Rice Pilaf with Caramelized Onion, Orange, Cherry & Pistachio
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Perfumed with spices, this exotic rice pilaf is a delicious way to jazz up pan-seared salmon or roast chicken.
Sometimes it’s nice to make a super-simple entree and focus on making your side dishes special instead. This rice pilaf, modestly adapted from chef chef Ris Lacoste, is a delicious way to jazz up basic pan-seared salmon or roast chicken. It’s easy to make; just be sure to allow time to caramelize the onions. The key is to cook them low and slow so that they turn a rich caramel color without a touch of burning.
What you’ll need to make rice pilaf
How to make rice pilaf
To begin, slice two of the onions into half-moons, and dice the remaining onion.
Set a liquid measuring cup with about 1/2 cup of water next to the stove. In a 12-inch skillet (preferably not nonstick), melt 2 tablespoons of the butter over medium heat. Add the sliced onions, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions are meltingly tender and a rich, deep caramel color, 20 to 25 minutes.
To help the caramelization process along and prevent the onions from burning, deglaze the pan every so often with a few tablespoons of the water—but wait to do this until you see a brown film forming on the bottom of the pan. I usually use about 1/2 cup of water total, but you may need a bit more or less.
Add the cumin and cinnamon and stir well. Reduce the heat to low and cook one minute more, stirring occasionally, to allow the onion to absorb the flavors of the spices and caramelize a bit more. Season with 1/4 teaspoon of the salt and a few grinds of black pepper. Set aside.
Zest and juice the orange.
Pour the orange juice over the cherries in a small bowl to hydrate them, if necessary adding enough water to cover completely. Set aside.
In a heavy 3-qt. saucepan with a tight-fitting lid, melt the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter over medium-low heat. Add the diced onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft but not browned, about 5 minutes.
Add the rice and the remaining 1 teaspoon of salt, reduce the heat to low, and stir well to coat each grain with butter. Toast for a full 5 minutes, stirring regularly to keep the grains separated and to prevent them from sticking to the bottom of the pan.
Add 2-1/2 cups water, stir once, and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce the heat to low, and cook for 18 minutes.
Remove from the heat, and let the pilaf sit, still covered, for 5 minutes.
Once the pilaf has rested, remove the lid and fluff the rice with a fork.
Strain the cherries and discard the orange juice. Using the fork, gently fold in the cherries, caramelized onions, pistachios, and 1/4 teaspoon packed orange zest.
Taste and adjust seasoning, adding more salt, pepper and orange zest, if desired. (Note: Orange zest is very strong and somewhat bitter in flavor so be sure to add it little by little.)
Enjoy!
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Rice Pilaf with Caramelized Onion, Orange, Cherry & Pistachio
Perfumed with spices, this exotic rice pilaf is a delicious way to jazz up pan-seared salmon or roast chicken.
Ingredients
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 3 medium onions: 2 thinly sliced into half-moons; 1 finely diced
- ½ teaspoon ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1¼ teaspoon salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 1 orange, zest (you'll use about ¼ tsp) and juice
- ¾ cup sweetened dried tart cherries
- 1½ cups long-grain white rice
- ¾ cup (3.5 oz) unsalted shelled pistachios
Instructions
- Set a liquid measuring cup with about ½ cup of water next to the stove. In a 12-inch skillet (preferably not nonstick), melt 2 tablespoons of the butter over medium heat. Add the sliced onions, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions are meltingly tender and a rich, deep caramel color, 20 to 25 minutes. To help the caramelization process along and prevent the onions from burning, deglaze the pan every so often with a few tablespoons of the water—but wait to do this until you see a brown film forming on the bottom of the pan. I usually use about ½ cup of water total, but you may need a bit more or less. Add the cumin and cinnamon and stir well. Reduce the heat to low and cook one minute more, stirring occasionally, to allow the onion to absorb the flavors of the spices and caramelize a bit more. Season with ¼ teaspoon of the salt and a few grinds of black pepper. Set aside.
- Pour the orange juice over the cherries in a small bowl to hydrate them, if necessary adding enough water to cover completely. Set aside.
