Gordon Ramsay’s pilau rice is fragrant basmati cooked in ghee with saffron, curry leaves, cinnamon, cardamom, and cloves, simmered in chicken stock until every grain is golden and separate. Ready in under 20 minutes.
This recipe comes from Quick and Delicious, where Ramsay calls it “such a versatile dish and a great addition to curry night.” He suggests serving it with his Malaysian Fish and Okra Curry or Minced Lamb Curry from the same book.
The technique that sets this apart is grinding the saffron to a powder before it goes in. Most home cooks drop whole threads into liquid and hope for the best, but Ramsay crushes them in a pestle and mortar first. That releases the colour and flavour evenly so every grain turns golden.
Gordon Ramsay Pilau Rice
Course: Side DishCuisine: IndianDifficulty: Easy4
servings5
minutes18
minutes380
kcal23
minutesAromatic saffron pilau rice from Ramsay’s Quick and Delicious. Basmati rice cooked in ghee with ground saffron, curry leaves, and whole spices, simmered in chicken stock. The perfect side for curry night, roughly 380 kcal per serving.
Ingredients
50g (2 oz) ghee or butter
1 large onion, finely sliced
400g (14 oz) basmati rice
Pinch of saffron
Small handful of curry leaves
800ml (1⅓ pints) chicken stock
1 cinnamon stick
5 cardamom pods
5 cloves
1 tsp sea salt
Directions
- Fry the onion: Place a non-stick saucepan over a high heat and add the ghee or butter. When hot, add the onion and cook for 5-8 minutes, stirring occasionally, until soft and starting to turn golden.
- Wash the rice: Meanwhile, put the rice into a large bowl and cover with water. Swirl it around with your hand, then pour out the cloudy water. Refill and repeat until the water runs clear. Drain and set aside.
- Grind the saffron: Using a pestle and mortar, grind the saffron threads to a fine powder.
- Cook the rice: Add the curry leaves to the onion and cook for 1 minute. Add the ground saffron, chicken stock, cinnamon stick, cardamom pods, cloves, salt, and rice. Stir well and cover with a lid. Bring to the boil, then immediately reduce the heat to low. Cook for 12-15 minutes, then turn off the heat and leave to sit for 2-3 minutes before serving.
FAQs
Why does Ramsay grind the saffron first?
Whole saffron threads release colour unevenly. Some grains end up deep orange while others stay white. Grinding the saffron to a powder in a pestle and mortar means it dissolves fully and colours every grain.
Good saffron is expensive, so you want every bit of it working. A pinch is about 15-20 threads, which is enough for 400g of rice. If your saffron doesn’t smell strongly floral when you crush it, it’s probably old or low quality.
Do you need to wash basmati rice?
Ramsay washes his basmati in every rice recipe across every cookbook. The surface starch on unwashed rice turns the grains sticky and clumpy once cooked, which is the opposite of what pilau should be.
Swirl the rice in cold water, pour it off, and repeat until the water runs clear. It usually takes three or four washes.
This is the same technique he describes in the Ultimate Cookery Course, where he says to “always wash rice in a sieve under a running tap to rinse away the starch.” His spicy sausage rice is one of the few exceptions where he skips the wash because the starch helps absorb the paprika and stock.
Can you use butter instead of ghee?
Ramsay says “ghee or butter” in the recipe, so yes. Ghee has a higher smoke point and a nuttier flavour because the milk solids have been removed.
Butter will work fine but can catch and brown faster when you’re frying the onion. If you use butter, keep the heat at medium rather than high for the onion step. The flavour difference is subtle once the spices and saffron go in.
How is this different from plain boiled rice?
Three things. First, the ghee coats the grains before any liquid goes in, which stops them sticking. Second, chicken stock replaces water, so the rice absorbs savoury flavour as it cooks.
Third, the whole spices infuse during cooking. Ramsay has a separate plain pilau in his Great Escape book that skips the saffron and uses just cumin seeds, cardamom, cloves, cinnamon, and bay leaves with water. Even that basic version is a different thing from boiled rice because of the ghee and spice step. His rice cooking guide covers the foundation every pilau builds on.
What curries go best with this?
Ramsay specifically pairs it with his Malaysian Fish and Okra Curry and Minced Lamb Curry in the same book. The saffron works well alongside creamy, mild curries where the rice flavour won’t get buried.
For a fuller spread, this pilau alongside his chicken curry and a simple raita makes a proper curry night. His lamb curry is another strong match because the richness of the lamb balances the fragrant rice.
Does pilau rice store well?
Better than fried rice, actually. The ghee coating keeps the grains from drying out as much during refrigeration. Leftovers keep in the fridge for a day and reheat well in a covered pan with a splash of water over a low heat.
Remove the whole spices before storing because cinnamon and cloves get bitter if they sit in the rice overnight. Cool the rice within an hour and refrigerate straight away, same food safety rule as any cooked rice.
