Jump to content

Jeera bhaat

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Jeera bhaat
Alternative namesZeera chawal
CourseMain Course
Region or stateIndian subcontinent
Serving temperatureHot
Main ingredientsRice, cumin seeds, onions

Jeera Bhaat or Zeera Chawal is an Indian and Pakistani dish consisting of rice and cumin seeds.[1] It is a very popular dish in the Indian subcontinent and most commonly used as an everyday rice dish.[2] The Hindi term for cumin seeds is "jeera" or "zeera", with the latter also being used in Urdu, thus owing to the name of the dish. The ingredients used are rice, cumin seeds, vegetable oil, onions, salt and coriander leaves.

Etymology

[edit]

The name Jeera Bhaat is a compound of two Hindi words: Jeera and Bhaat. The word Jeera (or Jīrā in IAST) is derived from the Sanskrit word Jīraka,[3] which means cumin seeds. The word Bhaat is derived from the Sanskrit word Bhakta meaning "boiled rice".[4] The Hindi-Urdu name Zeera Chawal (ज़ीरा चावल / زیرہ چاول) is commonly used in northern India, with the word Zeera (meaning cumin) being derived from the same Sankrit word and the word Chawal meaning rice.[5]

Preparation

[edit]

Cumin seeds are fried in hot oil. Long-grain Basmati rice and salt are added to it. Water is then poured and allowed to boil with covered lid at high flame. The rice then is steamed on low flame until all the water is absorbed.

Jeera rice is generally garnished with finely chopped fresh coriander leaves but is also garnished with onion rings in some Indian hotels and restaurants.

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "Rajmah and chawal rule royally over tastebuds". Times of India.
  2. ^ "Rices of the world - Epicure -". The Age. 18 April 2005.
  3. ^ Turner, R. L. (Ralph Lilley) (1962–1966). "A Comparative Dictionary of Indo-Aryan Languages". dsal.uchicago.edu. Retrieved 29 December 2022.
  4. ^ Turner, R. L. (Ralph Lilley) (1962–1966). "A Comparative Dictionary of Indo-Aryan Languages". dsal.uchicago.edu. Retrieved 29 December 2022.
  5. ^ "Zeera Chawal - Cumin Rice". Journey Kitchen. 5 April 2011. Retrieved 2 May 2024. One of the most famous and simple Indian flavored rice is cumin rice called zeera chawal in hindi, where zeera means cumin and chawal refers to rice.
[edit]