If you enjoy hosting and feeding people as much as I do, you will love this warm, aromatic fall dish. Pulao (pilaf, pilau) has such a widespread and diverse history, it’s reached near-ubiquitous culinary status. This homey iteration served with a tangy yogurt dip, is straight from Mum’s archive.

As a present for her that really disguised a present for myself, I hand-wrote her recipes in a leatherbound journal. The fried eggplant raita (whipped yoghurt dip) is the perfect accompaniment – it’s more heavily seasoned than the rice, the eggplant is fried to an almost-crisp and the yogurt is fluffy and comforting. The bhagar* is made by frying fresh spices until the aroma incrementally envelopes the kitchen, the living room, and finally, the entire house until everyone is hungrily eyeing the dinner table.

Think of this pulao as biryani’s low-key, indie cousin. She’s here. She doesn’t care if you notice. She blends right into the table. She is quietly irresistible.

The correct way to eat this meal is unapologetically unsexy: build miniature mountains of rice with your fingers and tear small strips of eggplant into every bite.

Your lips will be glossed with a thin sheen of oil from the bhagar but pay no mind. You can go on a run tomorrow. Trust me, it’s worth it.

*When you bloom spices in hot oil to create a deep, enriched flavor profile. A staple in many Pakistani dishes.

Mutton Yakhni Pulao

Ingredients

Stock (Yakhni)

• 500g mutton, boned
• 2 medium onions, peeled
• 1 head of garlic
• 1½ length of ginger, thinly sliced
• 2 tbsp fennel seeds
• 2 tbsp coriander seeds
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• 2 black cardamom pods
• 4 green cardamom pods
• 8 cloves
• 1 tsp black peppercorns
• 5 red chilies, dried
• 8 cups of water, distilled or pre-boiled

Pulao

• 3 cups basmati rice, rinsed and soaked for half an hour
• 6 tbsp cooking oil
• 1 bay leaf
• 4 cloves
• 4 green cardamom pods
• ½ tsp black peppercorns
• 3 tsp salt (flat)
• ½ tsp cumin seeds
• 1 medium onion, thinly sliced and fried
• 2 tbsp ginger-garlic paste
• ½ cup yoghurt, whisked

Directions

Yakhni

1. Add all the ingredients in a large pot and bring to a boil.
2. Cook on medium heat for 1 hour or until meat is tender.
3. Strain the water in a large bowl and save the stock (very important! Don’t throw the muddy-looking water away, it’s liquid gold!)
4. Remove the mutton from the stock and set aside.
5. Strain the remaining spices of the stock, squeezing into a strainer as needed (to yield maximum stock). Discard the spices.

Pulao

1. Heat oil in a large pot and add dried spices until a gentle crackle.
2. Add meat from the yakhni and fried onions to the pot. Add the ginger-garlic paste.
3. Slowly adding the yoghurt while roasting ingredients from previous step. Allow it to cook for 2-3 minutes. Add salt.
4. Add the rice and 5 cups of stock. Allow it to cook on high heat until most of the water has evaporated.
5. Cover the pot with aluminum and secure tightly, sealing with the pot lid. Allow it to simmer on low flame for ten minutes.
6. Open (releasing steam) after ten minutes. Fluff rice before serving.

Eggplant raita

Ingredients

• 3 medium eggplants, thinly sliced
• Red chili powder, salt, coriander powder, cumin powder, salt, black salt, chat masala — all to taste
• 5 cups yoghurt, whisked
• For the bhagar: 3 tbsp vegetable oil, 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped, 8 curry leaves, ½ tsp cumin seeds, ¼ tsp mustard seeds

Directions

1. Mix the seasoning with the sliced eggplant and allow it to infuse for 10 minutes.
2. Shallow-fry the eggplants in a large frying pan. Arrange in a flat serving dish that has enough depth for a layer of yoghurt.
3. Whisk yoghurt with salt, black salt and water.
4. Pour yoghurt over the layer of sliced eggplant.
5. Sprinkle chat masala, red chili flakes, roasted cumin, and coarsely ground cumin powder on the yoghurt.
6. Make a bhagar by frying the listed ingredients until a loud crackle. Pour over yoghurt.