Kenyan beef pilau with kachumbari

Spiced rice cooked with tender beef in its own broth, scented with cumin, cardamom, cinnamon and cloves, as served at celebrations along the Swahili coast of Kenya. Mild and fragrant, with a fresh tomato salad alongside.

Ingredients

• 700 g Stewing beef, cut into 2cm pieces
• 1 Beef stock cubes
• 40 ml Vegetable oil
• 2 Onions, thinly sliced
• 0.4 Garlic, crushed
• 20 g Fresh ginger, grated
• 5 g Cumin seeds
• 2 g Cardamom pods, crushed
• 1 Cinnamon sticks
• 0.5 g Cloves
• 2 g Black pepper
• 300 g Potatoes, cut into chunks
• 1 Tomatoes, chopped
• 400 g Basmati rice, rinsed
• 5 g Salt
• 3 Tomatoes, diced
• 1 Red onions, thinly sliced
• 10 g Fresh coriander, chopped
• 1 Limes, juiced
• 0.5 Fresh chillies, finely chopped, optional

Method

1. Put the beef in a pan with the crumbled stock cube and 900ml water. Simmer, partly covered, until tender.
2. In a wide, heavy casserole, fry the onions in the oil until deep golden brown. This gives pilau its colour, so take your time.
3. Add the garlic, ginger, cumin, cardamom, cinnamon, cloves and pepper and fry for a minute, then the tomato until it softens.
4. Add the beef (keeping the broth), the potatoes and the rice and stir to coat. Measure the broth: you need 700ml, topped up with water if needed. Pour it in with the salt.
5. Bring to the boil, cover tightly and cook on the lowest heat until the rice and potatoes are tender.
6. Toss the salad ingredients with a pinch of salt.
7. Rest the pilau off the heat for 5 minutes, then fluff and serve with the kachumbari.