rice with green beans and meatballs (loobiya polo)

served on a large platter with a simple chopped cucumber and tomato salad

This dish is one of my favourites. I like to serve it on a large platter with a simple chopped cucumber and tomato salad. Make sure to top off the rice with a slathering of butter, letting it melt through the layers before serving.

ingredients

• 400g (2 cups) Basmati rice
• 200g (2 cups) trimmed green beans
• 200g (7oz) store-bought meatballs of your choice- beef, pork, lamb or mixed
• 1 large onion, finely chopped
• 45g (3 tbsp) tomato paste
• 120ml (8 tbsp) vegetable oil
• salt and pepper
• optionally, a generous sprinkle of cinnamon and ground dried rose petals

preparation

• to make the sauce, heat 4 tbsp of oil in a large frying pan
• add the chopped onion and fry for 3 minutes until translucent and slightly coloured
• add turmeric and tomato paste and fry for 1 minute
• add the trimmed green beans to the pan and fry for 2 minutes
• add a cup of water, put the lid on and let it simmer away until the green beans are soft
• add the meatballs and let them cook for another 5-7 minutes
• soak the rice in a pot containing hot water and 2 heaped tablespoons of salt
• cover and set aside to soften for at least 20 minutes
• Iranians sometimes soak their rice overnight; this reduces the cooking time considerably
• bring a litre of water to a boil in a large saucepan
• make sure it is big enough to contain the rice, which will double in volume when cooked
• pour the soaking water of the rice away and add the soaked rice to the boiling water
• cook only until the rice grains are half-cooked
• to be sure, press a rice grain between two fingers; it should be soft on the outside but hard in the middle
• strain the rice and set aside
• heat 60ml (4tbsp) of oil in the saucepan you cooked the rice in
• when the oil is piping hot, prepare your tahdig
• you can use potato slices or flatbread to cover the bottom of the pan
• add some salt and then layer your rice by adding two spatulas of rice over the tahdig spreading it evenly
• sprinkle ground cinnamon and ground dried rose petals evenly on top of the rice
• spoon a third of the sauce over the rice
• repeat the layers until you run out of each, making sure to save enough rice for the top layer
• make some holes with the handle of the spatula
• pour in 125ml (½ cup) of water around the edge of the pot
• reduce to medium heat and put the lid on
• when steam starts to seep from beneath the lid, spoon a generous knob of butter on top of the rice
• cover and lower the heat
• cook for another 15 minutes

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