Shirin Polo

Traditional Persian rice dish is served on the first day of the Iranian New Year. It is made with rice, saffron, and dried lime.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup long-grain white rice
• 1/2 cup onion (chopped)
• 2 cups water (plus more if needed)
• 3 tablespoons turmeric powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

Shirin polo rice is cooked by first boiling water with turmeric powder and salt. Next, you need to add water to the boiled water until it reaches 1 cup of water per 1 cup of rice. Then, you need to add the rice into this mixture. Cover the pot with a lid and cook for 20 minutes over medium heat until all the liquid has been absorbed by the rice. Once done, you will need to turn off your stove top or oven and let it sit for 10 minutes before fluffing up with a fork. You can serve Shirin polo rice with any protein and vegetables that you like. You could also add nuts to this or have it as a side dish

Machbous

Machbous is a popular rice-based dish that showcases the UAE’s culinary diversity. It is made by cooking long-grain rice with tender meat (such as chicken, lamb, or fish), aromatic spices, and a variety of vegetables, including tomatoes, onions, and bell peppers. Dried lime, saffron, and rosewater enhance the flavours.

Ingredients:

• 1 tbsp. olive oil
• 1 tsp ground turmeric
• 4 chicken thighs/legs
• 1/2 onion
• 1 tsp ground ginger
• 2 curry leaves
• 1 tomato, diced
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 6 cardamom pods
• 6 whole cloves
• 1 chicken stock cube
• Salt and pepper
• 1 tsp ground coriander
• 1 tsp baharat spice
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tbsp. mild curry powder
• 700ml water
• 1/2 lemon
• 400g basmati rice

Direction:

Rub 1 tsp of ground turmeric into 4 chicken thighs and legs (skin on). Heat 1 tbsp. olive oil in a frying pan. Fry in the pan until brown and set aside. This should take about 5 mins per side. Dice half an onion and fry in the same pan as before, until brown. Add 1 tsp ground ginger, the curry leaves, the diced tomato, cinnamon stick, the cardamom pods and cloves. Mix in and then re-add the chicken. Transfer to a deep pan.
In the deep pan, add 1 crushed chicken stock cube, seasoning to your liking, 1 tsp ground coriander, 1 tsp baharat spice, 1 tsp ground cumin and 1 tbsp. mild curry powder. Cover with 700ml cold water. Cover and cook for 30 mins on low.
Uncover, add the juice of half a lemon, the rice and cover and cook for about 10 minutes, until the rice has cooked. Keep an eye on it and stir occasionally to stop the rice from sticking. You can add a tiny bit more water if needed. Serve on a large plate.

Chicken Kabsa

Chicken Kabsa - an exotic Saudi rice dish served with raisins and almonds.

Ingredients:

• 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• 2 cups onions chopped
• ½ tsp ginger grated
• 600 gms chicken pieces with bones and skin
• 1 tbsp. salt
• ½ tbsp. ground pepper
• ½ tbsp. cardamom powder
• 1 dried lime
• ½ tsp cinnamon powder
• ¼ tsp clove powder
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 tbsp. tomato paste
• 2 cups tomatoes finely chopped
• 1 ½ cup long grain rice like Basmati
• 2 cup carrots shredded
• 1/3 cup almonds blanched and halved
• 1/3 cup raisins

Instructions:

• Wash and soak the rice in cold water for 45 minutes.
• In a big pot, add the 1/3 cup of vegetable oil, chopped onion and ginger. Fry on medium heat until brown.
• Add the chicken and brown it on both sides.
• Add the cardamom powder, cinnamon powder, clove powder, dried lime, bay leaf, salt, and pepper and mix well.
• Add the tomato paste and the chopped tomatoes and cook until the oil rises to the top. Add 1 liter – 4 cups of water, cover and let the chicken cook for 25 minutes on medium-high heat.
• In the meantime, fry the raisins until plump and brown in a little bit of oil, drain and keep them aside. Then do the same thing with the almonds. Keep aside.
• Once the chicken is cooked, remove it from the pot and put it in a baking pan. Broil it in a hot oven for 5 to 10 minutes. Keep aside.
• Drain the rice and put it in the pot from where you removed the chicken. Add the shredded carrots and mix well.
• Cover with a clean tea towel and the cover with a lid (this will prevent the steam from evaporating too quickly). Cook the rice for 20-25 minutes on medium heat.
• Serve the rice topped with the chicken and the roasted almonds and raisins.

