What spices are added to pilaf. Healing properties of oriental spice zira

Classic pilaf is impossible to imagine without a lot of spices. It is they who create that unique, strong, appetizing smell, from which saliva immediately begins to flow. Spices for pilaf can be purchased at the supermarket - on the shelves with spices there are both ready-made sets for this oriental dish, as well as individual components from which you can make your own combination.

The classic composition of spices for pilaf

Spices in oriental cooking are the very essence of this national cuisine.

The classic set of spices for pilaf with meat or fish consists of:

• zira (cumin) - the seed part of the plant is used. The grains are either used whole or ground into a fragrant powder. In real pilaf, this spice is the main one. According to the classics, they use Indian black cumin, but in our area it is very difficult to find such a spice. Dishonest merchants can replace real grains with carrot seeds; to check, it is enough to rub a couple of grains between your fingers and smell it.
• barberry - used in the form of berries to give a sour note and neutralize fat. It is considered the second most important spice that should be present in traditional pilaf.
• Garlic is a common herb that is added to many hot and cold dishes, sauces, preserves, and more. It is famous for its strong aroma, which greatly enhances the appetizing smell and taste of dishes.
• saffron (can be replaced with turmeric, which is often done in our area due to the high cost of saffron) - gives the dish a light, pleasant aroma and a golden color to the rice. For 1 kg of cereal, ½ teaspoon is usually added.

What spices are added to pilaf in addition to the classic set:

• dried finely ground tomatoes;
• sweet paprika;
• coriander seeds;
• a mixture of several varieties of pepper.

To give a sweet note to pilaf, not only spices are used, but also dried fruits. It can be:

• dried apricots - dried apricot;
• prunes - dried plums;
• kishmish - a kind of dried grapes.

Non-traditional, rarely used additives to pilaf are:

• vanilla;
• cinnamon;
• ground nutmeg;
• sumac - sourish, astringent spice, more used for taste, practically does not give a smell;
• rosemary - a spice with a sweetish, camphoric aroma, reminiscent of a pine smell, gives the dish a spice;
• savory - a spice that gives a bitter, even burning taste, reminiscent of hot peppers.

Also, fenugreek can be used - a spice with a slightly nutty, bitter note in taste. The taste and aroma is very strong, somewhat reminiscent of mushroom. The spice is in the well-known mixture of hops-suneli.

On a note. Spices must be added to pilaf correctly - in the middle of the frying stage of vegetables with meat, when the latter is almost ready.

So first, the meat product and vegetables are saturated with spices, and then rice, which will be slowly cooked in a liquid with spices.

What spices are added to pilaf with chicken?

Pilaf with chicken is not too greasy (if it's not a broiler). Poultry meat is delicate in taste, so the dish can be given a little piquancy.

Spices for pilaf with chicken:

• ground black pepper;
• pieces of hot chili;
• dried, and better, fresh parsley;
• cumin seeds;
• red and black barberry;
• dried red pepper;
• ground thyme;
• fresh or dried garlic;
• saffron or turmeric.

Chicken pilaf, as a rule, is not made too rich in spices.

Recipe for pork pilaf

Pork pilaf is famous for its juiciness, fat content and rich taste.

The following spices complement pork meat well:

• sumac;
• rosemary;
• sweet ground paprika;
• dried basil;
• turmeric;
• garlic in any form;
• lavrushka;
• barberry;
• zira.

With lamb

We suggest using the following spices for lamb pilaf:

• turmeric;
• zira;
• barberry;
• fenugreek;
• sumac;
• paprika;
• curry;
• coriander;
• savory.

with beef

Pilaf with beef is no less satisfying than with pork or lamb.

• saffron;
• paprika;
• Chile;
• coriander;
• zira;
• barberry.

Everything except barberry berries should be crushed.

from turkey

For pilaf with turkey, you can use the same set of spices that is suitable for chicken meat.

We also suggest trying the following combination:

• turmeric;
• saffron petals;
• nut grass or curry.

Optionally, you can add garlic and classic ground black pepper.

Oriental spices for pilaf

Traditional pilaf should be rich and even spicy.

