    Reply
  10. Rekha Vengalil

    December 20, 2013 at 1:02 am

    So Christmassy and love it 🙂 it has soo little ingredients too 🙂

    Reply
  11. nandoos Kitchen

    December 20, 2013 at 6:36 am

    Wow! delicious pilaf Meena and nice presentation.

    Reply
  12. sangeetha pn

    December 20, 2013 at 7:17 am

    so beautiful the click n pilaf ofcourse! That flavor of cranberries and also use of Pistachio sounds great! It is my type pilaf! 🙂 I don't like it very spicy either!

    Reply
  13. Ramya Venkat

    December 20, 2013 at 4:45 am

    Yummy and love the combo sis.colorful shots

    Reply
  14. Preeti Jaipal

    December 20, 2013 at 10:05 am

    wow Meena... awesome looking Pilaf, adding dry fruits, made it more rich n aromatic...

    Reply
  15. Navaneetham Krishnan

    December 20, 2013 at 10:14 am

    Its definitely the rice cooker for this inviting and "can't take my off delicious" pilaf. It has to be because I need my daily dose of rice without fail.

    Reply
  16. easyfoodsmith

    December 20, 2013 at 10:39 am

    What a festive pilaf! It will pair so beautifully with curry. Well done my friend 🙂

    Reply
  17. Razina Javed

    December 20, 2013 at 6:12 am

    wow, that's such a nice pilaf with a twist,....

    Reply
  18. Radhika Subramanian

    December 20, 2013 at 7:10 am

    Looks very festive and well presented.

    Reply
  19. Ambreen (Simply Sweet n Savory)

    December 20, 2013 at 12:13 pm

    Such a colorful & tempting pilaf, who wouldn't love to taste it 🙂

    Reply
  20. Smitha Kalluraya

    December 21, 2013 at 9:57 am

    wow thats an yummilicious pilaf .. nutty colourful n very royal..

    Reply
  21. Chitrangada

    December 21, 2013 at 6:03 pm

    Simply awesome....so perfect for Christmas. Great one.

    Reply
  22. Shaami (Shajitha Habeeb)

    December 22, 2013 at 4:41 am

    Cranberry and pistachio ! That must be very tasty.

    Reply
  23. Anupa Joseph (Palaharam)

    December 22, 2013 at 7:43 pm

    Those pics are so inviting....so colourful, so tempting it looks...it goes so well with this season...

    Reply
  24. Meena Kumar

    December 22, 2013 at 11:18 pm

    Thank you Sathya.

    Reply
  25. Meena Kumar

    December 22, 2013 at 11:18 pm

    Thank you Manju.

    Reply
  26. Meena Kumar

    December 22, 2013 at 11:18 pm

    Thank you Reks.

    Reply
  27. Meena Kumar

    December 22, 2013 at 11:20 pm

    Do try it ,would love to hear how it turned out, Veena.

    Reply
  28. Meena Kumar

    December 22, 2013 at 11:20 pm

    Thank you sis:)

    Reply
  29. Meena Kumar

    December 22, 2013 at 11:21 pm

    Thank you Razina.

    Reply
  30. Meena Kumar

    December 22, 2013 at 11:21 pm

    Thank you Lisha.

    Reply
  31. Meena Kumar

    December 22, 2013 at 11:22 pm

    Thank you Radhika .So glad that u stopped by and also joined my blog.

    Reply
  32. Meena Kumar

    December 22, 2013 at 11:22 pm

    Thank you Sangeetha.Ya this is a mildly spiced one.

    Reply
  33. Meena Kumar

    December 22, 2013 at 11:23 pm

    Thank you Preeti.

    Reply
  34. Meena Kumar

    December 22, 2013 at 11:23 pm

    Thank you Nava.

    Reply
  35. Meena Kumar

    December 22, 2013 at 11:24 pm

    Thank you Taruna.

    Reply
  36. Meena Kumar

    December 22, 2013 at 11:24 pm

    Thank you Ambreen.

    Reply
  37. Meena Kumar

    December 22, 2013 at 11:24 pm

    Thank you Smitha.

    Reply
  38. Meena Kumar

    December 22, 2013 at 11:25 pm

    Thank you Chitrangada.

    Reply
  39. Meena Kumar

    December 22, 2013 at 11:26 pm

    Ya, it is tasty if u like fruit and nut flavors.Thank you Shaami.

    Reply
  40. Meena Kumar

    December 22, 2013 at 11:26 pm

    Thank you Anupa.

    Reply
  41. Tisa Jacob

    December 23, 2013 at 3:47 pm

    I wanted to come here right after seeing this on FB. What a great idea for the holidays and so impressive. Thanks for idea Meena. And pictures are lovely as usual.

    Reply
  42. Bhawna Bagri

    December 25, 2013 at 3:40 am

    Adding cranberry in pilaf is a very delicious idea.... Perfect for festive season...

    Reply
  43. Veena Theagarajan

    February 12, 2014 at 12:37 pm

    I did try Meena it came out great I hv posted today in my space.. thanks

    Reply

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