Sabzi Polow (Herb Rice)

I have a secret. For the last few weeks we have been making our rice in a microwave. Sounds gross right? A few years ago I heard that you could steam rice in the microwave but didn't try it until my 20kg bag of basmati rice started to give microwave directions. Guess what? It really does work!

As it is summer and we have tons of fresh herbs growing I'm making Sabzi Polow (Herb Rice) using the microwave to steam the rice.
Sabzi Polow (Herb Rice)
Severs 4
2 cups of basmati rice
2 cups of washed and finely chopped fresh herbs (dill, coriander(cilantro), parsley, Iranian leeks (or spring onion)
salt
olive oil or butter

Bring 1 liter of water to boil in a pot (like you would for pasta). Salt and add the rice. Boil for 8min. The rice will be a bit soft. Drain and mix with chopped herbs in a microwave safe bowl. Cover with plastic wrap. Poke some wholes in the plastic and microwave for 5-8 min. Our microwave is very week so it takes 8min.

One of the best things about making Sabzi Polow or any Iranian rice in the microwave is that you don't have add oil or butter. But if you will like to add a drop of olive oil or a pat of butter feel free to add it at the table. If you have extra herb why not make herb chicken?

Adas Polow (Rice and Lentils): The Long Recipe

In my last post I gave my Cheater's Recipe for Adas Polow, which is great for busy days but the long recipe taste worlds nicer.
Saeid likes large brown lentils and I like small black/blue French lentils so I used both. Feel free to use any kind/mix of lentils you want. Note split red lentils work really well in the Cheater's Recipe because they cook so fast, but they cook too fast for the long recipe.
Adas Polow (Rice and Lentils): The Long Recipe
Serves 4
2 cups of basmati or long-grain rice
1 cup of lentils
1 Tbs + 1 tsp of salt
1 tsp of oil

1. Wash the rice, cover with water and add 1 Tbs of salt. Soak for 3 hours or more.

2. Wash the lentils and cover with 1 cup of water. Add 1 tsp of salt. Bring to a boil, cover and lower the heat. Cook for about 20 min or until the water is gone.

3. Bring a large pot of water to boil. Add the soaked rice (without the soaking water). (Cooking time of the rice changes with the amont of time the rice has soaked. The longer the soaking the shorter the cooking.) Stir the rice and water and let the water come back to a boil. When the each grain starts to dance in the boiling water its done. Or taste a few grains to see when its soft but still has some bite to it. Drain the rice. Note the cooking time should not be more the 3 min, mine is done around 1 min.

4. Add the oil to a rice maker or pot. Layer the rice and lentils. Place 1/3 of the cooked rice to the pot and add 1/2 of the lentils on top the rice. The finnal layer will be rice. Cover the lid with a clean cloth and steam the rice for 30 mim. If using a rice maker just use the normal rice setting. If using a pot use the lowest heat on the stovetop.
Saeid likes to top his Adas Polow with salty Irish butter. I'm all about Greek yogurt and raw spinach. Anyway you like it the fuffy rice and rice lentils make a lovely meal.

Polow with Korean Wild Rice

Anyone who has used a Korean wild rice, in a mix or added to rice knows that it turns the pot of rice purple. When I was in Korean the 'healthy rice' a mix of beans, brown rice and wild rice was always purple. I wanted to use the wild rice, but I did not want purple polow.

Soak 2 cups basmati rice in salt water for 2 hours+.
Boil 1/4 cup wild rice, changing the water until all the purple is out.
Drain the soaked rice and add the to boiling wild rice. Cook until the rice starts to soften.
Drain, add the a rice maker or pot with 1 tsp oil in it. Steam for 20 min. I put slices of potato on the bottom of the pot before the rice and we enjoyed our non-purple rice with aab-goosht badenjan a split pea eggplant stew.

Polow meets Pulao

Fresh Dates! Hard to find and seasonal. These are very unripe, like a green bannan. We had rice with fresh dates at our wedding, and I wanted to recreated it, but with a twist. This is Irinian meets Indian (in Ireland) or Polow meets Pulao.In addition to fresh dates I used traditional Iranian ingredients for Jeweled rice: orange peel, barberries and onion but seasoned them with Indian spices, cumin and green cardamom.
Fry in 1 tsp oil for 2-3 min.

Make Polow:
Soak 2 cups of rice in salted water for a few hours.
Drain soaked rice and bring a big pot of water to boil. Add rice and boil until aledenta about 5 min. Drain the rice and rinse.
Put 1/2 tsp oil in the bottom of a pot or rice maker. Layer 1/3 of the rice on top of the oil then1/2 of the spice mix, and repeat ending with rice. With the end of a wooden spoon make five steam wholes in the rice. Just stick the spoon in the rice! Put 1 tsp oil over the top. Wrap a clean kitchen towel around the lid of the rice maker or pot and pop on top. Steam the rice for 30 min. Can put a few tsp of butter in the last few min of steaming.

Very Tasty!

Shevid Polow Ba Goosh

This stew is the easiest of all the Iranian stews I know of and even my brothers like it. I learned how to make it from the oddest source. Once I was in my local supermarket cafe, which happened to be in a parking lot. An Irish woman setting next to my husband and I started talking to us. She told us that her 'partner' is Iranian. Small world. She told me about this stew he makes. I have been making it even sense.
Meat and Onion Stew
Brown some meat in a thick pot. Its good to use a cut that has a bone in it. Take out the meat.
Chop 2-4 onions in thick rings and cook them in the pot until they get a nice color.
Add 1/2 tsp turmeric and the meat back to the pot. Cover with water, bring to a boil, lower the heat and let cook for 2 hours +.
My mother in-law gave me some dried fava beans so I soaked them earlier in the day and added them to the stew with the turmeric. I have also used white beans in the past. I like beans, but if you don't then leave them out.

Shevid Polow
To make dill rice just follow the recipe for normal rice but add 1/2 cup dried or fresh dill to it. I made Polow, which is proper Iranian rice.
Soak 2 cups of rice in salted water for a few hours.
Drain soaked rice and bring a big pot of water to boil. Add rice and boil until aledenta about 5 min. Drain the rice and rinse.
Put 1/2 tsp oil in the bottom of a pot or rice maker. Layer 1/3 of the rice on top of the oil then1/4 cup dill, and repeat ending with rice. With the end of a wooden spoon make five steam wholes in the rice. Just stick the spoon in the rice! Put 1 tsp oil over the top. Wrap a clean kitchen towel around the lid of the rice maker or pot and pop on top. Steam the rice for 30 min. Can put a few tsp of butter in the last few min of steaming.