Hyderabadi Chicken Dum Biryani

Indian Chicken biryani: a tantalizing symphony of spices and succulent flavours.

Ingredients:

Deep fried onions – Birista

• 1/4 cup ghee
• 500 grams onions, sliced thin

Marinating the chicken for Hyderabadi Chicken Dum Biryani

• 1/4 cup plain yogurt / curd
• half of the fried onions from above
• 2 teaspoon ginger garlic paste
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1.5 teaspoon coriander powder
• 1 tablespoon biryani masala powder
• 1/4 cup coriander leaves
• 1/4 cup mint leaves
• 1 teaspoon red chilli powder
• 3 green chillies, chopped
• 1 lemon (juiced)
• 500 grams bone-in chicken

Cooking Rice for Hyderabadi Chicken Dum Biryani

• 1 star anise
• 2 cardamom
• 2 bay leaves
• 3 cloves
• 1 inch cinnamon
• 2 cups basmati rice (500 ml)
• 1 teaspoon ghee
• 1.5 teaspoon salt

Layering the biryani

• 2 tablespoon mint leaves
• 2 tablespoon coriander leaves
• a pinch of saffron
• 1/4 cup hot milk
• remaining fried onions from above

Directions:

Deep fried onions – Birista:

• Add quarter cup of ghee to a heavy pan and add in the onions. Now, fried onions take anywhere between 20-25 minutes to get that deep brown colour. This is the first thing I start in the kitchen when making biryani so I can get all the other prep work done when the onions are cooking and doing its magic. Keep sauteing. The onions would slowly start to brown and change colour to a deep cocoa. Keep sauteing every couple of minutes as the onions in the corner of the pan tend to brown faster. So keep moving and mixing things. Once the onions are nice and brown, remove the onions and set aside. We will use half of the onions for marinating the chicken and half of it while layering the Hyderabadi style chicken dum biryani.

Marinating the chicken for Hyderabadi Chicken Dum Biryani:

• Take a big bowl and add in all the ingredients listed under marination for Hyderabadi style chicken dum biryani. Marinate for at-least 3 hours or overnight in the refrigerator.

Cooking Rice for Hyderabadi Chicken Dum Biryani

• Wash and soak the rice in water before starting to cook for at-least 30 minutes. Soaking the rice helps the rice from becoming mushy while cooked. Bring a big pot of water to a boil. Once the water comes to a boil, add in the spices, salt and the ghee. Add in the soaked and drained rice. Let the rice cook in the boiling water. It will take roughly about 10-15 minutes to cook the rice depending on the age of the rice. So keep checking. Aged rice takes more time to cook.
• The rice should be cooked about 80-90 percent. When you eat a grain of rice, it should be cooked but still firm. It should be a little al-dente when you chew. At this stage, drain the rice. Before draining the rice, remove the spices. You do not want anyone chewing on cardamom or clove when they take a bite of their Hyderabadi style chicken dum biryani. It will ruin the palate. So I always remove the spices if possible and in a recipe like this, it’s easy to remove it too. Drain the rice on a colander and set aside.

Cooking the Chicken Masala for making Hyderabadi style chicken dum biryani

• Heat ghee in a heavy pan. Heavy pan is necessary as we will put the Hyderabadi style chicken dum biryani for “dum” later in the same pan. Add in the marinated chicken to the pan. Keep the flame on medium and cover the pan with a lid. Cook for 15 minutes. Saute once or twice in between to avoid the chicken from scorching at the bottom. During cooking, if the chicken is very dry, feel free to add half a cup of water. Do not add a lot of water as we need a thick gravy for making Hyderabadi style chicken dum biryani. Once the chicken is cooked, remove from heat and set aside.

