My all-time favourite comfort food is matar chawal — a very basic peas pulao that we cook at home with rice, green peas and a few condiments. But what makes the dish stand out is the quality of rice. When the grains are long and aromatic, the dish, however simply cooked, is memorable. Though my staple is wheat, I marvel at the magic that rice wields. In this season of harvest festivals, where rice is being feted in many parts of the country, let’s raise a toast to the many kinds of rice that grow in India and the wondrous ways in which it can be cooked. It doesn’t just yield great rice entrees — think of biryani and pulaos — but also snacks, desserts, and even liquor.

Food history tells us that what we know as rice developed from wild aquatic grass which grew in Gondwanaland, which split into continents and countries such as India some 10 million years ago. From this wild grass, two cultigens emerged — African and Asiatic. Rice cultivation in India is as old as the hills, literally. Rice-growing terraced fields of Kashmir can be traced back to 10,000 BC. It is believed that there are several hundred rice varieties in India today.

Food historian KT Achaya tells us that fragrant varieties of rice were brought to the Dehradun valley by Afghan ruler Dost Mohammed Khan when he lived in exile in India in the mid-19th century.

Today, various kinds of rice adorn our tables in different ways. Take jeera samba, which is used in South Indian biryanis, vegetable pulao, tamarind rice, tomato rice, and so on, or the ponni rice, which goes into idlis and the regular everyday rice. East India’s small-grained Govindabhog is fragrant, Kerala’s red mutta rice is nutritious and delicious, and Northeast’s black rice is immensely healthy.

Then, of course, there is basmati, North India’s long-grain rice, which goes into the biryani pot. And though many balk at the thought of a vegetarian biryani, there is something to be said about aromatic rice cooked with vegetables or dal. Pratibha Karan, in her book on biryanis, mentions a dish called mixed dal vada biryani. Four kinds of dals are soaked and coarsely ground and made into vadas, which are mixed with the rice after being tempered with mustard seeds, cumin seeds and red chillies. Then, there is Ravan bhaat, a fiery hot Kolhapuri dish, prepared with whole red chillies, peanuts, raw green mangoes, and gram lentils. South India’s bisi beley bhaath is cooked with short-grained rice (usually sona masoori), arhar dal, vegetables, and a whole lot of spices.

Rice puddings are delightful. Black rice or chak hao makes for a great pudding. I love the chak hao kheer for its nutty flavour. Incidentally, this is also known as the forbidden rice, for it was reserved for the powerful in ancient China.

I am fond of East India’s payesh or kheer, especially when prepared with Govindabhog and date palm jaggery. Phirni is prepared with basmati, or any aromatic rice, which is ground or powdered and then cooked in milk. It is set in small earthenware pots and chilled. Meethe chawal — sweetened rice — is another popular dish. Zarda is a delicious version of meethe chawal. Simple kinds of rice have their own charm. Take atap or parboiled rice. I associate its heady aroma with Kolkata, for you will find atap rice being cooked in large pots on the pavements across the city. And I know people who prefer the hearty and cheaper parmal to the most aromatic and expensive basmati rice.

To my mind, though, nothing announces the fact that a meal has been laid better than the heavenly aroma of a bowl of basmati rice on the table. Who needs a dinner gong?

— The writer is a Delhi-based food critic

Recipe: Zarda

Ingredients:

Golden sella basmati rice 200 g

Sugar 150 g

Milk ½ cup

Raisins ¼ cup

Green cardamoms 6

Cloves 4

Saffron strands ½ tsp

Broken cashew nuts, almond slivers and copra pieces ¾ cup

Water 1 litre

Ghee for tempering

Method:

Wash the rice and soak it in lukewarm water for an hour. Boil water and add soaked rice. When almost done, remove from the heat and keep aside. In warm milk, mix the saffron threads. In a kadahi, heat ghee. Add the nuts and copra (dried coconut). Stir lightly, and then take out some of the nuts for garnishing. Add the cloves, shelled cardamoms, and then rice and sugar. Stir lightly. To this, pour the saffron-infused milk and stir with a gentle hand till the sugar melts. Add the raisins. When the rice is done, garnish with the nuts kept aside, and serve.