Here is a recipe I have devised for the brown rices (and mixtures that combine brown rice with wild rice) usually found in Western markets. Served with vegetables and a yogurt relish, it makes a fine vegetarian meal. You may also serve this with meat and fish curries.

Ingredients

　　2 tablespoons olive or canola oil

　　4 cardamom pods

　　One 2-inch cinnamon stick

　　5 tablespoons chopped onions

　　1/8 teaspoon ground turmeric

　　1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

　　1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

　　1 cup brown rice

　　2 cups chicken stock or vegetable stock

　　Salt

　　Pour the oil into a small, heavy pan and set over medium-high heat. When hot, put in the cardamom and cinnamon. Stir once or twice and add the onions. Stir and fry until the onions turn brown at the edges. Lower heat to medium and put in the turmeric, cumin, and cayenne. Stir once and add the rice, stock, and 1/4 teaspoon salt if the stock is salted, 1/2 teaspoon if it is not. Stir and bring to a boil. Cover tightly, turn heat to very, very low, and cook for 45 minutes. Take covered pan off the heat and leave for 10 minutes.

　　Excerpted from At Home with Madhur Jaffrey: Simple, Delectable Dishes from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka by Madhur Jaffrey. Copyright © 2010 by Random House. Excerpted by permission of Alfred A. Knopf, a division of Random House LLC. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.Buy the full book from Amazon.