Carrot rice recipe is a delicious and nutritious recipe made using Basmati rice and carrots. This rice recipe is an easy meal idea for dinner and is a mildly spiced carrot and rice recipe. This one pot meal and is ideal to pack in the kids lunch box.

This vegan and gluten free carrot rice is good for weight watchers, is kid friendly and is a fantastic way to make fussy toddlers and babies eat carrots.

Here are the ingredients that goes in making best carrot rice pilaf recipe:

Rice: Always use Basmati rice to make this easy recipe. It adds nutty, floral flavor and is easily digestible. If Basmati rice is not available, you may use any type of white rice. The taste will change depending on the type of rice used.
Spices: Lot of Indian spices like cloves, cardamom, bay leaves, black pepper corn, ginger, garlic and spice powders like red chili powder, cumin powder, coriander powder and garam masala are used in this recipe. The addition of these spices makes the rice with carrots flavorful.
Vegetables: Vegetables like onion and carrots are used in this recipe.

How to cook carrot rice?

Add ginger and garlic to mortar-pestle and crush to make paste. Keep it aside.
Wash the Basmati rice and keep aside for 20 minutes.
Boil rice in 5 cups water on a stove top. Cook rice al-dente and do not over-cook it. Drain the rice on a colander and let it dry.
Heat a pan or wok, add oil and after the oil gets heated add the spices namely crushed cardamom pods, bay leaves, black pepper corns and cloves. Ensure that the spices do not get burnt.
Add onion and sauté.
After the onion turns pinkish, add ginger-garlic paste and sauté till the raw smell of garlic goes away.
Mix chopped carrots. Cover the pan and cook at simmer till carrots turn soft and tender. Do not overcook carrots as they will lose all their nutrition.
Add the spice powders namely red chili powder, cumin powder, coriander powder and garam masala, salt and mix well.
Gently add rice and mix slowly ensuring that the rice grains does not break.
Taste and adjust salt if needed.
Add chopped coriander leaves and mix gently.
Garnish with chopped coriander leaves.
Serve hot.

Variations:

Green peas, sweet corn, soy chunks may be added to make this Indian style carrot pilaf bursting with nutrition.

Carrot rice recipe in cooker:

For making this rice recipe in pressure cooker, first add oil, add spices sauté onion, carrots, ginger and garlic and spice powders. Then add the washed and soaked Basmati rice and 2 cups water and pressure cook for 3 whistles. Switch off the gas/heat. Open the cooker after the pressure is released.

If you are making carrot rice in cooker, then add water in double the amount of proportion as compared to rice. That is if you add 1 cup rice, then add 2 cups water.

This is not a carrot fried rice and hence no sauces are used in making carrot rice recipe Indian. You may call it carrot pulao or carrot pilaf.

Other rice recipes:

Carrot rice benefits:

Carrots are low in calories and are rich in dietary fiber, vitamins like Vitamin A, Vitamin C, Vitamin B6, potassium, sodium, magnesium, calcium, protein, and iron. Regular consumption of carrots is known to provide numerous health benefits like blood sugar regulation, reduction in bad cholesterol and maintaining healthy eyesight. Hence it is important to add carrots to the diet.

Carrot Rice Recipe

Here are the ingredients that goes in making best carrot rice pilaf recipe:

How to cook carrot rice?