Persian rice recipes probably go back to the expansion of rice cultivation withi n the Persian Empire under Darius

the Great. There is historical evidence that t he cultivation of rice was introduced systematically into Mesopotamia and southw estern Iran on a large scale in the 5th century ACE, making rice available to th e people of Central Asia and the Middle East on a scale that was not possible pr eviously. In modern Persian, Pilaf is pronounced polo (???), with the first syll able short and the second long. Persian culinary terms referring to rice preparations are numerous and have foun d their way into the neighboring languages: Polo (rice cooked in broth while the grains remain separate, straining the half cooked rice before adding the broth and then "brewing"), Chlo (white rice with separate grains), Kateh (sticky rice) , Birdying, Machine (slow cooked rice, vegetables and meat cooked in a specially designed dish also called a ta chine). There are four primary methods of cooking rice in Iran: Chelow: rice that is carefully prepared through soaking and parboiling, at which point the water is drained and the rice is steamed. This method results in an e xceptionally fluffy rice with the grains separated and not sticky; it also resul ts in a golden rice crust at the bottom of the pot called tah-digh (literally "b ottom of the pot"). Chelow Recipe Polow: rice that is cooked exactly the same as chelow, with the exception that a fter draining the rice, other ingredients are layered with the rice, and they ar e then steamed together. Variety of Polow Recipes Kateh: rice that is boiled until the water is absorbed. This is the traditional dish of Northern Iran. Kateh Recipe Damy: cooked almost the same as kateh, except that the heat is reduced just befo re boiling and a towel is placed between the lid and the pot to prevent steam fr om escaping. Damy literally means "simmered." In Italian cuisine "pilaf" is a rice pre-cooking style that allows chefs in busy restaurants to cut down time in risotto preparation. Usually a large tray of Ca rnaroli or Arborio rice will be baked for seven minutes with a large onion and a carrot, in water. After that it will be placed on a marble slab to cool down. O nce cooled it will be kept in the fridge and used ad hoc to prepare risotti in a shorter time, 7 to 10 minutes depend on the "al dente" texture that the chef wa nts to achieve, rather than the usual 16 to 20 minutes. In Afghani cuisine, qabili palau is made by cooking basmati in a brothy sauce. T his dish may be made with lamb, chicken, or beef. Qabili palau is baked in the o ven and topped with fried sliced carrots and raisins. Chopped nuts like pistachi os or almonds may be added as well. The meat is covered by the rice or buried in the middle of the dish. The preparation of polow (or chelow) is more elaborate than and results in a del icious non-sticky rice. It is normally served with kababs or any of the main dis hes in this collection, unless rice is already used as one of the ingredients. W ash rice twice and soak in salted warm water for 3-4 hours, then drain the water . Pour water in a large non-stick pan until it is half-full and bring it to a bo il. Add rice and a spoonful of salt and continue boiling until rice slightly sof tens. Pour rice into a drain and wash it with slightly warm water. Pour a few sp oonfuls of cooking oil into the pan and add rice. Pour a few more spoonfuls of o il over rice. Cover the pan and cook over low heat for about half an hour. If co oking time is increased, a delicious crispy layer of rice will form at the botto m of the pan. Eslaamboli Polow 500g basmati or long-grain rice 400g ground lamb or beef 4 medium onions

