Tiny Urban Kitchen

Exploring Food from Boston to Hong Kong and Beyond

  • About Me
  • Travel
  • Recipes
  • Michelin
  • Subscribe
  • Taiwanese
menu icon
go to homepage
  • About Me
  • Travel
  • Recipes
  • Michelin
  • Subscribe
  • Taiwanese
    • Email
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • LinkedIn
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
    • YouTube
  • subscribe
    search icon
    Homepage link
    • About Me
    • Travel
    • Recipes
    • Michelin
    • Subscribe
    • Taiwanese
    • Email
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • LinkedIn
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
    • YouTube
  • ×
    • Planque London
      Planque London: Tasting the Unexpected
    • Bala Baya London
      Sunday Brunch at Bala Baya London
    • Ta Vie Hong Kong
      Ta Vie Hong Kong 旅 (3 Michelin Stars)
    • Pleka IFC Hong Kong
      Pleka IFC Hong Kong - Italian Japanese fusion
    • Nanjing, China
      Weekend Trip to Nanjing China
    • Po Toi Island and Stanley Hong Kong
      Po Toi Island and Stanley Hong Kong
    • Wakaran Hong Kong
      Wakaran Wan Chai
    • Godenya Hong Kong
      Godenya Hong Kong (revisited)
    • The Chairman Hong Kong
      The Chairman Hong Kong (1 Michelin Star)
    • Hanu Wan Chai Hong Kong
      Hanu (Korean Beef) Wan Chai
    • Always Joy Hong Kong
      Always Joy Hong Kong
    • Michael Chiarelli Ottimo Yountville California
      Bottega + Ottimo Yountville
    Home » Recipe » Rice

    Worlds of Flavor: Persian Saffron Rice

    Published: Oct 1, 2012 · Modified: Oct 27, 2014 by Jennifer Che

    Persian Saffron Rice "Cake"
    One thing I like about having this blog is that it forces me to constantly think about creating new content. Don't continue cooking the same old tried-and-true recipes. Otherwise, I'll have nothing to write about here.

    Of course, when times get busy (as they have been lately), it's easy to get lazy and rely upon those tried-and-true favorites. I cannot tell you how many times I've made Baja fish tacos, Taiwanese grilled corn, or the simple roasted beet salad this past summer. One of Bryan's recent favorites that we've made numerous times? Pasta Carbonara.

    I must confess I was hoping for an "easy" project when I got an offer from Dailybuzz Food to sample a product from RiceSelect and write a "Worlds of Flavor" blog post about the dinner.

    I thought, "rice will be easy! There will be so many different kinds of Chinese things I can make."

    The catch? They wouldn't tell us what kind of rice we'd get.

    As luck would have it, they sent me brown basmati rice - so very, very, un-Chinese. Completely unfamiliar with this type of rice (I don't think I've ever cooked basmati rice before), I had to do a bit of research.

    I finally settled upon trying to make Chelow Ba Polow Paz, or Persian Saffron Rice, an intensely fragrant rice with a gorgeous crispy crust.
    Untitled
    Prep: The key ingredients are, of course, basmati rice and saffron. I used brown basmati rice because that's what RiceSelect sent me, but normal white basmati works fine. Ideally, soak the rice in salted water for 1-3 hours, or even overnight!UntitledTry to get whole saffron threads, not any sort of ground up powder. You want to finely grind the saffron threads before letting them steep in hot water (clearly something I forgot to do!)  for preferably about 30 minutes.
    Untitled
    Bring a pot of nicely salted water to a rolling boil, and add the basmati rice. Cook for about 7-10 minutes, or until the rice is al dente but not mushy.
    Untitled
    Now we will make the "crust" part (known as tahdig in Persian cooking) separately. Mix about 5-6 tablespoons of the parboiled rice and stir together with a portion of the saffron water, a small individual-sized carton (about ½ cup) of plain yogurt (I used Greek yogurt), and optionally 1 egg.

    After adding some water and oil (or butter) to the pot, Line the bottom of the pot with the yogurt-mixed rice. Add the rest of the parboiled rice on top (forming sort of a pyramid), and poke some holes to allow the water from below to steam up.