Spices for pilaf in Uzbek must contain:

• hot pepper pods - the main source of spiciness for oriental pilaf;
• cumin / zira - gives a strong aroma, which is famous for classic pilaf;
• barberry - necessary for a slight sourness and strong aroma.

These three spices in the east are considered the main ones in the preparation of pilaf. Other spices are added in smaller quantities than the top three.

How to make spices for pilaf yourself?

Preparing a mixture of spices is quite simple - you just need to mix the ingredients together and add in the desired amount during cooking. The amount depends on the preferences of the person himself - if you like rich dishes, you can add a little more, if more moderate - less.

For example, for 1 kg of meat, ⅓ tablespoon of spices will create a light aroma, ⅔ tablespoon will give the dish medium saturation, and a heaping tablespoon or more will make the dish rich, as oriental nationalities like it.

The ingredients can be purchased at a spice shop by weight or at a grocery supermarket, packaged in small bags.

It is worth remembering a few rules for preparing spices:

1. Dry grains and herbs for a better return of aroma and taste are recommended to grind in a coffee grinder or grind in a mortar. Berries and fresh herbs are best cut a little and added to the dish almost whole.
2. If necessary or personal desire, you can replace some components. Interchangeable spices are saffron and turmeric, zira and cumin, barberry and raisins/cranberries.
3. Fresh garlic is more spicy, so it is preferable not to substitute dried garlic.

• ½ tsp. l. turmeric / saffron;
• 1 teaspoon l. sweet paprika;
• 5-8 barberry berries;
• 4-5 medium garlic cloves;
• ½ tsp. l. pepper mixtures;
• ⅙ teaspoon l. zira;
• 1 table. l. without a pile of salt.

In ancient times, spices were used more to preserve the dish in the absence of a cool place to store food. And today, spicy richness has become an integral part of all oriental cuisine.

Despite the fact that pilaf is considered a pan-Asian dish, according to historians, it appeared and was perfected for several centuries in the Fergana Valley (modern Uzbekistan) - one of the oldest centers of agriculture in Asia. Pilaf was not specially invented, it appeared as an optimal dish from those products that the area is rich in. And the Ferghana Valley from ancient times was rich in flocks of sheep, root crops and rice. The only possible dish with a lack of fuel for a fire is a cauldron. It can be said that pilaf appeared as a result of the local technology of meat harvesting: nomads fried the meat until the water was completely evaporated and stored it in fat. From such a semi-finished product in field conditions it was difficult to cook something other than pilaf.

Gradually, a simple recipe for shepherds acquired new elements. In other regions, the original components were replaced by available ones: lamb - beef, pork and even chicken meat; dev-zira rice is long-grain Indian rice, and yellow carrots are red. All existing recipes, of course, have the right to exist, they enrich the dish with options, make it versatile, easy to prepare and truly popular. Pilaf is a very stable dish, in order to cook it tasteless while observing the basic technology, you still need to try. There are adapted pilaf recipes that use hard pasta instead of rice. It is almost impossible for modern urban residents to cook the right pilaf according to the “reference” recipe. You have to be content with simplified recipes, which also give a good result, but have nothing to do with real pilaf. An analogy is Italian pizza. Italians would be surprised if they try the "cheesecakes" sold in Russian eateries with pieces of sausage, poured with mayonnaise or ketchup.

Consider all the elements of how to cook a real right pilaf. It requires a special rice - dev-zira. This variety presumably, it was brought by settlers from China and cultivated since ancient times in the Ferghana Valley. Uzgen is still considered the best place for its cultivation. Now the climate in the Fergana Valley has changed significantly, the rivers have become poorer, and the lack of water has hurt the production of classic “floating” rice. Dev-zira is difficult to grow: during the summer, the sprouts must be constantly thinned out and transplanted three times to a new place, and after harvesting rice by hand at the end of October, peel off the scales and get unpolished grains, which are packed in ventilated linen bags and stored until spring. In early spring, devzira is tossed to dry and dried in the sun, covered with straw at night. At least a year is devoted to such processing of rice, and several years to special varieties. For the winter, rice is put into bags, in the spring the procedure is continued. The grain becomes hard, strong, with a rich amber color. In autumn, the rice hardened in this way is brought down, that is, the upper scales are torn off. After peeling, rice grains are stored in the rice powder left over from the processing process until they are used - this is how dev-zira retains its taste and aromatic properties better. Now dev-zira is grown in southern India and Sri Lanka, in the south of France, in Thailand, Australia and some countries of Southeast Asia. In any case, for pilaf, even Indian dev-zira is much better than long-grain white rice.