4 tb tomato paste cooking oil salt black pepper Peel and slice onions. Fry in oil until slightly golden. Add ground lamb or beef , salt, and black pepper and fry until color changes. Dissolve tomato paste in a glass of hot water and add to meat. Cook for a few minutes until little water i s left. Prepare rice as described in the recipe for polow but after rice is half-cooked and rinsed, mix it with the meat, and continue cooking. Kateh Rice (simple) 3 c basmati or long-grain rice salt cooking oil Kateh is normally served with kababs or any of the main dishes in this collectio n, unless rice is already used as one of the ingredients. Kateh is simpler to co ok than polow. Wash three cups of rice with plain water twice and drain the water. Pour rice in to a non-stick pan. Add five cups of water, four spoons of oil and two spoons of salt, and mix. Bring the water to a boil over high temperature. Let the water b oil until water level sinks to just below rice level. Cover the pan, and cook ov er low temperature for about half an hour. Vegetarian rice pilaf 40g butter, chopped 1 tablespoon olive oil 1 brown onion, finely chopped 1 cup long-grain rice, well rinsed 2 cups vegetable stock 600g butternut pumpkin, peeled, chopped into 1cm cubes 6 small yellow squash, cut into thick slices 1/2 cup fresh or frozen peas Heat butter and oil in a deep frying pan over medium-high heat until sizzling. A dd onion and cook for 3 minutes or until tender. Add rice and stir to coat in bu tter mixture. Add stock to pan and bring to the boil. Cover and reduce heat to low. Cook for 1 5 minutes. Add pumpkin, squash and peas and cook for 10 minutes or until rice is tender and stock has been absorbed. Season with salt and pepper. Serve. Notes & tips 175g fresh peas in the pod will yield 1/2 cup podded peas. To freeze: Spoon cooled pilaf into singleserve containers. Freeze for up to 8 we eks. To reheat: Thaw in the fridge. Microwave, covered, on MEDIUM (50%) for 3 to 5 mi nutes, stirring every minute, or until hot. Super Food Ideas - June 2005, Page 82 pumpkin & green bean pilaf 300g (1 1/2 cups) long-grain white rice 1L (4 cups) vegetable stock 500g butternut pumpkin, deseeded, peeled, cut into 2cm pieces 1 tsp ground cumin 200g green beans, topped, cut into 6cm pieces 45g (1/4 cup) pine nuts 1 tbs olive oil 1 red onion, halved, thinly sliced 1/4 cup loosely packed fresh continental parsley leaves Combine rice, stock, pumpkin & cumin in a large saucepan. Cover & bring to the b oil over high heat. Reduce heat to medium & cook, covered, for 12 minutes or unt il rice & pumpkin are tender. Add the beans 2 minutes before the end of cooking.

Remove from heat. Cover & set aside for 5 minutes or until all the liquid is ab sorbed. Meanwhile, heat a frying pan over medium-high heat. Add the pine nuts & cook, st irring, for 2 minutes or until toasted. Transfer to a bowl. Heat the oil in the same pan over medium heat. Add the onion & cook, stirring, for 6 minutes or unti l brown. Remove from heat. Spoon the pilaf among serving bowls. Top with fried onion, & sprinkle with toast ed pine nuts and parsley. Source: Jane Charlton, Australian Good Taste, December 2004, p 104 Rice Pilaf Recipe 2 cups white rice 2 teaspoons oil 1/2 cup chopped onion 1/2 cup chopped celery 4 cups stock (amount varies) 2 teaspoons seasoned salt 1/4 teaspoon ground pepper 1/8 teaspoon cayenne Look at the cooking instructions for your rice. If your rice calls for 2 cups of water for every cup of rice then you will need a total of 4 cups of liquid. If your rice calls for 1 2/3 cups of water