Persian Cuisine
Albaloo Polow
Ingredients: (4 servings)
- long-grain or basmati rice, 500 grams
- chicken, one medium-size
- black cherry (or cherry), 1kg
- sugar, 1 kg
- onions, 2 medium
- saffron, 1/2 teaspoon
- cooking oil
- salt
- black pepper
Directions:
Wash black cherries (or cherries) and remove the stones. Add sugar. If you are using cherries rather than black (sour) cherries, less sugar can be used. Bring to boil. Cook over medium heat for 15-20 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to cool down completely. Remove the extra syrup.
Peel and thinly slice onions. Wash chicken. Add onions, salt, black pepper, and a glass of hot water, and cook over medium heat for 20-25 minutes. Allow to cool, then remove bones. Filter the chicken juice and save for later use.
Follow instructions for preparing Polow until rice is rinsed. Pour 2 spoonfuls of cooking oil and half a glass of hot water in a pot. Follow with half of the rinsed rice and the black cherries (or cherries), and mix well. Cover with half of remaining rice. Spread chicken over the rice, and cover with the remaining rice. Shape into a cone. Mix 2-3 spoonfuls of cooking oil with black cherry (or cherry) syrup and chicken juice. Pour the mix over rice. Cover the pot and cook in an oven or over low heat for about one hour.
When cooked, remove some of the rice and mix with saffron dissolved in a bit of hot water. When serving, spread saffron-rice over Albaloo-Polow.
Roxana & Farzin Mokhtarian
Jan 2004
