Bagara rice

Method

1. 1 Soak the rice for 30 minutes, then drain it completely for 10 minutes.
2. 2 Sauté cardamom, cloves, cinnamon, and bay leaves in ghee for 90 seconds.
3. 3 Bagara is seasoned only with whole grains and contains no masala powder; that's the whole essence of it.
4. 4 Sauté thinly sliced onions for 10 minutes until lightly browned, then add crushed ginger and garlic and green chilies.
5. 5 Add the rice and stir in the ghee for 3 minutes until the rice grains are coated in oil.
6. 6 Pour in one and a half times the amount of hot water as rice, cook for 15 minutes, and let it steep for 10 minutes.

With an appliance

• Microwave 37 min

  Replace step 6: put rice and hot water in a bowl, cover loosely, microwave at 900W for 12 minutes, then let it sit for 8 minutes; reduce to about 5 minutes, the grains will be evenly cooked, you won't need to constantly monitor the heat, and the whole spices will be less likely to burn at the bottom. Steps 2–5 still involve sautéing spices, stir-frying onions, and toasting rice in ghee to retain the Bagara flavor.