Definition

Noun A dish of rice cooked in a seasoned broth, typically containing ingredients such as onions, celery, and a protein like poultry, game, shellfish, or sometimes tomatoes. The rice absorbs the flavorful liquid during cooking.

Examples

• For dinner, she prepared a delicious pilaff with chicken, saffron, and peas.
• The menu featured a seafood pilaff made with shrimp and mussels.
• This recipe for lamb pilaff uses basmati rice and aromatic spices.

Advanced Usage

• As a culinary term: "Pilaff" refers specifically to a cooking method where rice is first sautéed in fat (like butter or oil) before being simmered in a seasoned broth until the liquid is absorbed, resulting in fluffy, separate grains.
  • The key to a perfect pilaff is to not stir the rice once the broth is added.

Variants and Related Words

• Pilaf (noun): The most common alternate spelling of "pilaff."
• Pilau (noun): Another common variant spelling, often used in specific regional contexts.
• Pulao (noun): A spelling reflecting the dish's origins in South Asian and Middle Eastern cuisines.

Synonyms

• Seasoned rice dish: A general descriptive term.
• (Rice) pilau/pulao: Direct spelling variants that are synonyms.

Notes on Different Meanings

The word "pilaff" has one primary culinary meaning. Any perceived differences relate to regional variations in ingredients (e.g., Turkish pilaf vs. Indian pulao) rather than a difference in the core definition of the dish.

Noun

1. rice cooked in well-seasoned broth with onions or celery and usually poultry or game or shellfish and sometimes tomatoes