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Beef pilaf in a frying pan

Skillet Beef Pilaf

Quick! The perfect family dish for a hearty lunch or dinner. This skillet beef pilaf takes no more than an hour to make, which is great if you like to cook fast. Make it once and it's sure to become a go-to! It freezes well, too.

Maria

Recipe author

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Composition / ingredients

Servings:

Water

700

Beef

400

Rice

250

Onion

Carrots

Vegetable oil

Garlic

Dried spices (for pilaf)

Ground black pepper

Salt

Translation table of volumetric measures

Nutrients and energy value of the composition of the recipe

By weight of the composition:

Proteins 27 % 7 g

Fats 19 % 5 g

Carbohydrates 54 % 14 g

128 kcal

GI: 7 / 93 / 0

Cooking method

Step 1:

How do you make beef pilaf in a skillet? Gather your ingredients. You'll want boneless beef. Rinse the garlic cloves but leave the skins on. If you like, you can use a whole small head of garlic instead of separate cloves — just peel off the thin outer papery layer and rinse it well.
Step 2:

Rinse the beef and cut it into medium cubes. I used pre-cut beef stew meat.
Step 3:

Rinse the rice thoroughly until the water runs clear, then drain it. It's best to use a rice made for pilaf — it won't turn mushy.
Step 4:

Peel the carrot and cut it into small cubes.
Step 5:

Peel the onion. You can leave it whole, as I did, or dice it and fry it with the carrot (step 6).
Step 6:

Heat the vegetable oil in a skillet, add the carrot, and fry for 5-6 minutes. If you're adding diced onion, add it with the carrot.
Step 7:

Add the beef and fry, stirring, for about 10 minutes until browned.
Step 8:

Pour in a cup of boiling water. Season the meat with pilaf spices, salt, and pepper.
Step 9:

Reduce the heat to medium and simmer the meat, covered, for 20-25 minutes, until the excess liquid cooks off.
Step 10:

Add the rinsed rice. Don't stir it into the beef — the rice should sit on top of the meat.
Step 11:

Pour in the remaining 500 ml of hot water. Nestle the whole onion into the rice (if you didn't dice and add it earlier), along with the whole garlic cloves. Season lightly with salt and pepper.
Step 12:

Cook, covered, over high heat for 10-15 minutes. Then reduce the heat to low and let the pilaf steam until all the liquid has cooked off. Take it off the heat and let it rest, covered, for 10 minutes.
Step 13:

Spoon the pilaf onto plates, sprinkle with chopped herbs if you like, and serve. Enjoy!

Since everyone's sense of salty, sweet, bitter, spicy, sour, and hot is different, always season to your own taste. And when you're trying a seasoning for the first time, remember that some — chili pepper, for one — are especially easy to overdo.
If you use a ready-made spice blend, always check the label. These blends often already contain salt, so account for that or you risk over-salting the dish.
You can swap the beef for any other meat you prefer. Just keep in mind that the cooking time, flavor, and calorie count will change. Pork and lamb are usually fattier than beef, while chicken breast or turkey are leaner. And cooking time depends not just on the type of meat but on which cut you use and how young or old it is.