Cheats Quick Persian Rice Polow Food

POLOW (PERSIAN RICE WITH PISTACHIOS AND DILL)

Steps:

• Using lid of pot as guide, trace circle on parchment paper and cut out. Set aside.
• In large bowl, rinse rice in several changes of cold water until water runs clear. Drain well.
• In pot over moderately high heat, combine 4 quarts cold water, rice, and salt. Bring to boil, then reduce heat to moderate and boil, uncovered, 5 minutes. Drain well.
• In small bowl, stir together 1/4 cup warm water and saffron until dissolved.
• Transfer 1 cup cooked rice to medium bowl and stir in yogurt and 1 tablespoon saffron water (reserve remaining saffron water).
• In cleaned pot over moderately low heat, melt butter. Add rice-yogurt mixture, smoothing into flat layer. Top with 1/2 of remaining rice. Sprinkle with 1/2 of dill and pistachios and top with 1/2 of remaining rice, mounding loosely. Sprinkle with remaining dill and pistachios and top with remaining rice, mounding loosely into pyramid. Using round handle of wooden spoon, make 5 or 6 holes in rice to bottom of pot and pour in remaining saffron water.
• Cover rice with prepared parchment paper round then with lid and steam, undisturbed, until tender and crust forms on bottom, 15 to 20 minutes.
• Spoon loose rice onto platter without disturbing bottom crust. Dip bottom of pan into large bowl of cold water 30 seconds to loosen crust. Using spatula or wooden spoon, lift crust and transfer atop rice.

CHEAT'S QUICK PERSIAN RICE (POLOW)

Steps:

• Put the Basmati Rice in a bowl and rinse it very well under running water, taking care to be gentle when stirring the rice so you don't break the rice grains. Rinse until most of the starch has been washed, and the water is almost clear and no longer cloudy.
• Cover the rinsed rice with water (approx. 2 inches/4 cm above rice level), and let it soak for 30 minutes before cooking.
• After 30 minutes, strain the soaked rice (in a collinder or seive) from all the the water.
• Gently heat 1 tablesoon of Oil in a heavy-based (preferrably non-stick), wide cooking pot. Make sure the oil covers the whole base of the pot.
• Add the strained rice to pot, then the 3 cups of Water, remaining Oil, Salt, and stir gently for a few seconds, taking care not to break the rice grains (just enough for the salt to mix in the water).
• Bring to a gentle boil. As soon as the water begins to boil, turn the heat down to a medium/low, allowing contents to simmer gently. Cover the pot with a tight lid (alternatively, use a clean dry teatowel wrapped around the lid to ensure no air/steam escapes the pot. You can also use baking foil instead of the teatowel to keep the pot contents air-tight).
• Once the rice has been simmering gently for 10 minutes, and you can almost hear the rice at the bottom of the pot making crisp sounds, turn the heat down to a low heat, and let it steam gently for a further 20 minutes - this will ensure the rice gets crispy at the bottom (Tahdig) but doesn't burn.
• (Optional) If using Cinnamon sticks to make the rice fragrant, at Step. 7 open the lid of the pot & stick the Cinnamon sticks into the rice, perpendicularly, making sure the sticks are completely submerged in the rice . Cover the pot once again tighly & allow to steam - as in Step 7 - gently for 20 minutes before serving.

RESHTEH POLO (PERSIAN NOODLE RICE)

Steps:

• Place rice in a medium bowl and cover with tepid water. Gently swish it around with your finger to activate the starches, then tip the bowl to drain water. Repeat this process until water runs clear, about 7 rinses. Cover rice with cold water, add 1/2 tablespoon salt, stir gently, and soak for 1 hour. Drain rice without rinsing.
• Crush saffron threads to a powder in a small mortar and pestle. Transfer to a small bowl with 2 tablespoons boiling water. Stir, cover, and set saffron water aside.
• Fill a 5-quart nonstick pot with 9 cups water and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Add 3 tablespoons salt and stir until dissolved. Break roasted noodles into thirds and add to the boiling water with the rice. Stir once gently, and watch carefully as it cooks so water does not boil over. Taste water for salt and adjust accordingly. Cook until the first rice grain pops up to the surface. Set a timer for 4 minutes and cook, scooping off any foam from the surface, until the timer goes off. Test rice and continue to cook until tender on the outside but still firm to the bite on the inside, 6 to 8 minutes more.
• Drain rice and noodles in a colander and rinse quickly with lukewarm water and a spray faucet to rinse off extra starch. Taste and gently rinse again if too salty. Set aside to drain completely. Wash and dry the pot.
• Place the clean pot over medium heat. Add oil, 1 tablespoon saffron water, and a pinch of salt; swirl the pot until the bottom and lower sides are coated with the oil mixture. Tightly overlap potato slices in a single layer covering the bottom of the pot to create the tahdig layer.
• Gently scatter rice-noodle mixture over the tahdig in a pyramid shape, making sure potatoes are completely covered and moving noodles away from the sides of the pot. Gently poke the handle of a wooden spoon into the rice and noodles a few times, being careful not to hit the tahdig; this will allow steam to escape while cooking. Cover and cook until you see steam escaping from the sides of the lid and tahdig starts to set, about 10 minutes.
• Meanwhile, combine 1/4 cup boiling water with 2 tablespoons melted butter and remaining saffron water. Lay a kitchen towel out on a heatproof surface.
• Test the tahdig by quickly tapping the side of the pot with a wooden spoon. When the pot sizzles, remove it from the heat. Remove the lid and place it on the kitchen towel, being careful that none of the condensation drips into the pot. Wrap the towel around the lid and secure the ends at the top by the handle so they will not hang near the heat source. Drizzle the butter mixture over the rice and cover with the towel-wrapped lid.
• Place a heat diffuser on a burner over low or medium-low heat and return the pot to the stove. Cook until crispy, rotating the pot a few times, about 35 minutes. Remove from the heat and place on a damp kitchen towel; let sit, uncovered, for 5 minutes so tahdig will release easily.
• Meanwhile, melt 3 tablespoons butter in a small pan over medium heat. Add dates, raisins, and cinnamon; sprinkle with a little salt. Cook and stir until dates are glistening and soft, 3 to 5 minutes.
• Gently scatter rice on a platter and remove potato tahdig pieces and serve on the side. Sprinkle raisin-date sauce over top.

