Zarda Pulao Recipe | Meethe Chawal with step by step pics and a short Youtube video. If you like my video, please do SUBSCRIBE to my channel ‘Asmallbite’. This sweet rice is often made on special occasions, like festivals or marriages, furthermore, in the Northern parts of India, it is prepared during Basant Panchami to celebrate the onset of the spring season. It is popular rice or pulao recipe prepared with basmati rice, saffron, sugar and served as a dessert after the meal, or on special occasions and celebrations. It has a yellow shade due to the use of saffron or yellow food colour or turmeric powder. The dish has its origin in Persia, where zard means bright yellow colour and is also quite popular in Pakistan. There is another zarda variation which is prepared by adding moist khoya or mawa to rice, making it more tasty and rich. If interested, check my Meethi Seviyan Recipe.
What is Zarda Pulao
This meethe chawal or zarda pulao recipe is an aromatic sweet pulao made with basmati rice, sugar, dry fruits, and saffron. The typical zarda pulao has a yellow color in the cooked rice grains, where the color is got by using saffron or yellow food color. Zarda pulao is so-called as the word ‘zard’ means ‘yellow color’ in Persian and Urdu language. There is another zarda variation which is prepared by adding moist khoya or mawa to rice, making it more tasty and rich.
Basmati Rice
Use good quality basmati rice to make this meethe pulao, but golden sela rice may also be used. But I suggest using basmati rice as it emanates a nice aroma, has longs grains, and a non-sticky behavior.
Saffron
Though saffron gives the yellow color to the rice, still to get the bright yellow color you may use yellow food color or turmeric powder. Add food color/turmeric while cooking the rice. I have seen that turmeric powder also gives a very nice yellow color, and since it is cooked nicely, there is no evident flavor of turmeric. So you can easily replace unhealthy and artificial food color with turmeric powder, which is a natural ingredient.
Check my other Sweet Recipes like
1. Pineapple Sheera / Kesari
2. Kesari Bhath Karnataka Style
3. Milk Sheera / Paal Kesari
4. Poha Sheera / Aval Kesari
5. Mango Sheera / Kesari
6. Rava Kesari Bhath
Zarda Recipe
Zarda Pulao Recipe | Meethe Chawal
Equipment
- Stovetop
- Kadai / Pan
Ingredients
1 Cup = 250 ML, 1 tsp = 5 ML
- ½ Cup Basmati rice
- 1 Cup Water
- 1 tbsp Warm Milk
- ¼ tsp Saffron Strands
- 2 Pinch Yellow Food Colour (Optional)
- ½ Cup Sugar
- ¼ Cup Ghee Link for Homemade Ghee
- 4 Cardamom
- 6 Cloves
- 8 Cashews
- 8 Almonds
- 2 tsp Raisins
Instructions
- Rinse the basmati rice 2 to 3 times. Soak it in water for 30 minutes to 1 hour. Do not skip this step, as soaking gives softness to the rice and helps in easy cooking too. Then, measure 1 cup of water, 1/2 cup of sugar and keep aside.
- Soak 1/4 tsp of saffron in 1 tbsp of warm milk. Also, you can reduce the saffron to 1/8 tsp, (but the color will be pale yellow) and add 2 pinches of turmeric powder, which is a natural ingredient, or add 1 pinch of yellow food color. Then, measure the cloves, cardamom, raisins, slit the cashews and almonds.
- Heat 2 tsp of ghee in a heavy-bottomed pan. Then, add the cashews, almonds, and raisins. Roast till nice aroma wafts and it turns to golden brown color.
- Keep the roasted dry nuts and raisins separately.
- To the same pan, pour 2 tbsp of ghee. Then, add the cloves and cardamom. Roast for few seconds, until you get a nice aroma.
- Pour 1 to 1.5 cups of water. Once the water starts to roll boil, add the saffron strands with milk.
- Drain the water completely from the soaked rice. Completely lower the flame and now add the rice.
- Cover it with a lid and cook for 7 to 8 minutes, the rice grains look fluffy and the water would have evaporated (don't make it completely dry else the rice grains burns and smells bad).
- Take a rice grain and press it with your fingers to check the doneness (ensure it is properly cooked and soft, before adding the sugar, else it won't get cooked after that). Slowly add the sugar in a sprinkled way.
- The sugar melts and loosens the rice mixture. Mix well but gently, so that the sugar gets mixed evenly with cooked rice grains. Cook till the sugar solution dries up and then add 2 to 3 tbsp of ghee. (After cooking, if in case the rice grains feel hard or dense, then cover the pan with a damp cloth or cotton napkin. Cover with a lid and cook the pulao for 50 seconds).