Real rice for pilaf is now increasingly difficult to find. Uzbek dev-zira rice is practically not exported, and rice-exporting countries label their rice as Red Raw Rice. The confusion in notation complicates the task - there is also red yeast rice. This is the so-called Chinese red rice, the reddish tint of which is obtained with the help of mold formed by the fungus Monascus purpureus, which gives uncooked rice a purple color.

The second component of pilaf is zira or cumin, cumin, kammun, Roman or Indian cumin, azhgon, zra, zar, zatr. Without zira, pilaf simply will not work. This spice has a very strong, bitter, nutty smell that intensifies when rubbed and heated. Zira is the main aromatic element of pilaf, its soul. This is the only spice used in the classic pilaf.

The third element is lamb. Why lamb? Apparently, because of the same reason why real Borodino bread is made from rye flour. Lamb has a number of advantages over other meats, not to mention a very special taste. In the end, it was the lambs that grazed on the mountain slopes of Uzbekistan and the Ferghana Valley in particular. Lamb is the most common meat in all countries with a very hot climate. This meat contains a lot of fat and can withstand heat much longer. Prepared meat can be stored for up to one year, and in hot weather for several months. For pilaf, lamb of medium fat content is taken, usually with a bone. A tenth of fat tail fat is added to the meat.

Last but not least, tools and utensils. The ideal dish for pilaf is a thick-walled cauldron. Can use any sufficiently deep dishes, preferably with thick walls and always with a thick bottom and a tight-fitting lid. As the main tool of the cook - slotted spoon. If the cookware is non-stick, a slotted spoon is made of wood or hard plastic.

Cooking a classic pilaf.

Products for pilaf are selected based on the following proportions: 1 kg of meat (where a third is a bone), 1 kg of rice, 100 g of fat (fat tail, ribs, legs - it doesn’t matter), 1 kg of carrots, 3 onions, 2 heads of garlic, 1-2 pods of hot pepper, 150 ml of vegetable oil (refined), 1.5 teaspoons of cumin, salt, 1 liter of water.

Before cooking, separate the washed meat from the bones and cut it into small pieces (as for goulash). Cut the lard into cubes with a 1 cm edge. Cut the vegetables and put them in one large plate to clearly see the proportions. Cut the carrots for pilaf into thin strips with a side of 2-3 mm and a length of 30-40 mm. Sprinkle with sugar to release the juice. Onion cut into thin rings. Wash the garlic, remove the roots, remove the husk. Important! Hot peppers must be whole, without cuts or damage, otherwise the pilaf will be quite difficult to eat. The correct pilaf should not be spicy.
Rinse the rice in several waters, leave to dry.

We begin to cook pilaf. Warm up the pan well and pour in the oil. The oil should ignite the dishes well and be hot enough. An indicator of the readiness of the oil is a thrown onion circle - the onion will brown in a few seconds. Gently lower the fat into the heated oil with a slotted spoon.

Important! All cooking operations are done slowly, carefully. The pieces should be even, the movements should be precise, there should be no "throw-in". All ingredients are lowered into the cooking container with a slotted spoon.

As soon as the fat acquires a golden hue, catch it with a slotted spoon and transfer to a separate bowl. Put the bones into the hot oil. Stir them for even processing. At this point, add a pinch of cumin. Watch the color of the broth and the remains of meat on the bones. The meat should turn brown and the broth should turn brown. Next, the onion is fried in oil. Here you need to stir a little more intensively. The onion should turn golden. Then put the chopped meat into the dishes and fry it for no longer than 10 minutes. Add carrots and mix all ingredients. Stir while frying for 7-10 minutes. When the carrots soften, pour cold water into the cooking container. The resulting broth, the Uzbeks call zirvak, is an important stage of pilaf. Properly prepared zirvak is half the battle. It is important not to overdo it with water, it is better to underfill than overfill it. In extreme cases, water can be added in the next step. The layer of water should be 2-2.5 cm (or whatever say “two fingers”) to cover the prepared roast. Wait for the zirvak to boil and put whole cloves of garlic and pepper pods into the boiling broth. Salt everything. Lower the heat so that the broth boils evenly and gently. Leave for approximately 30 minutes.

