Ingredients

• Rice – 3 cups
• Water – 7 cups
• Cloves – 4
• Green Cardamom – 6
• Cinnamon – 2 inch stick
• Staranise – 2
• Jeera (Cumin Seeds) – 1 tsp
• Salt – to taste
• For Vegetable Medley: Green Bell Pepper (Capsicum) – 2
• Red Bell Pepper (Capsicum) – 2
• Yellow Bell Pepper (Capsicum) – 1
• Fresh Green Beans – 15 nos
• Frozen Green Peas – about 50 grams
• Carrots – 2
• Cauliflower – about 50 grams
• Sweet corn – about 50 grams
• Cashew Nuts – about 50 grams
• Raisins – about 50 grams
• Salt – to taste
• Ghee – 2 tbsp
• For Garnish: Coriander Leaves – ½ bunch

How to Make Vegetable Fried Rice for Picnic

• Wash Rice, only once not rubbing into it harshly, or you break the grains. Drain.
• Cut the Peppers into 4 quarters, de-seed and de- stalk. Cut lengthwise.
• Remove the ends of the green Beans and cut them into 2 inch long sticks.
• Cut the Cauliflower from stalk and break them with your fingers into small florets
• Peel the Carrots and cut them into 2inch by ½ inch size batonsBlanching the Vegetables:
• Take all cut Vegetables and soak in boiling Water for 1 minute, now pass under ice-cold running water. This process of shock treatment helps in retaining colour and crispiness of Vegetables
• when cooked. Drain
• Stage One: Cooking the Rice: Boil Water with Salt, Cloves, Cardamom, Cinnamon, Staranise and Cumin Seeds.
• Once boiled add the washed-drained Rice and cook on low flame, this comes to a stage were all water is absorbed. Therefore it is important to measure using the same cup, 1:2 Rice:Water ratio.
• Cook on low flame, you may use a Rice cooker, if you so prefer and follow the manufacturers instructions about using the Rice cooker.
• Remove from fire and spread it out, this helps the heat escape and prevents the grains of Rice from sticking to each other.
• Stage Two: Preparing the Vegetables: Heat Ghee in a Kadai or a non-stick pan, add and sauté Raisins till they swell up, remove using a slotted spoon.
• Next add Cashew Nuts and sauté for about 30 – 50 seconds till lightly golden brown, remove using a slotted spoon.
• Now add the blanched and drained Vegetables to the hot Ghee, stir and cook on low fire for about 12 minutes. Add Salt to taste.
• Stage Three: Layering and Garnish: By now all the heat from the Rice would have escaped and is ready for layering: Spread a layer of Rice on the bed of the deep bottomed vessel.
• Now spread a layer of the Vegetables, mixed with Raisins and Cashew Nuts.
• Repeat till you are done. Garnish with Coriander Leaves just when you are ready to serve.
• Serve with Lime Pickle, Yoghurt, Microwave roasted Poppadum and Salad.