- In a heavy 3-qt. saucepan with a tight-fitting lid, melt the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter over medium-low heat. Add the diced onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft but not browned, about 5 minutes. Add the rice and the remaining 1 teaspoon of salt, reduce the heat to low, and stir well to coat each grain with butter. Toast for a full 5 minutes, stirring regularly to keep the grains separated and to prevent them from sticking to the bottom of the pan.
- Add 2½ cups water, stir once, and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce the heat to low, and cook for 18 minutes. Remove from the heat, and let the pilaf sit, still covered, for 5 minutes.
- Once the pilaf has rested, remove the lid and fluff the rice with a fork. Strain the cherries and discard the orange juice. Using the fork, gently fold in the cherries, caramelized onions, pistachios, and ¼ teaspoon packed orange zest. Taste and adjust seasoning, adding more salt, pepper and orange zest, if desired. (Note: Orange zest is very strong and somewhat bitter in flavor so be sure to add it little by little.)
Pair with
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (8 servings)
- Calories: 323
- Fat: 11 g
- Saturated fat: 4 g
- Carbohydrates: 50 g
- Sugar: 14 g
- Fiber: 3 g
- Protein: 6 g
- Sodium: 299 mg
- Cholesterol: 13 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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Hi! I am always looking for veggie receipes. Love the addition of the fruit, but I used cranberries as that is what I had in my pantry and not cherries. I think the concept of fruit and nuts will work well for a variety of combinations. Thanks
Great Pilaf! I disagree with other reviewers that this is bland. Yes, it takes time and a little patience, but the end result is a lovely side dish, which I served with seared salmon. I do agree the pistachios don’t add much, other than color and they are expensive. I halved the recipe and also added toasted sliced almonds, used low-sodium chicken broth instead of water, dried cranberries, and jasmine rice. I think the secret is really toasting the rice mixture which adds wonderful depth of flavor. I will definitely be making again!
Tasty but not worth the work or the expense of the ingredients. I will not make again.
Hi Jenn,
This is the first of your recipes that I have tried. I am an experienced cook and this recipe did nothing for me.
I made the pilaf yesterday and in all honesty…it was way to labor intensive for the results I got. Mainly the time it takes to carmeize onions versus to the flavor they added is way out proportion. My suggestions: forget the carmelized onions, use 1/2 cup dried cranberries for cost saving and use toasted, slivered almonds (Trader Joe’s) in place of Pistachio nuts. The pistachio’s added nothing…neither flavor or crunch. I used low sodium chicken broth instead of water and omitted the salt.
I thought the mechanics were good, the finished product was fluffy and perfectly cooked.
I will persevere though. I have a couple more of your recipes that I will try.
Experienced cooks know that caramelizing onions takes time.
Sorry, Jenn, usually I just LOVE your recipes. But this one, not so…..It was very bland for our taste…..
Delicious! After seeing this with the Restaurant-Style Pan Roasted Salmon, I had to make it. Since there were only two of us, I only made 2/3 of the recipe. I made a couple substitutions: brown basmati rice (rinsed) for the white rice increasing the water to double the amount of rice and dried cranberries for the dried cherries.
Super delicious! I made as indicated but substituted pecans for the pistachios since that’s what I had in my pantry. Served with your pan seared salmon and it was like dinner at the best restaurant. My husband raved!
Do you think this would be good with quinoa in place of the rice?
The recipe looks delish as written, however I’m trying to enjoy the more nutritious quinoa.
Thanks!
Sure, Kim – just follow the liquid measurement and cooking time on the box of quinoa. I’d love to know how it turns out.
Jenn–Any way all or part of this recipe could be made ahead? Would love to have it all done ahead of time and then just stick it covered in the oven to reheat before dinner with guests? Combo of flavors and textures look/sound fantastic.
Absolutely, Diane – you can make this pilaf ahead and reheat in the oven or microwave. Just wait until before serving to add the nuts or they’ll get soft. Hope you enjoy it!
The pilaf looks so much like a mixture of Persian pilafs called Albaloo polo and Javaher polo!