What kind of rice to serve with Indian Butter Chicken (Murgh Makhani)?
Are there any kind of preferred techniques, or spicing perhaps?
Rice – What kind of rice to serve with Indian Butter Chicken (Murgh Makhani)
indian-cuisinerice
Related Solutions
If Belgian food is anything like the Dutch food my Oma made, your best bet is to limit it to the dessert course and strike out in a different direction. Even there, throwing in an extra pinch of salt and a little fresh ginger or cardamom powder may help liven it up for your friends.
One area where you'll both be happy: Mediterranean/Middle-Eastern fare. If you pick a recipe with plenty of aromatic herbs and spices, and maybe yogurt, it'll have the rich flavors your friends are used to. However, they won't be the same dishes they have at home, so they can't compare unfavorably to their mom or auntie's cooking. Flatbreads, kebabs, braised lamb, goat, yogurt sauces... these will be familiar elements, but by using Mediterranean or Middle-Eastern versions, you'll give them a taste of the exotic too.
Using South or Central American cuisine will have similar results; dishes rich in pungent chilis, cumin, and coriander will combine elements of comfort food with something new. Indian chapatis and naan (flatbreads) are very similar to homemade tortillas. It goes without saying that beef is to be avoided. Depending on what part of India your guests are from, coconut milk and tamarind paste may be other familiar elements to play with.
Portugal also has a fine tradition of spicy foods, including the Vin d'alho which Indian adapted into the now-familiar vindaloo.
If you don't feel comfortable with these cuisines, you might do Indian, but with a fusion twist. I found that Saag Paneer with blocks of feta instead of paneer is absolutely divine. Halloumi cheese might work well too. In fact, I'd say it's better than the original dish.
A word on dietary restrictions: Presumably you know your friends' dietary needs, but if they're bringing new acquaintances it is wise to give some thought to dietary restrictions. Many Indians are Hindus, who do not eat beef, and another major fraction are Muslim. Muslims follow a dietary law called halal, which is very similar to kosher law, and likewise excludes pork and animal blood. It also excludes alcohol... which means a spicy tamarind-port pork marinade isn't viable. A sizable part of the Indian population is also vegetarian, so any meal should include a vegetarian entree.
In my experience, rice quality has a pretty substantial amount of variation, but the cooking device has little to do with it.
While I'm sure that most rice cookers on the market from Japanese firms are optimized and tested for short-grain, japonica rice, I've never had issues cooking basmati or jasmine rice in one, and I've even used them for farro and mixed grains.
I doubt that the rice cooker has much to do with it. I've made rice in heavy cast-iron enamelware on the stove, in a cheap Southeast Asian electric steamer without any fancy "fuzzy logic" electronics, in a fuzzy logic rice cooker, and an mid-range IH rice cooker, which is what we use at home now, and the quality of the rice and its age has a greater impact than the cooking method. I would say that the IH rice cooker produces superior results over our old fuzzy logic cooker, but it's certainly not an order-of-magnitude kind of difference.
Assuming you're located in the US, my benchmark go-to rice brand is "Tamaki Gold", which is from a japonica strain called koshihikari, and I think most of this brand's rice is grown near Sacramento, CA. It's more expensive than the typical Botan or Niko Niko brand calrose rice that's ubiquitious in Japanese supermarkets, but I find the quality far superior, and it's still a good value. My wife tends not to appreciate the Niko Niko or Botan calrose rice very much at all, so we don't eat it at home, but probably 80% of Japanese restaurants in the US are using it or a similar product.
Generally, I'd recommend staying away from the absolute cheapest brands, and choose something that's a couple of notches above. We've used imported rice from Akita or wherever and gotten very nice results, but the differences were far subtler than the price (on the order of $10 vs. $35 for a similar quantity). The sweet spot for quality is near the median price, assuming you're in a shop that offers a wide variety of options.
Edit: Sorry, until your edit, I didn't realize you were working from parboiled or converted rice, I assumed raw rice, as I've never heard of anyone cooking the quick cooking rice products in a rice cooker. (Rice cookers often have their own "quick mode" which shortens cooking time with normal raw rice at the cost of a slightly reduced textural quality). Considering that's what you were starting from, consider using other supermarket brands of rice that meet your target grain size and stickiness/fluffiness, but aren't marketed for speed or convenience.
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Best Answer
Basmati is classic. I am particularly fond of brown basmati rice, which has more flavor than white basmati, but it takes longer to cook and will go rancid after 6 months. If basmati is not available, any long-grain rice will suffice; short-grain rice tends to be too sticky.
As for technique, rinse the rice until the rinse-water runs clear. For every cup of rice, use 2 cups of water and 1/2 tsp salt. Bring the water to a boil; add the rice and salt and reduce the heat to a simmer. Cook covered until the liquid has been absorbed and the texture of the rice is tender.
For additions to the rice, you have LOADS of options. You can add a pinch of saffron to the water for a vibrant yellow color and distinctive floral aroma (if you just want color, add 1/2 tsp ground turmeric). You can add chunks of peeled ginger, cracked peppercorns, whole peeled garlic cloves, whole cardamom pods, whole cloves, whole bay leaves, whole kaffir lime leaves, and/or whole stick cinnamon -- amounts and combinations are entirely up to your taste (just remember to remove any bay leaves before serving; remove the others or not as you like, but bay is inedible). You can also add cooked vegetables, such as peas, butter beans, pearl onions, and/or carrots.