Kenyan Pilau

I love this pilau. All the wonderful spices mingling and the vibrant colors. It was perfect with the nyama choma meat skewers from a few weeks ago. This particular recipe is adapted from Jikoni Magic, my go-to source for Kenyan cooking. I left out the meat because I already had a beef dish planned.

3 Tbsp. oil
6 cloves garlic
1 in' piece ginger, chopped
1 large onion
2 tsp. turmeric
3 bay leaves
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. cardamom
1 tsp. cumin
1/4 tsp. coriander
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
large pinch allspice
generous amount of pepper2 large tomatoes, chopped fine
4 bouillon cubes (beef or vegetable)
2 c. basmati rice
Salt to taste
chopped cilantro

Heat the oil in a large stock pot. Add the bay leaf, cinnamon, cardamom, cumin, nutmeg, allspice, coriander and pepper to the pan and heat until fragrant. Add the onion to the pan and saute until soft. Add the garlic and ginger and saute just until fragrant. Add the tomatoes and cook, stirring, about 5 minutes. Add the rice and cook, stirring, another 2 - 3 minutes. 

Add the rice, 3 3/4 cups water, and beef bouillon cubes. Bring to a boil and boil for 5 minutes. Reduce the heat and cover. Simmer for about 20 minutes, or until the rice is tender. Remove from the heat and leave covered for 10 minutes. Add the chopped cilantro and fluff with a fork.