for every cup of rice, you will need a t otal of 3 1/3 cups of liquid. Heat the measured amount of stock needed in a saucepan, at least 2-qt sized. While the stock is heating, heat a large skillet on medium high heat. Add oil to coat the bottom of the pan. Add the uncooked rice and brown the rice, stirring occasionally, for a couple of minutes. Add the onions and celery and cook a few minutes longer, until the onions begin to soften. If you are starting with seasoned broth, add 1 teaspoon salt. Taste test the bro th/stock. It can be a little on the salty side because the rice will absorb a lo t of the salt. Carefully empty the slightly browned rice into the saucepan with the stock. Brin g to a simmer, reduce the heat, cover, and cook for as long as the instructions say on your package of rice. Usually between 15 to 25 minutes. Use a timer. Afte r the set amount of cooking time, remove the pan from the heat and let sit for 1 0 minutes, covered. At no point during the cooking of the rice should you uncove r the pan. Note that you could also pour the stock into the pan with the rice, cover and co ok. This is the more usual way to make pilaf. We have found however more consist ent results by pouring the rice into the saucepan of stock. Fluff with a fork to serve. You can also mix in heated peas, chopped parsley, to asted almonds, or raisins to the pilaf to make it more interesting. Basmati Rice Pilaf 1 tablespoon oil 1 3-inch cinnamon stick, broken in two 2 whole green cardamom pods or1/8 teaspoon cardamom powder cup sliced onion 2 whole cloves 1 cup basmati rice 1 teaspoon salt 1 cups of water Small pat of butter (optional) Heat the oil in a medium saucepan over high heat until almost smoking. Add whole spices and cook, stirring, for one minute. (If using cardomom powder, don't add it at this point.) Add the onions and cook, stirring until translucent, about 2 minutes. Stir in the rice, and cook stirring until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add 1 cups water and salt; bring to boil. Reduce heat, add cardamom now if you ar e using powder and stir once, cover tightly, and simmer until all the water has been absorbed, between 13 to 17 minutes. Turn off the heat. Let stand, covered,

for 10 minutes, then fluff with a fork. If you're going to add a pat of butter, now is the time. Rice Pilaf Saut 2 Tbl Minced Garlic in 3 Tbl Olive Oil until golden brown Option: add 4 to 8 ounces of drained sliced canned mushrooms to partially browne d garlic, and continue browning until mushrooms are reduced in size and well-bro wned. Saut 1 cup pasta (small shells, vermicelli broken into long pieces, tiny stars, al phabets, or any other small shaped pasta) in 2 Tbl Olive Oil until golden brown Thoroughly wash 3 cups of white basmatti rice in water. Drain water, place in sk illet with 4 Tbl Olive Oil and saut until all water is gone and rice becomes fract ured in appearance. Boil 1 cup of wild rice in 4 cups of water, until it begins to split apart. Thoroughly wash 1 cup of long grain brown basmatti rice and 1 cup regular brown rice in water. Except for the wild rice, place all of the above ingredients into rice cooker, a nd add the following: 1 15 1/2 ounce can of fat free, low sodium chicken or vegetable broth. Add the juice from one can of garbanzo beans, and the juice from 1 can of sliced or chopped black olives. Bring the liquid level up to the amount required for the volume of rice/pasta. Add olives, garlic, wild rice, optional mushrooms, and garbanzo beans (chickpeas ). You can substitute kidney beans, azuki beans, black beans, or fresh, fried or baked tofu bits. Add some or all of the following seasonings, according to your inclination and m ood: 2 to 4 Tbl. Dried basil (fresh is better!) 