Fresh Pea Matar Pulao

From the garden

• 2 cups shelled fresh peas, shelled, from about 2 lb of pods
• 1 large yellow onion, halved and thinly sliced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 green chile, slit lengthwise (optional)
• ¼ cup fresh cilantro, chopped
• ¼ cup fresh mint, torn (optional)

From the pantry

• 1½ cups basmati rice, rinsed and soaked 20 minutes
• 1 tbsp fresh ginger, minced
• 3 tbsp neutral oil
• 1 tsp ground cumin · whole cumin seed if you have it, bloomed the same way
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 lemon, cut into wedges
• salt · to taste
• black pepper

1. Rinse the rice in several changes of water until it runs clear, then soak 20 minutes and drain well. Soaked grains cook evenly and stay separate, which is the whole point of a pulao.
2. Warm the oil in a heavy lidded pot over medium heat, add the cumin and bay leaf, and let them sizzle 30 seconds until fragrant. Add the onion and cook 8–10 minutes to deep gold.
3. Stir in the ginger, garlic, and chile and cook 1 minute. Add the peas with a good pinch of salt and toss 2 minutes, just long enough for them to take on the spiced oil.
4. Add the drained rice and turn it gently for a minute so every grain is coated, then pour in 2 1/4 cups water, season the water assertively with salt, and bring it to a hard boil.
5. Cover, drop the heat to its lowest setting, and cook 12 minutes without lifting the lid. Rest off the heat another 10 minutes, then fluff with a fork and fold through the herbs.
6. Serve with lemon wedges and a grind of black pepper. The peas should still be bright and sweet, and the rice should fall apart in loose grains rather than clumping.