Javaher polo (جواهر پلو, 'jewelled rice') is the crown jewel of Persian cuisine, served at weddings, Nowruz (Persian New Year), and the most important celebrations. It is one of the world's most beautiful rice dishes: a mound of fragrant saffron basmati, studded with slivers of carrot, tart crimson barberries (zereshk), jewel-green pistachios, blanched almonds, and strips of orange peel, a constellation of colours, textures, and flavours that earns its name completely. Persian rice culture is extraordinarily sophisticated, the development of polo (pilaf) technique in Persia, with its prized tahdig (the crispy golden crust at the bottom of the pot), influenced rice cooking from the Ottoman Empire to the Mughal courts to the modern biryani traditions of South Asia. The carrot in javaher polo plays a specific role: julienned, briefly caramelised with a little sugar, it provides both sweetness and a golden thread of colour against the saffron-yellow rice. The dish is at once visually spectacular and deeply harmonious in flavour, the tartness of barberries against the sweetness of carrot and orange, the fragrance of saffron and rose water, the crunch of nuts.
Ingredients
Rice
400 g basmati rice, soaked in cold salted water for 1 hour and drained
Carrot
2 large carrots, peeled and cut into julienne matchsticks
Saffron
0.5 tsp saffron threads, steeped in 4 tbsp hot water for 15 minutes
Fruit
60 g dried barberries (zereshk), rinsed (substitute dried cranberries if unavailable, chopped small)
1 large orange, zest removed in thin strips and julienned; squeeze and reserve 2 tbsp juice
Nuts
50 g pistachios, roughly chopped
50 g blanched almonds, roughly chopped or slivered
Sugar
2 tbsp caster sugar
Fat
60 g butter or ghee
2 tbsp neutral oil (for the tahdig crust)
Floral
1 tbsp rose water
Spice
1 tsp ground cinnamon
0.5 tsp ground cardamom
Seasoning
1.5 tsp salt
Method
In a small pan, melt 20g of the butter over medium heat. Add the carrot julienne and cook, stirring, for 3 minutes. Add 1 tablespoon of the sugar and the orange juice. Continue cooking for 4–5 minutes until the carrots are just tender and lightly glazed. Remove and set aside.
In the same pan, melt another 10g of butter. Add the barberries and remaining sugar. Stir gently for 1–2 minutes until the barberries have softened and absorbed the sugar. Add the rose water in the last 30 seconds. Remove and set aside.
In a large pot, bring well-salted water to a rolling boil (taste it: it should be as salty as the sea). Add the drained rice and parboil for exactly 6–7 minutes until the grains are just beginning to soften on the outside but are still firm at the centre. Drain immediately.
Return the pot to medium-high heat. Add the oil and let it heat until shimmering. Add a thin layer of the parboiled rice to cover the base of the pot: this forms the tahdig (crispy crust). Mix the cinnamon and cardamom through the remaining rice.
Pile the remaining spiced rice into the pot in a pyramid shape. Use the handle of a wooden spoon to poke 5–6 holes down through the rice to the base: this allows steam to circulate. Lay a clean kitchen cloth or paper towel under the lid to absorb steam. Cover tightly and reduce to the lowest possible heat. Steam for 30–35 minutes.
Remove the lid. Mix the saffron water into 100g of the cooked rice in a small bowl to make saffron rice for garnishing.
Mound the white rice onto a large warm serving platter. Arrange the glazed carrots, barberries, orange zest strips, pistachios, and almonds over and through the rice in generous, colourful layers. Crown the top with the golden saffron rice. Carefully remove the tahdig from the pot and serve separately on a plate: golden-side up, it is the best piece.
Notes
Javaher polo is traditionally served at Persian weddings alongside slow-braised lamb shanks (lamb shank polo) or roast chicken. The barberries (zereshk) are available at Iranian and Middle Eastern grocery stores, and their characteristic sweet-tart flavour is very difficult to replicate: dried cranberries are the most common substitute, though they are less tart and more chewy. The tahdig can be made with a thin layer of lavash bread instead of rice for a particularly spectacular, very crispy crust.
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