Crispy Tahdig Recipes

TAHDIG - CRISPY PERSIAN RICE

Steps:

• Add rice to a bowl and fill with water. Mix well to remove the starch. Strain and repeat until the water runs clear. This helps the grains of rice stay separated after cooking. Add strained rice to a bowl with 2 tablespoons of salt. Cover with 2 cups of water. Soak for 30 mins. Meanwhile, bring 6 cups of water to a boil. Add the rice mixture to the boiling water. Boil for 5-8 minutes until rice is al-dente. If a lot of foam rises to the top, skim it off with a spoon. Strain rice. In a wide-bottomed pot, add the canola oil and saffron threads. Stir. Scoop a layer of rice into the pot and press is down with a spatula. This will be the crispy top layer (the tahdig, which translates to 'bottom of the pot'). Scoop the rest of the rice on top of the packed layer in a pyramid shape. With the handle of a spoon, make holes in the pyramid to allow the steam to escape. Be careful not to press down to the bottom of the pan. Cover and cook on med-high heat for 10 minutes. This part can vary depending on your stove, so be careful not to burn it. Turn heat to low. Wrap the lid with a towel, cover and cook on low heat for 45 minutes. When you remove the lid, the rice should be making a crackling sound. If you can, carefully check the bottom of the pot to check it the bottom is crispy. The rice on top should be fluffy. If not, cover and cook for 15 more mins. Cover the pot with a flat plate and flip it over. Garnish with mint and parsley and serve as-is or broken in pieces. Great served with saucy meat dishes.

TAHDIG RECIPE (CRISPY PERSIAN RICE)

Steps:

• Mix the saffron into 1 cup very warm (but not hot) water. Let sit for at least 10 minutes to let the saffron release all of its flavor.
• In a sieve, rinse the rice under cool running water until the water almost runs clear.
• In a large pot, combine 8 cups of water and the salt (this is your one shot to season the rice itself). Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Add the rice and cook until al dente, 5 to 6 minutes. Drain the rice.
• In a medium bowl, combine 1 cup of the cooked rice, the yogurt, grapeseed oil, and 2 tbsp of the saffron water. Mix thoroughly.
• Spread the rice-yogurt mixture evenly on the bottom of a 10-inch lidded nonstick pot. Sprinkle 1 cup of the remaining cooked rice on top, followed by 2 tablespoons of the dried cherries, a pinch of orange zest, and a pinch of cinnamon. Add another layer of rice and repeat with the cherries, orange zest, and cinnamon, reserving a couple tbsp of the cherries for garnish. As you go about layering, the rice will start to dome and look "pointy" in the middle--that's okay! Keep it that way. Finish by dotting the top with the butter and pour the rest of the saffron water all over the top.
• Wrap the lid in a kitchen towel and secure it around the handle with a rubber band. Cover the pot and cook over low heat, 25 to 30 minutes or until the rice around the edges is golden and crispy; it's okay to peek under the lid! (See note #2) Be sure not to burn the bottom layer of the rice, though you do want a nice crust in the bottom.
• Remove the lid, invert a large serving plate over the pot, and carefully flip them over together. No worries if it sticks, just scrape it out and run with it! Sprinkle the tahdig with the reserved dried cherries and pistachios and serve right away.

TAHDIG (PERSIAN RICE)

Steps:

• Gather the ingredients.
• Combine rice and water in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low, add salt and stir. Cover pot and allow to simmer for 20 minutes or until rice is tender.
• In a large skillet or saute pan , heat olive oil on medium heat. Be sure to coat sides and bottom of the pan. Add cooked rice and "mash" it with a spoon to compact it, ensuring it is evenly spread throughout pan.
• Cover and cook for about 15 to 20 minutes on medium heat or until you hear it crack and sizzle.
• Once rice is done, remove lid and carefully flip rice over onto a serving dish, so crusted rice is now on the top. The rice should have a thick layer of brown, crispy rice.

