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Jeweled Rice is a classic Persian recipe, often served at weddings. According to Najmieh Batmanglij, each ingredient represents a jewel; for example, the cherries in this recipe represent rubies, and the pistachios, emeralds. The rice is first boiled or steamed. When halfway cooked, it's put into a buttered or oiled sauté pan and then firmly compressed. Finally, milk is poured over it, and it then continues cooking until the bottom develops a golden crust.
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Ingredients |
Amounts |
Basmati or long-grain rice |
1½ lb. |
Olive oil |
¼ cup |
Onions, thinly sliced |
2 ea. |
Chicken, 2½ -3 lb., cut into quarters |
1 ea. |
Chicken stock |
1 cup |
Large orange, peel removed
and cut into julienne |
1 ea. |
Sugar |
2 Tbsp. |
Slivered almonds |
½ cup |
Pistachios |
½ cup |
Dried cherries, soaked in warm
water for 20 minutes, drained |
¼ cup |
Raisins, same as with cherries |
½ cup |
Saffron, infused with ¾ cup
chicken stock |
1 tsp. |
Butter |
4 Tbsp. |
Salt and fresh pepper |
to taste |
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| 1. Wash and rinse the rice in cool water. Drain and cover with water and soak for about two hours. |
| 2. While the rice is soaking, heat the olive oil in a heavy pan. Add the onions and cook until translucent and lightly colored. Remove and set aside. |
| 3. Return the pan to the heat, season the chicken with salt and pepper and add the chicken pieces to the pan. Continue cooking until golden brown on all sides. |
| 4. Add the chicken stock and onions and lower the heat to medium. Simmer gently for about 30 minutes. Remove the chicken from the pan and when cool enough to handle remove all the meat from the bones. Toss the meat with the onions from the pan and set aside. |
5. Place the julienned orange peel in a pan of cold water and bring to a boil. As soon as the water boils drain and repeat the process two more times. When finished, add ¼ cup of water to the pan and add the sugar. Cook until all the water has evaporated and the peel is shiny. Reserve.
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| 6. In a large pan bring 1 gallon of salted water to a boil. Drain the rice, add it to the boiling water and cook for about 3 minutes. Drain the rice (it will not be completely cooked at this time) and rinse in cool water. Set aside. |
| 7. Pour ¼ cup oil and hot water in a room temperature sauté pan. Add half the rice. Scatter the chicken, almonds, pistachios, cherries, raisins, and half the orange peel over the rice and cover with the remaining rice. Pour the saffron broth over the rice. Cover and cook over low heat for 30 minutes. |
| 8. To serve: When the rice is done, overturn the rice cake (it should hold together at this point and the exterior of the rice should be golden and crusty). Garnish with the remaining orange peel. |
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