Goan Mussel Pulao

Having just returned from a vacation in China and suffering from a severe case of jet lag I was motivated to cook a quick meal.  A craving for some hot rice and simple Goan spices produced this mussel pulau with a bag of frozen pre-cooked mussels from the freezer.
I used my electric pressure cooker to cook the rice for the first time and was not sure what the result would be.   After eight minutes the pressure was released and I was amazed to find the rice fully cooked and fluffy.

Ingredients

2 cups long grain rice
3 cups water or broth for stove top ( 2 cups broth for the XL electric pressure cooker)
1 and 1/2 - 2 cup mussels (pre-cooked and shelled)
juice of half a lime
1 big onion, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic minced
1 cup diced tomatoes
2 one inch pieces of cinnamon
6 whole cloves
6 cardamom pods slightly crushed
6 whole peppercorns
1- 2 dried red chilies broken up ( or 1/2 teaspoon chili powder (or to taste))
1 tsp turmeric
Salt to taste

Method

wash and rinse the rice till the water runs clear.   Cover with fresh water and leave to soak for at least 10 minutes.

Add lemon or lime juice to the mussels with a little salt and leave aside.

Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a pan or the pot of a pressure cooker.  When the oil is hot add the onion, garlic and dry spices.  Fry till the onion is translucent.

Add the tomatoes and turmeric powder and cook till soft.

Now add the mussels and stir to mix.

Then add the rice and salt ( 1 1/2 teaspoon or to taste) and stir till coated with the spice mixture.  Add broth and cover.  Cook till liquid is absorbed and rice is cooked.  If using a pressure cooker or rice cooker, continue as per manufacturer's instructions for rice.
Note:  For the Power electric cooker XL, use equal cups of water to rice.  For this recipe I used 2 cups of broth. Close and lock the pressure cooker.  Hit the rice/risotto button and then adjust the timer to 8 minutes.