Layering the biryani

• Soak the saffron in quarter cup of really hot milk or water. Other things we will need for layering apart from the rice and chicken masala are the fried onions, chopped mint, coriander leaves and the saffron milk.
• Get all the prepped food ready. We will layer the Hyderabadi style chicken dum biryani. We will be doing a two parts layered biryani. So we will split all the prepped food in half and start layering. Remove half of the chicken masala gravy from the pan. To the other remaining half, add in half of the rice. Top the rice with half of the fried onions, mint leaves, coriander leaves and saffron milk. Repeat the same to get one more layer. Cover the pan with a kitchen towel covered lid (the towel will absorb all the steam and also give a tight fit to the lid). Place the pan back on the stove and heat it on a low flame for 15 minutes. Low flame is key. Otherwise, the biryani will scorch at the bottom. So a word of caution on that.
• Oven Method – Place the biryani bowl in a preheated 200C oven for 15 minutes. Remove from the oven. Let it rest for another 10 minutes before you serve.
• Let it cook for 15 minutes. Tasty Hyderabadi style chicken dum biryani is ready.

Jollof rice

Jollof rice is a staple in West African cuisine. It’s made from rice, tomatoes, onions, peppers, and other seasonings. The dish is cooked in one pot. It’s simple and easy to make at home—and the end result is absolutely delicious.

Ingredients:

• For the sauce
• 3 red bell peppers
• 3 Plum tomatoes
• 1 medium onion
• 2 scotch bonnet/habanero use less if you don't like it spicy
• 1/4 cup water
• For the Jollof
• 1/2 cup oil
• 1 medium onion sliced
• 4 tablespoons tomato paste
• 4 cloves garlic finely minced
• 1 tablespoon ginger grated
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 tablespoon thyme
• 1 tablespoon curry Powder
• 1 teaspoons salt or add to taste
• white Pepper or black pepper to taste
• 1 tablespoon chicken bouillon powder or 3 cubes
• 4 cups long grain rice rinsed and drained
• 3-4 cups chicken stock
• 1 large tomato sliced
• 1 medium onion sliced
• 2 tablespoons butter at room temperature – optional

DIRECTIONS

1. First, make the tomato-based sauce by blending together the red bell peppers (pimento), tomatoes, onion, and scotch bonnet.
2. Heat the cooking oil in a large pan over medium heat, then add the diced onions and let them cook for about 3 minutes or until they are soft.
3. Next, add the tomato paste and fry for about 5 minutes. Then stir in garlic, ginger, and bay leaves—leave to cook for 2 more minutes.
4. Add the blended sauce and allow the pepper to cook until the water is reduced and the sauce becomes thick—about 10 to 15 minutes.
5. Season with thyme, curry powder, bouillon cubes, salt, and pepper to taste. Cook for another 2 to 5 minutes.
6. Add the rinsed rice to the sauce and stir until it is well coated with the sauce. Then add the chicken stock, stir briefly, cover with a tight-fitting lid, and bring to a quick boil over high heat.
7. Once it begins to boil—after about 3 to 5 minutes, reduce the heat immediately to low and steam until the rice is done—about 30 minutes.
8. Add the butter, sliced tomato, and onions, stir together briefly and turn off the heat. Cover it immediately so that the heat remaining in the rice can steam up the vegetables a little.
9. Serve with sweet fried plantains, roasted chicken, or salad.

Timman Jizar

This carrot rice recipe, also known as Timman Jizar, is an incredible Iraqi vegetarian recipe and basmati rice dish! Flavoured with onions, grated carrots, tomato, and a hint of cinnamon, it strikes the perfect balance.

Ingredients

• 1 onion
• 3 medium carrots grated (about 1.5 cups packed) *see notes
• 1 tomato
• 4 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 2 cinnamon sticks
• ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
• ¼ teaspoon black pepper
• 1 and ¼ teaspoon salt
• 1 chicken bouillon cube substitute for vegetable for vegetarian option
• 1 and ½ cups basmati rice
• 2 and ¼ cups water

Instructions:

• Start by finely dicing the onions and tomatoes
• Wash, peel and grate the carrots, discarding the green parts
• In a non-stick pot on medium heat, heat the vegetable oil and add the onions. Cook for a few minutes until softened
• Next add the tomato, and continue to cook for a few more minutes
• Add the grated carrots, along with the bouillon cube, salt, pepper, cinnamon sticks and ground cinnamon. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring every few minutes
• Wash and drain the basmati rice, and add it to the pot. Stir and cook for 2 minutes
• Add the water and allow everything to start bubbling
• Once rice is bubbling, cover and cook on low heat for 20 minutes. Do not open the lid
• After 20 minutes, open lid and fluff rice with a fork. Serve & enjoy