1 to 4 Tbl. S & B Oriental Curry powder 1 to 3 Tbl. Minced ginger 1/4 to 1 tsp. ground Sage 2 to 8 Tbl dried Parsley flakes (fresh is better!) 1/4 to 1 tsp. ground black pepper 1/4 to 1 tsp. mustard powder 1/4 to 2 tsp. oregano 1/4 to 1 tsp. ground cumin 1/4 to 1 tsp. ground coriander 1/4 ti 1 tsp. Ground or whole Thyme 1/4 to 1 tsp. Cayenne pepper (watch it!) 1 to 8 Tbl Brewed Soy Sauce (Kikkoman) or Braggs or Dr. Bronner s liquid aminos Variations: 1/4 to 1 tsp of ground cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, ground allspice, grated lemon o r lime peel up to 1 Tbl of liquid smoke 1 to 4 Tbl imitation (veggie) bacon bits, or crumbled well-fried bacon Savory Rice Pilaf 1/4 cup butter 1 onion, minced 2 cloves garlic, minced 1 1/2 cups long grain rice 3 cups chicken stock 1/2 cup chopped cashews In heavy saucepan, melted butter and saute onion and garlic until tender. Stir i n rice and cook, stirring, for 2-3 minutes until rice begins to look transparent around the edges. Add the chicken stock, stir, and bring to a boil. Lower heat to low, cover, and simmer for 20-25 minutes, until liquid is absorbed and rice i s fluffy. Don't check before 20 minutes are up! If the heat is turned low, the r ice should cook perfectly. Fluff up rice, stir in cashews, and serve

Pilaf style Rice 1 cup Basmati Rice 2 1/2 cups water 1/2 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon cumin powder 1 teaspoon cinnamon powder 1/2 teaspoon cloves 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg 1/4 teaspoon bayleaves powder 1 Tablespoon Olive oil Heat a large pan. Add oil. Heat. Add cumin powder, roast about one minute. Add r emaining ingredients except water. Make sure there are no spice lumps. Bring to a boil. Add rice. Start a 12 minute timer. When water comes to boil again, turn heat down. Simmer with no lids on. Turn off heat as the timer expires. Let stand till all the water is absorbed, It will take about additional 4 minutes. Clean-out-the-fridge pilaf 2 c brown basmati rice 4 c water 1/3 lb mushrooms, chopped 1/2 green pepper, diced 1/2 red pepper, diced 1 onion, chopped 2 plum tomatos, chopped salt to taste Throw everything in a pot, bring to a boil, cover and simmer for 45 minutes unti l the rice is cooked. Pilaf Find a big pan, into it, toss : brown rice (fill about a quarter of the pot) lentils (about half as much as the rice you just put in); brown,yellow, green, e tc...split peas?..... onions (a whole bunch, depends on pot size) veggies (eggplants, cubed, maybe one or two; OR green/red peppers; ORveggie of c hoice - mushrooms?) garlic (as much as you like. Lots for me of course) Now add lots of good indian spices : turmeric, cumin (lots), coriander, whatever else you like, ginger powder (fresh is better), The pot will be pretty full now, hopefully less than 2/3 full...Fill most of the way with water (3/4), cover, bring to a boil, then simmer for about forty five minutes....You will now have a huge pot full of excellent food! The result is very low fat, high in fiber, moderate in protein (perhaps a bit hi gh because it is a beany food), complete with lots of good veggies!! Quick to ma ke, and can be saved and reheated as needed... BASMATI RICE PILAF 1 c Basmati rice 4 Black peppercorns 2 Cloves 1/4 t Cumin seeds 1 sm Onion 1 tb oil 3 md Carrots 2 tb Butter 1 Bay leaf 1 tb Kosher salt (or to taste) Wash the rice in cool water, squeezing gently with your fingers, until the water runs clear. Put the rice in about 2 cups of cool water to soak for 20 minutes.