PASTA TAHDIG

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of generously salted water to a boil over high heat. Set a colander in the sink. Cook the pasta, stirring occasionally with tongs to prevent clumping. Taste, and adjust salt as needed. When the pasta is al dente, drain into colander.
• Return pasta to pot, and add 2 tablespoons oil, tomato sauce, 1 cup Parmesan and chile paste or flakes, if using. Stir well with tongs to combine. and taste to ensure that the mixture is well seasoned.
• Preheat a 10-inch nonstick pan over medium heat. Add 3 tablespoons oil. When it shimmers, pile in the pasta, and use a silicone spatula to lightly pat it evenly down into the pan. The pan may seem perilously full, but the cake will condense as it cooks. Use spatula to gently coax the pasta on the edges into a cakelike shape, and reduce heat to medium low. Add oil as needed until you can see it gently bubbling up the sides of the pan - this will ensure that the edges of the tahdig are brown.
• Cook, rotating pan a quarter-turn every 5 minutes to ensure even browning. Periodically run spatula around the edges to prevent sticking. After 20 minutes, carefully tip excess oil into a heatproof bowl, then cover the pan with a pizza pan or large, flat pot lid. Carefully flip tahdig onto pan.
• Add oil back into pan, and return to medium heat. If needed, add more oil to coat bottom of the pan. Carefully slide tahdig back into pan, using spatula to coax it back into shape. When oil begins to gently bubble up the sides of the pan, reduce heat to medium low, and cook for 20 minutes, rotating pan a quarter-turn every 5 minutes.
• Wipe pizza pan clean, tip out excess oil and flip tahdig onto pan as before. If either side (or both) can use a little more crisping, return tahdig to pan without oil, increase heat to medium high and cook for 60-90 seconds, until sizzling and properly browned.
• Dab away any excess grease with a paper towel. Allow tahdig to cool for 10 minutes before using a sharp bread knife to cut into slices. Serve warm or at room temperature with grated Parmesan.

CRISPY TAHDIG

Steps:

• Start the 2 quarts water and salt boiling in large stock pot or dutch oven.
• Rinse rice until water runs clear (or as close to clear as you can get it).
• Add rice to boiling water, boil about 10 minutes or until rice is about half cooked.
• Drain rice in colander, reserve.
• In stock pot or dutch oven, pour about 1/4 cup melted butter on bottom, tilt to cover 2 inches up sides.
• Pour the half-cooked rice into the pot, try to make a nice mound in the middle, and avoid the sides as much as possible.
• With the end of a wooden spoon, make holes in the mound of rice (5 or 6 places) evenly around.
• Pour the remaining melted butter onto the rice, and drizzle 1/4 Cup of the extra water into the holes you made. Cover pot with kitchen towel to absorb the steam, place pot lid on towel.
• Cook on very low heat, checking after about 15 minutes. If the rice is browning too fast, add the remaining extra water a little bit at a time.
• Cook rice until it's done, about 30 minutes.
• Try not to check it too often, as it needs to steam.

PERSIAN TAHDIG RICE

Steps:

• Grind saffron threads with sugar in a mortar and pestle. Transfer to a bowl and dissolve in boiling water. Set aside to soak.
• Wash starch from the rice by rinsing it in a nonstick 4-quart pot. Rinse 3 or 4 times in lukewarm water until water runs clear. Fill the pot 3/4 full with cold water, covering the rice. Bring to a boil. Add olive oil and cook until rice is soft on the outside and still crunchy in the middle, 10 to 15 minutes.
• Drain rice and rinse with cool water. Set aside. Rinse any excess rice starch out of the pot.
• Melt butter in the clean, dry pot. Mound rice over the butter; add enough water to reach 1/3 of the height of the rice. Sprinkle salt over the rice. Wrap the lid with a kitchen towel and cover the pot to seal tightly. Simmer over medium heat until all water is absorbed and a crispy crust starts to form on the bottom, about 10 minutes.
• Fluff the rice with a fork while turning it out on a plate. Measure 1 cup rice and mix with the saffron water. Scatter saffron rice over plain rice. Detach the layer of crust, or 'tahdig', from the bottom of the pot and serve in a separate dish as a special treat.