Rice Pilaf with Green Peas is one of my go-to 6 Mediterranean Rice Pilaf Recipes. The richness of seasoned rice with the sweetness of soft green jewels. Vegetarian. Served hot.
Rice Pilaf Recipes
Many Rice Pilaf dishes are rather EASY recipes. They are staple in my Mediterranean kitchen. Whether it’s my most frequently prepared Mushroom Rice Pilaf side-dish, or vegan (pareve) Rice Stuffed Peppers, or vegan (pareve) Stuffed Cabbage Rice Rolls.
Ingredients and Subs – Green Peas and Rice
- White Rice – Jasmine rice, Basmati rice, Persian rice
- White Onion – Sub: red onion
- Frozen Green Peas – Defrost in a bowl of hot water.
- Fresh Herbs – fresh parsley, fresh Cilantro, and fresh Dill (or either of them)
- Oil – Neutral oil – Canola, Corn, Sesame, Grapeseed, Cotton
- Spices – Kosher salt, White pepper
- Date Syrup (Date Molasses) – Naturally sweet – No added sugar
- Liquid – Water Sub: coconut milk, other vegan subs
Rice Options for Your Favorite Rice Pilaf Textures
You can choose the type of white rice according to the degree of stickiness you prefer:
- Short rice grains: for sticky results
- Medium size rice grains: for less sticky results
- Long rice grains: for mostly non-sticky, separate grains
Flavor Enhancement for Mediterranean Rice Pilaf With Peas
- Adding your own flavors is great, as long as you know the flavors your dinner guests prefer.
- To draw out the flavors, add your favorite dried spices to the oil after frying the rice. Fry for one minute, then add the water.
- Herbs:
- Use fresh parsley only—dried parsley can’t compare in flavor. In Mediterranean, Middle Eastern, and Asian cooking, fresh herbs are the norm.
- Fresh cilantro is best. If needed, substitute with 1 tablespoon dried green cilantro flakes (not ground coriander). Add it after the hot water, not to the frying oil.
- Fresh Dill – optional. Do not sub fresh dill with dry dill.
- Date Syrup (Date Molasses) – It has its own charming sweetness which is not overwhelmingly sweet.
- Note:
- Olive oil – might have a bitter aroma. Olive oil has a thickness and lower burning point that make it more difficult to fry rice in. At least, this is my experience.
- Coconut oil, has a strong aroma that not all like.
Storage
Refrigerating – It’s best to close it in an air-tight container for up to 1 day after the day it was cooked.
Freezing – I’d advise against freezing any rice dish. As rice is starchy, freezing it would end up in soggy, broken up texture.
That’s about it! I wish you good luck in making One-Pot Palif with Green Peas.
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Vat
Yield: 4 servings
Rice Pilaf with Green Peas
5.0 Stars (5 Reviews)
White rice, peas, fresh onion, and freshly chopped herbs are cooked in a tad of date syrup (date honey). You can choose the herbs and leave out the date syrup if you like.
Prep Time
7 minutes
Cook Time
25 minutes
Total Time
32 minutes
Ingredients
- 2 cups white Jasmin rice (or other long rice options)
- 1/3 cup neutral oil (a bit more than 1/4)
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 1½ cups frozen peas
- 1/3 cup freshly chopped and rinsed parsley leaves
- 1/3 cup freshly chopped and rinced cilantro leaves
- 1 tablespoon natural date syrup
- 2 teaspoons Kosher salt, or to taste
- 1/4 teaspoon white pepper (optional)
- 4⅔ cups hot water. Use the same cup to measure the rice and water.
- Tap water to rinse the rice.
Instructions
Peas
- Defrost. Place the peas in a bowl of boiling water for a few minutes. Strain. Set aside.
Rice
- Place the rice in a large bowl and rinse. Discard of starchy water repeatedly (3 to 4 times). Transfer the rice to a strainer and set aside. There's no need to dry the rice.
Cooking Process
- Fry onion in oil for 3 minutes. Add defrosted peas. Saute and stir 2 minutes.
- Pour the rice into the pot. Saute and stir the mixture for 5 minutes on a low heat. Add the fresh herbs, salt, pepper and date syrup. Stir for up to 1 minute.
- Pour in hot water, bring to boil. Cover the pot, lower the heat and simmer for about 6 minutes. Mix occasionally to prevent clumping (and hence, parts of the rice that would otherwise, remain raw).
- Remove pot from stove. Lift the lid really quickly, and give the rice a taste for softness with a fork. If you'd like the rice to be softer, quickly recover the pot with the lid and cover it with 2 towels.
Notes
Substitutes:
- White rice: Persian, Basmati; check for cleanliness on white plate. Should you wish to soak or rinse the rice, let it dry first the way you are accustomed to doing this.
- Oil: canola, sesame, cotton, soy or any oil whose aroma you are familiar with. Olive and coconut have a strong aroma that not all agree with. I find the thickness and burning point of olive oil to not suit this kind of a recipe, but you might think otherwise.
- Onion: white or red
- Herbs: Instead of chopped cilantro leaves, you can use twice as much parsley leaves, or use cilantro leaves only. Feel free to add your favorite herbs. For dried herbs: I, personally, don't add dry herbs. If you are opting for dried herbs, I advise adding them right after adding the boiling water to the pot so as to prevent them from burning. Note: The aroma of dried parsley is thought to be unpleasant.
- Date syrup: The date syrup in this recipe is sugar-free. You can use date syrup with sugar. Adjust saltiness if you don't want sweet rice.
- Water: Instead of counting cups of water, you can just add enough hot water the height of the tip of an index finger from the tip to the joint. This is always the case for rice. However, this recipe has peas in it that will absorb water too, which is then evaporated. So, I'd add a bit more water above the joint.
- Rinse-strain rice. No need to dry the rice.
Instructions - Rice Pilaf with Green Peas
- Defrost peas in a bowl of hot water. Strain and set aside.
- Fry onion in oil. Toss in the peas. Sauté in spices really quickly.
- De-clump rice if necessary with a fork.
- Add the rice, celery, herbs, and date syrup.
- Pour in the water and cook a few minutes on low-heat.
- When bubbling water still rises about 1/3 inch above the top of the rice, remove the sauce pan from the heat.
- Set aside. Cover with a few towels for at least 30 to 40 minutes. - optional
- Mixing:
- When the rice is at a high heat, it might clump up, which is fine. You can simply separate them with your fingers tips, or really gently, with a fork.
- For mixing prepared rice: Please do gently and carefully
Nutrition Information
Yield
6Serving Size
1Amount Per Serving Calories 269Total Fat 12gSaturated Fat 1gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 11gCholesterol 0mgSodium 473mgCarbohydrates 35gFiber 3gSugar 5gProtein 5g
Nutrition values are estimated.