During these 30 minutes, it is useful to carefully sort out the rice from pebbles and extra inclusions. Stones, by the way, are also found in coarse salt. Give it enough attention.

After 30 minutes of boiling, carefully remove the peppers and garlic. Taste the broth for salt and add salt if needed, so that it is just a little too salty. Carefully transfer the rice to the simmering broth. Do not mix ingredients! Level the rice with a slotted spoon and stay on the stove while the rice soaks up the broth. At this stage, as the rice “saturates” with water, the fire under the dishes must be reduced. Gather the rice from the edges towards the center and make an even, not loose mound. When all the liquid is absorbed, level the surface of the rice and cover with mashed cumin. Take a sample not from the surface, but from 2 cm deep. Rice should be firm but not hard on the inside. If it is still hard, add a glass of hot water and repeat the operation again with leveling and mounding. Let the water soak deep. When everything is ready, make a hole in the mound and bury the garlic and pepper there. Make the same neat mound above them and close with a tight-fitting lid. Wrap with a towel and leave on the smallest fire for another 5-10 minutes, then turn off the heat and let the pilaf ripen for another half hour.

After the indicated time, open the lid, remove the pepper and garlic, and mix all the contents thoroughly. Arrange your pilaf on a large platter, placing the bones, garlic and pepper on top. Everything is ready, you can start eating.

Of course, pilaf is not limited to the classic recipe; variations of this dish can also be found among neighbors (Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan). If you look at the map, it becomes clear - all these countries have the main populated areas located close to the borders of their neighbors and form a densely populated area, striated by rivers and valleys formed around them. All of the neighbors' recipes are also based on dev-zira red rice and lamb. Cooking technologies are similar in all cases, but of course there are specific differences. In Turkmenistan, there is a version of pilaf with paprika instead of meat, in Tajik pilaf there is more fat and barberry is added to the zira. In Kazakh pilaf, radish, dried apricots, raisins, dried apples are added to the usual elements.

A natural question arises - where did the bags with a set of seasonings "for pilaf" come from, and why does the pilaf prepared in many cafes differ from the one described? There are several reasons for this. Some share was made by the Soviet deficit with its absence in the markets and in the shops of traditional products. Human ignorance added something, and even more - human laziness. At the same time, I wanted to cook pilaf at all times, and some components were replaced with those that were available. Rice dev-ziru was replaced with long-grain or even round rice, and turmeric was added to give a specific golden hue. Hot red and black peppers in the classic pilaf will be a hindrance, although there is a Bukhara variety of pilaf - bakhsh, where the addition of black pepper, parsley, dill, cilantro and green onions is practiced. Where cloves, dill, bay leaves, marjoram, coriander, sesame, mustard and others appeared in the mixtures “for pilaf” is already difficult to understand. It is not at all clear why monosodium glutamate is put in such seasonings. A flavor enhancer is absolutely not needed in a fragrant and divinely delicious dish.

Alexey Borodin

Zira (cumin) is a one-biennial herbaceous plant. Outwardly, it resembles cumin, and therefore they are often confused. Zira has a strong, rather pungent odor and a slightly bitter, nutty taste that becomes more pronounced when the seeds of this plant are roasted or ground.

In culinary publications, you can meet with several names of zira - Roman cumin, Zera, Cumin, Kmin, Cumin cumin, Kamun.

Central Asia is considered to be the birthplace of this spice. In addition, it is cultivated in Afghanistan and Iran, Southeast Asia, Latin America and North Africa, as well as in the Mediterranean countries.

There are 4 types of zira:
- Persian;
- Kirman;
- Syrian;
- Nabataean.

The most popular in eastern countries are Persian and Kirman zira.

