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.

Adas Polow (Rice and Lentils): The Cheater's Recipe

Adas Polow or Rice and Lentils is the best comfort food in the world. I love making this dish so much that I will be posting the long way in my next post. But this if for cheaters!!!!

Adas Polow : The Cheater's Recipe
serves 4
2 cups of basmati or long gain rice
1 cup of lentil (I like the small French and Saeid likes the large green)
3 cups and 1 Tbs of water
1 tsp of oil
1/2 tsp of salt

Wash the rice and lentil. Place into a rice maker or pot with the water, oil and salt. If using a rice maker turn it on and let it cook. If using a pot bring the water to a boil over a high heat, cover and lower the heat. Cook for 25min or until the rice and lentils are soft.

My whole family loves this dish (even my little brothers). I love it on its own but its also great toped with fried onions and Greek yogurt.

Lentil and Mushroom Cannelloni

Vegetarian cannelloni (and lasagna) is often just a tube of cheese topped with more cheese. Not really diet food! I made a 'meaty' vegan filling and then finish the dish with a tiny bit of cheese. Don't be put off by the number of ingredients. This really is a simple dish.
For Lentil and Mushroom Filling
Makes 4-5 cups
1 cup dried lentils
2 carrots
1 onion
5 sun dried tomatoes in oil
4 cloves of garlic
2 cups of mushrooms
1/2 tsp Marmite
2 Tbs tomato paste
1 cup of red wine
1/2 cup tomato sauce
hot pepper, salt, pepper, herbs, fennel,bay leaves and Italian herbs

Wash the lentils and cover with an about 2 inches of water. Bring to a boil with a pinch of salt, cover and lower the heat. Cook for 15min until most of the water is gone and the lentils are soft.

Get out your food processor with all its bits and bops. Mince the onion, garlic and sun dried tomatoes. Add to a non stick pan on med heat. Grate the carrots and add to the pan. Slice the mushrooms and add to the pan. Add 1 tsp fennel seeds and 2 bay leaves along with any other herbs and spices. Stir and let all the water cook out of the veg. This will take about 10 min. When the water is almost gone add the Marmite and tomato paste. Mix in. Add the wine. Let the wine cook out. Add the tomato sauce and lentils (drain the lentils first if there is lots of water). Cook for about 10 min, check the taste, turn off and let cool.

Marmite: love it or hate it. But you can't taste it in this dish, it just ups the 'meaty' taste.

For the Cannelloni
1 box cannelloni
1/2 cup tomato sauce
1 ball of fresh mozzarella sliced (125g)
few sliced olives and herbs to top
Lentil and Mushroom filling

Pre heat oven to 200c (400f). Put half the tomato sauce in a big baking dish. Fill the uncooked cannelloni and pack tighly into the baking dish. Cover with the rest of the tomato sauce. Top with the mozzarella, olives and herbs. Cover with foil and back for 20min. Uncover and bake for 10min or until the cheese starts to brown.

Try to let the cannelloni rest before eating, they are hot!!! The lentil and mushroom filling was so rich! I loved it, Saeid said meat would be nicer but he still had 3rds so I guess he liked it!

Tomato Dal Soup

Its soup weather here. Dal or yellow spelt lentils take a while to soften, but are so creamy. One of my favorite soups.

Fry 1 chopped onion in 1 tsp oil and 1/4 tsp turmeric.
Add:
1/3 cup Dal
1 can of Tomatoes
1 cup water
Bring to a boil, cover and lower the heat. If you soaked the dal before cooking then the soup should be done in 30min, I did not soak my Dal, so it toke 2 hours and some mashing for mine to soften. Check for salt, pepper and sugar. Its great just like that, but it can be spiced up!
For Spice fry in 1 tsp oil for 2 min:
1 tsp mustered seeds
1 tsp cumin seeds
2 Tbs dry coconut
chili powder to taste.
Mix in with the soup.

Enjoy a small bowl with rice or naan.

(Vegeterian Kabab) کباب گیاهی

I was thinking about making veggie burgers when I thought what about a veggie kabab. This recipe is not perfected. But the taste was unbelievable.