ZERESHK POLO (PERSIAN BARBERRY RICE)

Steps:

• Soak rice in water to cover for at least 30 minutes.
• Meanwhile, place 1 pinch saffron and 1 pinch sugar in a mortar and grind to a fine power. Transfer to a cup and fill 3/4 full with hot water. Set aside.
• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Wash the chicken pieces, pat dry, and place in a deep baking tray. Coat with 2 tablespoons olive oil, advieh, garlic paste, and remaining saffron. Cover with aluminum foil.
• Bake in the preheated oven until chicken is no longer pink, about 1 hour.
• While the chicken is baking, drain the soaked rice, add to a pot, and cover with 4 cups of water. Add 2 tablespoons of olive oil if desired to stop the grains from sticking to each other and 1 teaspoon salt. Boil the rice until tender yet firm to the bite, 10 to 15 minutes. Drain in a colander.
• Put the pot back on the stove and add remaining oil. Lay the sliced potato in the base (to protect the rice, but also to create a delicious edible crust of rice and potato). Top with the drained rice and cover with a lid. Cook until the rice begins to steam, 3 to 5 minutes. Turn the heat to low, and leave to steam, 25 to 30 minutes.
• Heat 1/2 of the butter in a frying pan and add barberries. Saute for 3 to 4 minutes; add 1 tablespoon sugar and 2 tablespoons of the saffron water. Stir briefly, then remove from heat. Place a layer of rice on a serving platter, followed by a sprinkling of barberries and a little saffron water. Keep layering. Leave some barberries for the top. Arrange the chicken quarters around or on the top of the platter then spoon the saffron rice and barberries on top.

RESHTEH POLO - PERSIAN RICE WITH NOODLES

Steps:

• In a large pot, saute onion until nice and golden.
• Remove pits from dates and dice them.
• In another pot, saute the reshteh noodles in butter until golden. Keep an eye on them, as they burn easily.
• Prepare your basmati rice according to my "Persian Rice" recipe. When you add the rice to the water, add the reshteh noodles too.
• Once the onion is nice and golden, add one tablespoon butter. Add turmeric and cinnamon. Give the pan a nice stir.
• Add dates and raisins. Give the pan a stir.
• Add orange peel. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
• Note: if the ingredients seem kind of dry, add a tablespoon of butter.
• After draining your rice and reshteh noodles, place 2 tablespoons canola oil in the bottom of the rice/reshteh pot and add enough water to cover the bottom.
• Add one layer of rice/reshteh noodles to the pot.
• Sprinkle 1/4 teaspoon of advieh spice (or bouillon).
• Place half of the date-raisin-orange-peel-onion mixture on top.
• Repeat with another layer of rice/reshteh noodles and the remainder of the date-onion mixture.
• End the layering with the rice-reshteh noodles.
• With the end of the spatula, make 5 holes to circumference the rice.
• Cook covered on high for 10 minutes.
• Ground the saffron and dissolve in 1/4 cup of hot water. Add 1 tablespoon butter t the saffron and mix well. Pour the saffron mixture over the rice.
• Cover the top of the pot with a towel and cover with the lid. Steam rice on low for one hour.
• Once the rice is done, place the rice in a dish and sprinkle the almonds and pistachios on top.
• At the bottom of your pot you will find a crunchy rice delicacy Persians love, called tadigh. Break it into pieces with a spatula or spoon and serve in a separate dish.