Kirman zira is a black spice, rather small, with a pungent odor. Persian - yellow spice, very fragrant, has medium-sized seeds. Only zira seeds are used for food, since the stems and leaves have a bitter taste.

Healing properties of oriental spice zira

Zira has earned a special place in cooking due not only to its refined taste and unique aroma, but also to its healing properties. The composition of this spice includes many useful substances:
- vitamins of group B;
- ascorbic acid;
- calcium, phosphorus, magnesium;
- up to 20% fatty oils, 10-15% proteins, 2.5-4% essential oils and up to 16% gum.

Zira is useful for hypertensive patients and hearts, it prevents the formation of blood clots, has a beneficial effect on the cardiovascular system and protects against strokes and heart attacks. This spice promotes digestion, improves appetite, improves visual acuity, improves brain activity. Zira also eliminates flatulence, colic and spasms in gastrointestinal disorders. In addition, she is able to cope with dyspepsia.

Zira has a beneficial effect on the female reproductive system. Nursing mothers can periodically drink water boiled with ground cumin. This drink, which should be consumed warm or chilled, increases milk production and also reduces uterine inflammation.

Zira can be used to make tea that improves the functioning of the stomach. It is also useful to add it to tea to relieve nervous tension and eliminate migraines. Due to the content of gum in zira, this plant can be used as an effective healing and antiseptic agent in the form of lotions.

Secrets of cooking various dishes with cumin

In order to flavor and give a piquant taste to berry-fruit compote, it is enough to throw 1/4 tsp into it. zira. Meat and rice soup will acquire a delicate and spicy flavor if a small amount of cumin powder is added to it. Carrot dishes will acquire a rich and bright taste if, at the very end of cooking, they are sprinkled with a little cumin.

Yeast dough will acquire a special flavor if you add 1 pinch of zira powder to it. Peach ice cream prepared with this spice will also turn out spicy.

Potato soups flavored with cumin, vegetable salads, fish, as well as stews, baked and fried pork dishes acquire a rich and spicy taste. This seasoning can be used when pickling tomatoes, cucumbers. Pickled mushrooms are also fragrant if you add a little cumin to them. This spice gives an interesting flavor to sauerkraut.

Zira - the queen of spices in oriental cuisine

In India, vegetable dishes are seasoned with zira. In Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, people like to add this spice to pilaf, soups, cold snacks and pastries. Ground cumin seeds are added to the famous Chili sauce.

Seeds of zira are necessarily included in the popular spicy mixture in India called "garam masala", which has many different variations.

In Kyrgyzstan, zira is used to marinate meat dishes, cook fried meat with vegetables, and add flavor to sauces. In other words, in the East, almost none of the dishes, with the exception of dessert, can do without zira. As for European cuisine, the Greeks add this spice to Smyrna sausages and stifato (stew). And the Bulgarians, calling zira kimon, use it to prepare fragrant meat dishes.

Recipe for pilaf with cumin

When preparing a real oriental pilaf, you cannot do without zira. Its whole seeds are a must-have ingredient, giving this dish its tart flavor and tangy-sweet taste. In order to make the smell of zira stronger in pilaf, oriental chefs recommend carefully grinding its seeds between the palms before adding this seasoning to the dish.

To prepare the pilaf, you will need the following ingredients:
- zira (seeds) - 1 tablespoon;
- meat (lamb or pork) - 1 kilogram;
- large carrots - 5 pieces;
- onions - 3 pieces;
- garlic - 5 pieces;
- barberry - 3 tablespoons;
- round grain rice - 400-500 grams;
- salt - 2 tablespoons;
- vegetable oil.

Cut the meat into pieces and place them in very hot vegetable oil. It is advisable to use a cauldron for this, but a saucepan with a thick bottom is also suitable. Fry the pieces of meat for about 10 minutes. While they are cooking, chop the peeled carrots and finely chop the onion.

Rinse the rice 3 times and then pour boiling water over it. Add shredded carrots, hot rice, cumin, barberry, salt to a saucepan with meat. Put whole heads of peeled garlic in the bottom of the pot, then add hot water to cover the rice. On low heat, bring the pilaf to readiness (this may take about half an hour). After that, wrap the cauldron or pan with pilaf well and let the dish brew for about 30 minutes.

