chawal pulao beef

Pilau (UK spelling) or pilaf (US spelling) is a rice dish (or in some regions, a wheat dish) of South Asian, Central Asian and Middle Eastern origin. The recipe usually involves cooking the rice soaked in stock or broth, adding meat, spices, and other ingredients such as vegetables,[1][note 1][2][note 2] and employing some technique for achieving cooked grains that do not adhere.[3][note 3][4][note 4]

At the time of the Abbasid Caliphate, such methods of cooking rice at first spread through a vast territory from India to Spain, and eventually to a wider world. The Spanish paella,[5][note 5] and the South Asian pilau or pulao,[6][note 6] and biryani,[7][note 7] evolved from such dishes.

Pilaf and similar dishes are common to Balkan, Caribbean, South Caucasian, Central Asian, East African, Eastern European, Latin American, Middle Eastern, and South Asian cuisines. It is a staple food and a popular dish in Afghanistan, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bangladesh, Bulgaria, China (notably in Xinjiang), Cyprus, Georgia, Greece (notably in Crete), India, Iraq (notably in Kurdistan), Iran, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kyrgyzstan, Nepal, Pakistan, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Sri Lanka, Tanzania (notably in Zanzibar), Tajikistan,[8] Turkey,[9] Turkmenistan, Uganda, and Uzbekistan.[10][11]

Contents
1 Etymology
2 History
3 Preparation
4 Local varieties
4.1 Afghanistan
4.2 Armenia
4.3 Azerbaijan
4.4 Bangladesh
4.5 Brazil
4.6 Caribbean
4.7 Central Asia
4.8 Lyon, France
4.9 Greece
4.10 India
4.11 Iran
4.12 Pakistan
4.13 Levant
4.14 Turkey
5 See also
6 References
7 Notes
8 Bibliography
9 External links
Etymology
Look up pilaf in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.
According to the Oxford English Dictionary, Third Edition (2006) the English word pilaf, which is the later and North American English form, is a borrowing from Turkish, its etymon, or linguistic ancestor, the Turkish pilav, whose etymon is the Persian pilāv; “pilaf” is found more commonly in North American dictionaries than pilau.[12]

The British and Commonwealth English spelling, pilau, has etymon Persian pulaw (in form palāv, pilāv, or pulāv in the 16th century). The Hindi word pulāv stems from the Persian word, popularised by the Persianate society of medieval India.

History

Persian-style pilau
Although the cultivation of rice had spread much earlier from South Asia to Central and West Asia, it was at the time of the Abbasid Caliphate that methods of cooking rice which approximate modern styles of cooking the pilau at first spread through a vast territory from Spain to Afghanistan, and eventually to a wider world.

The earliest documented recipe for pilau comes from the tenth-century Persian scholar Avicenna (Ibn Sīnā), who in his books on medical sciences dedicated a whole section to preparing various dishes, including several types of pilau. In doing so, he described the advantages and disadvantages of every item used for preparing the dish. Accordingly, Persians consider Ibn Sina to be the “father” of modern pilaf.[13] Thirteenth-century Arab texts describe the consistency of pilau that the grains should be plump and somewhat firm to resemble peppercorns with no mushiness, and each grain should be separate with no clumping.[14]

Another primary source for pilau dishes comes from the 17th-century Iranian philosopher Molla Sadra.[15] Pilau became standard fare in the Middle East, Transcaucasia and India over the years with variations and innovations by the Persians, Arabs, Turks, and Armenians. The Spanish paella,[5][note 8] and the South Asian pilau or pulao,[6][note 6] and biryani,[7][note 7] evolved from such dishes.

Pilau rice was introduced to Israel by Bukharan and Persian Jews. During the period of the Soviet Union, the Central Asian versions of the dish spread throughout all Soviet republics,[16] becoming a part of the common Soviet cuisine.

Preparation
Some cooks prefer to use basmati because it is easier to prepare a pilau where the grains stay “light, fluffy and separate” with this type of rice. However, other types of long-grain rice are also used. The rice is rinsed thoroughly before use to remove the starch. Pilau can be cooked in water or stock. Common additions include fried onions and fragrant spices like cardamom, bay leaves and cinnamon.[14] Pilau is usually made with meat or vegetables, but it can also be made plain whic
Local varieties
There are thousands of variations of pilau made with rice or other grains like bulgur.[14] In Central Asia there are plov, pilau on the Indian subcontinent, and variations from Turkmenistan and Turkey. Some include different combinations of meats, fruits or vegetables, while others are simple and served plain.[14] In the present day, Central Asian, Afghan, Turkish cuisine, Iranian and Caribbean cuisine are considered the five major schools of pilau.[18]

Afghanistan

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