If you often find yourself in a rut of steaming plain white rice to complement your weeknight dinners, this fragrant rice pilaf recipe is an easy upgrade. Toasting a warming mixture of spices—cumin, cinnamon, cardamom, and cloves—in butter awakens a range of flavors you wouldn’t get without blooming them first. (The spice mix is inspired by garam masala, a classic Indian blend that straddles the line between sweet and savory.)
After toasting the spices, you’ll sauté the rice to coat each grain with the spiced butter before adding water and simmering on the stovetop. This does two things for the rice: It adds flavor by caramelizing the starches in the grains. And, since you’re using fat (i.e., butter, but this goes for olive oil too), the rice will steam into individual, scoopable grains instead of a sticky mass. You can use white basmati rice instead of the jasmine called for here, or any variety of long-grain rice you have on hand.
This seasoned rice dish can be a delicious meal all on its own, topped with a fried or poached egg or bulked up with various sweet and savory add-ins like tart dried apricots or cherries; silky roasted bell peppers; or crunchy pine nuts, pistachios, or almonds. It’s also a perfect side dish for a vegetable-forward dinner and makes a great base for slow-roasted salmon or any grilled fish.
Rice pilaf is as delicious cold as it is warm; if you’d like to make a big batch to divvy throughout the week, leave out the herbs and store in an airtight container. To reheat, microwave the pilaf in bursts or cook it crispy-rice style, and add the herbs just before serving.