In some recipes, there are different names for the same spice - cumin, zira, cumin cumin and even Roman cumin. Confused, culinary specialists buy ordinary cumin instead of a magical spice, without which it is impossible to cook a real Uzbek pilaf - zira. What is zira, why is it so necessary for pilaf, are there other sets of seasonings that can replace this product? Having learned the answers to these questions, you will be able to experiment with pilaf recipes and create masterpieces from different types of meat.

Zira

Zira, or cumin, is a seasoning for pilaf, which is most often used in cooking. A biennial plant with seeds resembling cumin, has a pungent odor and a bitter nutty taste. If the spice is fried, the aroma will intensify, and the taste will open in a new way.


Zira is grown in warm countries, and Central Asia is considered the birthplace of the spice. The most popular types of zira are Kirman and Persian. Syrian and Nabataean spices are also grown.

Fact! Kirman has a pungent smell and black color, while Persian is yellow and fragrant, it is most often used for cooking pilaf.

Zira is used in various dishes, it is often added to give unusual shades to recipes from berries and fruits. In India, the seasoning is included in many mixtures, the most popular of which is garam masala.


If you add a little zira to certain dishes, you get an incredible result:

Some cooks use cumin in vegetable salads and fish dishes.

Healing properties of oriental spice zira

Cumin owes its healing properties to its unique composition: B vitamins, magnesium, calcium, phosphorus, vitamin C and essential fatty oils and esters are contained in this amazing spice.


It is not in vain that Asian peoples appreciate zira, because the regular use of its grains helps against various diseases:

• protects against the formation of blood clots;
• prevents strokes and heart attacks;
• stimulates digestion;
• restores appetite;
• improves eyesight;
• stimulates the brain;
• helps fight spasms, flatulence and dyspepsia.

Another property of the oriental spice is the improvement of the reproductive system of a woman. Water boiled with medium-sized cumin seeds improves milk production in breastfeeding mothers and prevents uterine inflammation.

Cumin is also useful for the nervous system: regular consumption of tea with spice restores well-being, relieves stress and relieves migraines.

Zira contains up to 16% gum, which accelerates wound healing and disinfects damaged tissues. This property allows the spice to be used as an external remedy for various injuries.

Composition and types of seasonings and spices for pilaf

Spices are necessary for the preparation of real pilaf. Depending on the type of meat and the desired result, you can use different sets of seasonings - buy them in a store or cook them yourself from fresh, aromatic ingredients.

In addition to cumin, which is considered the basis for the spicy mixture, the following are used in the preparation of pilaf:

At home, you can prepare a set of spices for pilaf with different types of meat.

Seasoning Components Set

The classic composition of seasoning for pilaf with lamb, beef or pork looks like this:

• 1.5 st. l. ground greens (dill, parsley, cilantro);
• 1 st. l. dried garlic;
• 1 tsp saffron or turmeric;
• 1 st. l. hops-suneli;
• 1 tsp paprika;
• 1 tsp zira;
• 15 g barberry.

The components are mixed in a dry bowl.

If necessary, you can grind them again with a coffee grinder.

Another option that is suitable for pilaf from any meat is prepared on the basis of chopped dried tomatoes. Take 1.5 tbsp. l. tomatoes, 2 tbsp. l. chopped greens and a handful of raisins. Add 0.5 tsp to them. curry, 0.5 tsp rosemary and 15 g of barberry berries. You can also add 1.5 tsp. paprika, the same amount of turmeric and 1 tsp. zira.

Chicken mix

Chicken pilaf is a non-standard solution.


And it can use herbs that are not considered classic for an Asian dish:

• Italian and Provencal blends;
• caraway;
• thyme and parsley;
• chilli.

Components are mixed to taste. You can use classic options, or combine zira with Provencal herbs, an Italian mixture.

For pilaf with beef and pork

The taste of pilaf with pork grass is successfully emphasized: basil, marjoram, cumin, sumac, as well as cloves and bay leaves. Improve beef: savory, oregano, marjoram, shambhala, sumac.



