(Festive Rice and Chicken, Persian Style)
Contributed by:
Veronica Helen Hart
(Veronicahhart.com)
Humorous thrillers
Story behind the recipe – When we lived in the Middle East, I immediately loved the food. Learning to cook it was also fun. This particular recipe I learned from the elderly mother of a friend. She did not speak English and my Persian was limited. While we were working I thought I said something complimentary to her. She left the room and her son, my friend, came in. He asked me what I said to his mother. I tried to repeat the phrase. He turned red. I had just told her she had a lovely belly button.
This is one of my family’s favorite recipes from that region. This can be served with Naan, (a Persian flat bread,) French cut green beans, sautéed with a small amount of allspice, a pinch of cinnamon, and a teaspoon of tomato paste. Families cooked excess amounts of food to ensure that there would be plenty of leftovers for the servants.
What you’ll need – For 4 – 6 servings, you’ll need one pound of rice, 4 oz. cooking oil – or half butter/half oil, 1 cup plain yoghurt, 3-4 eggs, 1 pound chicken pieces (white meat is best,) one onion, saffron, turmeric, salt, one or two white potatoes, peeled and sliced.
Steps to the process
- Soak rice for one hour.
- Chop onion into large pieces
- Put chicken pieces, onion, salt to taste, ½ tsp. turmeric, a few strands of saffron in pot with water to cover. Cook until chicken is tender. Set aside.
- Drain rice, cook in medium pot of water. When par boiled (still crunchy) drain/rinse thoroughly.
- Mix eggs with yoghurt until smooth. Add several strands of saffron that has been soaked in a little hot water. Add on half of the rice.
- Heat a heavy bottomed pot, add oil/butter mixture, lay out the potato slices on the bottom of the pan, then add the plain rice, a layer of chicken pieces and then top with the saffron, yoghurt rice. Set heat low/medium so potatoes don’t burn.
- Using the handle of a wooden spoon, make three or four holes in the rice.
- Wrap the lid of the pot in a linen towel, tying the knot carefully so none of it touches the burner.
- Place lid securely on pot. Leave until custard sets. (about 30 minutes)
- Tip: To keep from lifting the lid too often, wet your finger-tip and touch the side of the pot about a third of the way from the bottom. If it sizzles, it’s probably ready.
- To serve. Remove pot from heat and quickly set in a pan of cold water. Let it set for a minute or two and then turn it out by holding the serving platter over the top and flipping it over in one quick movement. (Sometimes this requires help.) It should come out looking like a cake.
Novels available from author
The Prince of Keegan Bay, “The infant prince’s life is threatened by assassins; a group of senior citizens organizes to save him.”