- Once there is no liquid consistency, add the roasted cashews, almonds, and raisins. Mix well and switch off the flame.
- Serve this zarda rice hot or warm. Alternatively, you can spread this sweet rice on a large plate and then serve.Do try this Meethe Chawal for this upcoming Basant Panchami festival.
Video
Notes
Tips for Zarda Pulao Recipe
1. Use aged /old, long grains basmati rice only, to make this Meethe Chawal. Other rice varieties like raw rice, Sona Masoori, or jeera samba won't taste good for this dish. 2. Soaking the rice for 30 minutes to 1 hour is a must step. It helps in easy cooking and gives softness to the rice grains. 3. If you want the dominant flavour of cloves and cardamom, increase the quantity by 2 to 3 numbers more. 4. Ghee can be replaced with any neutral flavour oil too. But ghee lends a nice aroma to the pulao. 5 . Even 2 tbsp of pistachios or 2 tsp of kopra coconut (fried in ghee) or silver leaves/vrak can be used for garnishing for a beautiful look. 6. Water quantity varies accordingly from 1 to 1.5 cups, depending on the rice. 7. I used 1/4 tsp of saffron strands, you can reduce it to 1/8 tsp, but the colour will be pale yellow. 8. For a bright colour, 2 pinches of yellow food colour can be used but is unhealthy. I did not use any food colour. 9. If you are reluctant of using food colour, use 2 to 3 pinches of turmeric powder which is a natural ingredient. Since it is cooked nicely, there is no evident flavour of turmeric. 10. Ensure the rice grains are properly cooked and soft before adding the sugar. Else, it won't get cooked after that. 11. Sugar can be increased to 1/3 cup too, as per your desire for this Zarda Pulao Recipe. 12. If in case the rice grains feel hard or dense, then cover the pan with a damp cloth or cotton napkin. Cover with a lid and cook pulao for another 50 seconds.
Zarda Pulao Recipe
Method for Meethe Chawal Recipe
1. Rinse the basmati rice 2 to 3 times. Soak it in water for 30 minutes to 1 hour. Do not skip this step, as soaking gives softness to the rice and helps in easy cooking too. Then, measure 1 cup of water, 1/2 cup of sugar and keep aside.
2. Soak 1/4 tsp of saffron in 1 tbsp of warm milk. Also, you can reduce the saffron to 1/8 tsp, (but the color will be pale yellow) and add 2 pinches of turmeric powder, which is a natural ingredient, or add 1 pinch of yellow food color. Then, measure the cloves, cardamom, raisins, slit the cashews and almonds.
3. Heat 2 tsp of ghee in a heavy-bottomed pan. Then, add the cashews, almonds, and raisins. Roast till nice aroma wafts and it turns to golden brown color.
4. Keep the roasted dry nuts and raisins separately.
5. To the same pan, pour 2 tbsp of ghee. Then, add the cloves and cardamom. Roast for few seconds, until you get a nice aroma.
6. Pour 1 to 1.5 cups of water. Once the water starts to roll boil, add the saffron strands with milk.
7. Drain the water completely from the soaked rice. Completely lower the flame and now add the rice.
8. Cover it with a lid and cook for 7 to 8 minutes, the rice grains look fluffy and the water would have evaporated (don’t make it completely dry else the rice grains burns and smells bad).
9. Take a rice grain and press it with your fingers to check the doneness (ensure it is properly cooked and soft, before adding the sugar, else it won’t get cooked after that). Slowly add the sugar in a sprinkled way.
10. The sugar melts and loosens the rice mixture. Mix well but gently, so that the sugar gets mixed evenly with cooked rice grains. Cook till the sugar solution dries up and then add 2 to 3 tbsp of ghee. (After cooking, if in case the rice grains feel hard or dense, then cover the pan with a damp cloth or cotton napkin. Cover with a lid and cook the pulao for 50 seconds).
11. Once there is no liquid consistency, add the roasted cashews, almonds, and raisins. Mix well and switch off the flame.
12. Serve this zarda rice hot or warm. Alternatively, you can spread this sweet rice on a large plate and then serve.
Do try this Meethe pulao for this upcoming Basant Panchami festival.
Meethe Chawal Recipe
Welcome to my blog www.asmallbite.com. Thanks for reading my blog! I hope you’re enjoying my recipes to make the taste forever. I am Priya Santhamohan, writer and photographer (with hubby’s help) of this blog. 
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