Strain soak water into saucepan and heat. Leave rice to dry in strainer. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. While rice is drying, chop onion finely and set aside. Dice carrots and set asid e. Measure spices. When rice is dry, heat oil over medium-high flame in heavy, oven-proof skillet o r casserole dish. Add spices. When spices become fragrant, add butter and onions . Cook until onions are tender and light golden brown. Add carrots and cook for 3-5 minutes. Add rice and cook, stirring very gently for 5 minutes. Add salt and heated soak water, bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer until water on top of rice has boil ed off. Cover tightly and cook for 20 minutes at 350 degrees F. Remove from oven , let rest for 10 minutes, then serve. NOTES: * use whole spices; ground spices would overpower the rice. Mid-East Pilaf 1 tb Vegetable oil 1 md Onion; chopped 1 tb Brown sugar 2/3 c Cashew bits or halves 1/3 c Raisins 3 c Hot cooked rice 1 c Chopped dried apricots 1/4 ts Salt 1/4 ts Ground cinnamon 1/4 ts Turmeric 1/4 ts Cracked black pepper 1/8 ts Cardamom 1/8 ts Ground cloves 1/3 c Apple juice Heat oil in large skillet over medium-high heat. Saute onion with brown sugar 3 to 5 minutes or until onion is golden brown. Add cashews and raisins; saute 2 to 3 minutes until nuts begin to brown and raisins plump. Add rice, apricots, salt , cinnamon, turmeric, pepper, cardamom and cloves. Stir in apple juice. Heat tho roughly and serve. Spanish Rice Pilaf 1/2 large yellow onion -- diced fine 3 cloves garlic -- minced 1 pint rice 1 cup V-8 vegetable juice 1 can whole tomatoes -- crushed 1 cup water 3/4 teaspoon ground cumin 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander 1/4 teaspoon white pepper 1 cube chicken bouillon 1/4 pound butter Sautee onion in a little oil until clear. Add garlic, and sautee until fragrant. Add rice, and sautee until a nutty smells develops (2-3 minutes). Pour in V-8 j uice, tomatoes, and water. Add cumin, coriander, white pepper, salt, and boullio n. Bring to a boil. At this time I usually cover the pot, and throw it in the oven for about twentyfive minutes. This almost gaurantees that you won't scorch or burn it; however, you can cook it own the stove top. Just turn the flame or element to a low tempe rature, and watch the rice closely. When water is gone and rice is firm not mushy, remove from heat source. Add butt er to top. After butter has melted, gently fold rice to evenly distribute the bu tter. Adjust the salt content to your liking.

Zanzibar Pilau 1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds 1/2 teaspoon whole black peppercorns several whole cloves ("cloves" not "cloves of garlic") one cinnamon stick (or a few pinches ground cinnamon) a few cardamom pods (or a few pinches ground cardamom) oil for frying several cloves of garlic 2 teaspoons fresh ginger 3 cups of rice (uncooked) 2 to 4 onions, chopped 1 to 2 pounds of meat (beef, chicken, mutton, fish, shrimp, or prawns), cut into bite-sized pieces 2 to 4 tomatoes, chopped (or canned tomatoes) 2 to 4 potatoes, peeled and cut into quarters 1 apple, peeled and cut into slices (optional) 1 cup raisins or sultanas (optional) Combine cumin, peppercorns, cloves, cinnamon and cardamom in a teacup, cover wit h warm water, stir, and set aside. (Cooking tip: The spices can be tied up in a small sack, like a tea bag, or can be put into a tea infuser before being placed in the warm water. This avoids having whole spices in the dish when it is serve d.) Pound the garlic and ginger together and set aside. Wash the rice, drain, and se t aside. Heat oil in deep pot. Fry onions until clear. Stir. Add garlic and ginger. Conti nue stirring and frying until the flavors have mixed -- it should develop a nice aroma. Add the meat, stir and cook over high heat until meat is browned on the outside. Reduce heat and simmer for a few minutes. Remove the meat and most of the onion s, and set them aside. Add the rice and stir it thoroughly to coat each grain of rice with the oil. Add the spices and water. Stir. Wait five minutes. Add the t omatoes. Cover and simmer for a few minutes. Stir occasionally. Check every few minutes to see if more water is needed and add water (or broth) as necessary. Stir as liquid is added. After ten minutes add the potatoes (and/o r the optional apples or raisins) and the meat and onions. Keep covered, keep ch ecking, add water if bottom of pot is dry. Continue cooking over low heat for te n more minutes. Remove pot from stove, keep covered. Place entire pot in warm oven for an additi onal ten to twenty minutes. All moisture should be absorbed by rice and potatoes should be tender. Serve hot. Afghani Qaubili Pilau [modified] 1/4 cup olive oil 1 yellow onion, diced 2 lbs lamb 1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon 1/4 tsp. ground cloves 1/4 tsp. ground cardamon 1/2 tsp. ground cumin 1/2 tsp. garam masala 1 tsp. salt 2 cups water. 1/4 cup vegetable oil 2 carrots 1 tsp. sugar 1 cup raisins 1 cup blanched almonds 2 cups basmati rice 1 tsp. salt 1/2 tsp. saffron