1 cups dry green lentils in a pot with salt, bring to a boil cover and let set for 30- 60 min.

Fry:
2 small red onion chopped
1 clove garlic chopped
1 tsp oil
1/2 tsp turmeric
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp hot red pepper
salt and pepper


Add to the onions:
The drained lentils.
1/2 cup bulger wheat
1 cup tomato juice

Cook until the lentils and bulger are soft, and the liquid is gone.
Cool and add 1 egg.

Blend in a food processor.

Line a pan with baking paper, spoon the mixture onto paper in Kabab like shapes.

Cook for 20 min at 200c.



These where so good. We had them on Shawn Naan with yogurt and salad. Note the kababs did stick to the baking paper. I think if i had used bread crumbs instead of bulger this would not have been an issue or if I had fried them!!!

Mashed Carrots and Dal Pie with an Almond Crust

Carrots. My favourite way to eat carrots is in a raw salad, but tonight I wanted them to be a warm main dish. I started to think about a quiche, but I hate when the way the egg settles between shredded or sliced carrots. I was almost really to give up on a quiche when I remembered my mom's savoury sweet potato pie. Made from mashed sweet potatoes this smooth and spicy this Thanksgiving classic from my childhood is perfect for Tuesday night dinner that is after I change the whole recipe. Mashed carrots and dal pie with an almond crust. Filling: 1/2 cup chana dal (yellow spilt lentil) soaked overnight or in covered pot of boiling water for 30min +. Drain the dal and bring to a boil in fresh salted water. Cover and lower the heat. 2 cups peeled and chopped carrots Once the dal has started to soften add the carrots in. Cook for 10 min or until carrots are soft. Drain the most of the water, but save some and mash with the carrots.


Add:
2 eggs
1/2 cup thick Greek yoghurt
1/4 cup sharp cheese (I used a local one called Gubbeen http://www.gubbeen.com/ )
1 tsp dried parsley
1/2 tsp dried fenugreek

Blend until smooth.

Fry in 1tsb oil:
3 sliced green onions
1 clove finely chopped garlic
1/4 tsp turmeric
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp red pepper powder
Salt and black pepper

Stir into carrots.

Curst:
2/3 cup toasted almonds Grind almonds in food prosser.

Add:
Salt
1/2 tsp curry powered
1 Tsb tihini
Blend until it starts to clump.

Line a pie pan with baker's paper. Push the dough into pie shape with wet fingers. Blind bake for 10 min at 200c. Fill the pie and bake for 45 min at 150c or until the pie is set. Add 1/4 cup more of cheese and put it back in the oven to melt.

Garnish with coriander and enjoy with a salad.

Cabbage and Rice

I had a half head of cabbage in need of cooking and we haven't had rice and a few days. So I decided to make Kalam-Polow or cabbage and rice. Normally this would be made with some ground beef or lamb, but tonight I used lentils and leftover roast beef. Also forgot to buy onions so I'm using leeks. Since my husband isn't going to believe this hybrid is Iranian I figured why not add an apple too! So Kalam-Polow meets Himmel und Erde (Haven and Earth) is what's for dinner.


1 cups basmati rice, soaked for at least two hours with salt
1/2 cup brown lentils in a pot with 2 cups boiling water pored over, dash salt covered. They need to sit until soften (30min+) drain excess water.

Brown the following with the lentils:
1/2 small head green cabbage finely chopped.
1 leek finely chopped 1 portabella mushroom
1/4 cup beef
2 Tbs tomato paste
1 Tbs tomato juice
1 tsp turmeric
1 tsp fennel seeds
1 tsp oil

Take off the heat and add a thinly sliced apple.

Thinly slice a potato and line the bottom a rice maker or pot with oil and potato.


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. Layer 1/3 of the rice on top of the potatoes then 1/2 of the cabbage lentil 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. I have a non-stick rice maker so my rice comes out like one nice cake. When using a pot use a non-stick one, or make life easy and just make normal rice and put the cabbage on top!!!

Here is my lovely cake of rice! Smelled so good and was well worth the effort!