And if pilaf is prepared from turkey, then allspice, parsley, sage, rosemary, curry or cloves can be added to the cumin. The proportions are selected independently, or you can buy ready-made mixtures for these types of meat.

How to add seasonings to pilaf

All spices, whether it is a complex mixture or pure zira, should be added to pilaf correctly:

• after frying vegetables and meat;
• first, water is poured into the roast;
• the spice mixture is poured into the liquid.

If you fall asleep too late, but the aroma of spices will not open. And if you add it at the roasting stage, you can lose the specific taste and smell of cumin, no matter how many pinches or teaspoons you put in the dish.

Product photos

In the photo of the zira spice, you can see its differences from ordinary cumin: the seeds are lighter and brown, in cumin they have a cold tint.


In general, it is difficult to distinguish cumin from cumin by appearance. But you can do it by smell, rubbing the seeds in your hand. Cumin will have a bitter, nutty flavor, while cumin will have a bright and spicy flavor.

It turns out that hot spices can curb hunger for several hours after eating and increase the number of calories burned. Many nutritionists believe that an incomplete teaspoon of spices is enough to speed up the metabolism by 25 percent within three hours. So how do you choose the right spices?

They say that only a man can cook real Uzbek pilaf. In Central Asia, it is believed that in women's hands this dish does not reach the highest standards. There are many options for cooking pilaf. Each nation has its own recipes, which are very different from each other. In general, how many pilaf cooks, so many recipes for preparing this legendary dish. But they are all convinced that you can cook pilaf without salt, fried onions and even without rice, but you need to put spices, at least so that it can be distinguished by color and smell from simple porridge with meat. Spices in pilaf serve mainly as natural preservatives - they do not allow boiled meat to deteriorate quickly, including in the stomach.

There are two types of pilaf: Asian and European. In Asian pilaf, the main spices are zera, barberry; in European - paprika, black pepper and various herbs.

Whenever possible, spices should be bought and stored whole so they stay fresh longer. In some dishes, spices need to be put in a whole form, for some they are pre-pounded in order to maximize their taste and aroma.

If you want to cook a purely Asian pilaf, then it is better to add zeru and barberry or zeru and saffron.

Zera (also called zra, zira) is nothing more than Indian cumin seeds. They differ from our cumin in smaller sizes and dark color. In addition, they have a sharper, stronger and more pleasant aroma. In pilaf, it is better to use whole seeds, as in this case they will be responsible for the aroma.

Barberry is also better to add whole. When biting the dried berries, a sour taste appears in the mouth. The fact is that barberry contains vitamin C, malic, citric and tartaric acids. It comes in dark red, red, black, but this does not affect its taste.

Saffron is the dried stigmas of the flowers of plants in the iris family. Contrary to popular belief, saffron gives meat and vegetable dishes not only a bright color, but also a spicy-burning, slightly bitter taste. Therefore, it is added in extremely small doses, otherwise the dish will be unpleasantly bitter. As well as zera, it is found in the form of seeds and powder. Just in order not to make a mistake in choosing, it is better to buy an unprocessed product. Many, so that the dish does not turn out to be too bitter, prepare saffron water in advance. This can be done in the following way. Grind the stigmas of saffron in a small mortar, pour boiled water over it and strain through cheesecloth after 24 hours. It is much more convenient to season pilaf with such saffron water - it will be colored more evenly.

The choice of spices for pilaf in stores is very wide. You can buy ready-made mixtures of monospices - "seasonings for pilaf". However, each manufacturer has their own. Therefore, look at the composition of spices indicated on the package.

In the seasoning, which is supplied from Europe, the main ingredients are salt, paprika, black pepper, garlic, onion and cumin. The color of this mixture will be brown, close to the color of paprika. The taste of this pilaf will be different from Asian.

But whatever mixture of spices for pilaf you choose, pay attention to the packaging of the seasoning. The bag should not be made of paper, but of foil. Spices in glass are more expensive, but better. And if you choose spices in glass packaging with a built-in mill, then the taste of your dishes will only benefit. After all, then you can grind the spices right before use. Store spices in sealed jars in a cool, dry place out of direct sunlight.