1 cup water Instructions In a heavy pot, fry the onions until golden brown. Cut the lamb into bite-size c ubes and add to the onions. Add salt and spices. Add water. Mix well, cover and cook until the lamb is done. Meanwhile cut the carrots into toothpick-size pieces. Fry them on vegetable oil with sugar until tender. Remove from oil. Add raisins to the oil and fry until t hey swell up. Remove from the oil. Add almonds to the oil and brown. Remove and set aside. Once the lamb is done, remove from the water and set aside. Add rice to the rema ining lamb stock. Add salt and water. Boil until the rice is done, about 20 minu tes. Once the rice is done, remove from the pot and put it on a oven-save caserole. P lace lamb on top of the rice, cover and cook on 300 degrees for about 20'. Serve by placing the lamb on a serving plate, covering it with the rice, and top ping it with the carrots, raisins and almonds. Qaubili Pilau 1/2 cup vegetable fat 1 medium onion diced 1 lb beef or lamb cubes 2 cups water 1 ts salt 1 1/2 ts mixed spices Heat fat in a Dutch oven or pressure cooker. add onion and fry until lightly bro wned. Add meat and brown. Add water, salt and spice. Cover and simmer, or cook under pressure until the meat is tender. Remove the me at and set aside - save the juice for cooking the rice. Cut 2 carrots into tooth pick size pieces. Heat 1/2 cup vegetable fat in a saucepan. Add 1 tbsp. sugar an d the cut up carrots and simmer until tender. Remove carrots from fat, add 1 cup dark, seedless raisins, and cook until they swell up. (You may also brown a cou ple of tablespoons of blanched almonds.) Remove each and set aside. To cook the rice, boil the meat juice and add 2 cups long grain rice, 1 1/2 tsp. salt, and s ufficient water to bring the liquid 2 inches above the rice. Add the oil in whic h the carrots were cooked and 1/8 tsp. saffron (optional) to the cooked rice. Pu t meat and rice in a large casserole, cover and set in a 300 degree oven for 2030 minutes. Place meat in the center of a large platter. Mound the rice over the top and sprinkle with carrots, raisins, and almonds. Serves 6-8. Indian Pulao 1 1/2 c Basmati rice 2 tb Oil or ghee 1 Cinnamon stick 4-5 Cardamom pods 4-6 Peppercorns 3-4 Whole cloves 1 Onion thinly sliced 3 c Water or stock Salt and pepper Place the rice in a large bowl and rinse in 3-4 changes of water until the water runs fairly clear. Fill the bowl with water to cover the rice by 1 inch and let soak for 20-60 minutes. Drain well and set aside. Heat the oil or ghee in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the whole spices and stir until fragrant, about 20-30 seconds. Do not burn. Stir in the onion and saut until translucent. Add the drained rice and stir until heated through and a ll the grains are coated with the oil or butter. Stir in the stock or water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to lowest setting, c over tightly and simmer for 15 minutes. Remove from heat and let rest, covered, another 5-10 minutes. Remove lid, fluff rice with a fork and serve. Variations

There are hundreds of variations of this basic dish. As long as you follow the b asic method and proportion of about 2 measures of water to 1 measure rice, feel free to experiment. For larger batches, a proportion of 1 3/4 measures water to 1 measure of rice works better. Common long-grain rice may be substituted if basmati is not available. The soaki ng step can then be eliminated. None of the spices is by itself essential, so use what you have. You can also ad d a cuminseed, mustard seeds or a pinch of saffron. Add 1 cup of chopped assorted vegetables with the stock or water if you like: pe as, cauliflower, carrots, green beans. Add a couple tablespoons of toasted almonds or cashews and some raisins with the stock or water for a Kashmiri-style pulao.