Shevid Baghali Polo

Persian steamed rice layered with broad beans and enormous quantities of dill, over a golden tahdig

Origin: Isfahan & Shiraz, Iran

From the journey of Dill.

This is dill used as a bulk ingredient rather than a seasoning, and it is the clearest demonstration of what the Persian kitchen does with herbs. Polo is the layered, steamed rice that sits at the centre of Iranian cooking, and it is a two-stage operation: the rice is parboiled in heavily salted water and drained whilst still firm, then returned to the pot in layers with whatever is going into it, mounded into a cone, covered with a cloth-wrapped lid, and steamed slowly until the grains separate completely. Done properly each grain stands apart and the rice is dry rather than sticky. What goes between the layers here is shevid, dill, by the very large bunch, and baghali, broad beans. The proportions surprise people cooking it for the first time: this is not rice with herbs in it but rice and herbs in something close to balance, and the finished dish is green-flecked all through rather than garnished on top. The crust at the bottom is the other half of the dish and is argued over more than any other element of Iranian cooking. Tahdig, literally bottom of the pot, forms where the rice meets hot fat, and it can be built from rice alone, from a layer of thin flatbread, from sliced potato, or from yoghurt beaten into a portion of the rice. It comes out as a single golden sheet if the cook has judged it right, and it is the piece everyone at the table wants. Baghali polo is the standard accompaniment to lamb shank, mahiche, slow-braised until it falls from the bone, and the two together are a dish for guests rather than for a Tuesday.

Ingredients

Rice

500 g basmati rice
3 tbsp salt, for soaking and parboiling
300 g broad beans, podded and skinned, fresh or frozen
120 g fresh dill, tough stalks removed, finely chopped
0.5 tsp ground cinnamon, optional

Steaming

80 g unsalted butter, melted, or 80 ml light oil
3 tbsp water

Tahdig

1 whole large potato, peeled and cut into 5 mm rounds, for the tahdig

To Finish

0.5 tsp saffron threads, ground and steeped in 3 tbsp hot water
1 pinch freshly ground black pepper

Method

Rinse the rice in several changes of cold water until it runs clear, then soak it in cold water with 2 tbsp of the salt for at least two hours and preferably four.
Bring a large pan of water to a hard boil with the remaining salt. Drain the rice and boil it for four to six minutes only, until a grain is soft at the ends and still hard at the very centre when bitten.
Add the broad beans to the pan for the last minute, then drain everything at once into a sieve and rinse briefly with lukewarm water to stop the cooking.
Wipe the pan dry, return it to a medium heat with half the butter and the 3 tbsp of water, and lay the potato slices flat across the base in a single layer.
Spoon in a layer of rice, then a scattering of dill and beans, and repeat, building the rice into a cone towards the centre and finishing with rice. Do not press it down.
Poke five or six holes down through the mound to the base with the handle of a wooden spoon, then pour over the remaining melted butter.
Wrap the lid in a clean tea towel, clamp it on tightly, and cook on a medium heat for ten minutes until you hear it sizzling, then turn to the lowest possible heat and steam for 45 to 50 minutes.
Stir the saffron water through a ladleful of the top rice to colour it. Mound the plain rice onto a warm platter, scatter the saffron rice over the top, and grind over black pepper.
Lift out the tahdig with a spatula and serve it alongside, or invert the whole pot onto a plate if you are confident.

Notes

Fresh dill is essential and the quantity is not a misprint: 120 g is roughly three supermarket packets or one large market bunch. Dried dill produces a dish that tastes of hay. Frozen podded broad beans are perfectly good and save a great deal of work. The skins must come off whichever you use; a brief blanch and a pinch pops them out. Serve with braised lamb shank, with a simple yoghurt, and with torshi, the Iranian pickles. A plate of fresh herbs, sabzi khordan, belongs on the table alongside. The same method with the same rice technique produces the whole polo family: sabzi polo with mixed herbs for Nowruz, albaloo polo with sour cherries, and polo ba na'na with mint and dill together.

The Gastrographer

Name: Shevid Baghali Polo
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 1 h 10 min
Total time: 3 h
Yield: 6
Cuisine: Iran
Ingredients: 500 g basmati rice; 3 tbsp salt, for soaking and parboiling; 300 g broad beans, podded and skinned, fresh or frozen; 120 g fresh dill, tough stalks removed, finely chopped; 0.5 tsp ground cinnamon, optional; 80 g unsalted butter, melted, or 80 ml light oil; 3 tbsp water; 1 whole large potato, peeled and cut into 5 mm rounds, for the tahdig; 0.5 tsp saffron threads, ground and steeped in 3 tbsp hot water; 1 pinch freshly ground black pepper

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Journey Point Map Key

Ingredient originTrade or transit route

Became a culinary stapleColonial / trade control