Rishma’s Pilau

Three words: Death. Row. Meal.

It’s crazy to think I feel this way about this dish today, considering my father’s preference for it was the worst thing about my food life for a good part of my childhood. Like most kids, I loved saucy food more often than not, and for better or worse, pilau is not that. It’s a meaty rice pilaf of sorts made with an aromatic broth, lots of cumin, and near-disintegrated jammy onions.

Rishma is my dear mother and obviously a big part of the reas