    Cook on high heat for 7-10 minutes (you're forming the crust here!).
    Persian Saffron Rice "Cake"
    Then lower the heat to a simmer and cook, covered with a towel-covered lid,  for about 30-60 minutes  until the rice is done.
    Persian Saffron Rice "Cake"
    The crust may be a bit stuck to the edge, so I got my trusty flexible spatula (seriously, a life saver here!), which did a beautiful job of separating the rice "cake" from the pot.
    Persian Saffron Rice "Cake"
    Carefully flip . . .
    Persian Saffron Rice "Cake"
    And voila! Isn't that a gorgeous crust?
    Persian Saffron Rice "Cake"
    It was very crispy, and had lovely saffron notes. I sort of wished it were a bit more salty, which of course is easily remedied after the fact. I also wonder how this would have tasted had I boiled the rice in chicken stock instead, which is how I usually make my easy saffron rice in a rice cooker (which is actually quite tasty!).

    Nevertheless, I couldn't stop eating that addictive crust. It's really fun to crunch on!

    Persian Saffron Rice
    2 cups basmati rice
    1 6-oz individual sized cup of plain yogurt (or about 3-4 tablespoons)
    1 egg (optional)
    1 teaspoon saffron threads
    1 tablespoon vegetable oil or butter
    salt

    Prep
    Soak the rice in ~ 6 cups of water for at least 1 hour, but preferably 3 hours. Grind up saffron threads into a fine powder (you can use a mortar and pestle, or just use your fingers and try to crush it as much as possible). Let the powder steep in about ¼ cup hot water for at least 30 minutes.

    Cook
    Parboil the rice for about 10 minutes, drain water and set aside. Take about 5-6 tablespoons of the parboiled rice and mix it with the yogurt, egg, and half of the saffron water.

    Using a heavy pot (I used my Le Creuset cast iron Dutch oven), dd enough water just to coat the bottom of the pot. Add about an equal amount of vegetable oil. Line the bottom of the pot with the yogurt mixed rice. Without disturbing anything, pile the rest of the cooked rice on top. Using the back of a wooden spoon, poke several holes into the rice pile in order to allow water to steam through.

    Cover and heat on high for 5-8 minutes. Lower the heat to a simmer and cook for about an hour (or until the rice is done) with the cover of the pot wrapped in a towel.

    When finished, add remaining saffron water to the pot, cover, and let cool for 10 minutes. Use a flexible spatula to try to loosen the crust from the pot. Flip around onto a plate, and serve!

    Enjoy!
    Persian Saffron Rice "Cake"

    This post is brought to you by Rice Select.

    ©2009-2014 Tiny Urban Kitchen
    All Rights Reserved

    More Recipe

    • Healthy Quinoa Crackers
    • Miso Eggplant
      Miso Glazed Eggplant -Nasu Dendaku
    • Okra with Chicken
      Pan Charred Okra Stir Fry
    • Taiwanese Pork Stuffed Bitter Melon

    Recent Posts

    • Planque London: Tasting the Unexpected July 4, 2025
    • Sunday Brunch at Bala Baya London July 1, 2025
    • Ta Vie Hong Kong 旅 (3 Michelin Stars) June 27, 2025
    • Pleka IFC Hong Kong - Italian Japanese fusion June 24, 2025
    • Weekend Trip to Nanjing China June 20, 2025
    • Po Toi Island and Stanley Hong Kong June 17, 2025
    • Wakaran Wan Chai June 15, 2025
    • Godenya Hong Kong (revisited) June 12, 2025
    Jennifer Che Tiny Urban Kitchen

    Hi, my name's Jen and welcome to my cooking, eating, and travel site! I am an expat who moved from Boston to Hong Kong 5 years ago. Born and raised in Ohio to Taiwanese immigrant parents, I am a chemistry nerd, patent attorney by day, blogger by night, church musician on weekends, and food enthusiast always. Feel free to explore away, maybe starting with the Recipe Index or one of the travel pages! I hope you enjoy this site!

    More about me →

    logo
    Food Advertisements by

    Explore

    • Recipe
    • Restaurant
    • US Travel
    • World Travel

    Popular Posts

    • Ciccio Yountville California
      Ciccio Yountville
    • Charter Oak St. Helena Napa Valley California
      Charter Oak St. Helena Napa Valley California
    • Cole’s Chop House Napa California
      Cole's Chop House Napa California
    • Compline Restaurant Napa California
      Compline Restaurant + Wine Shop Napa

    Recipes

    • Appetizer
    • Snacks
    • Meat
    • Vegetables
    • Soup
    • Salad
    • Seafood
    • Noodles

    Recently Traveled

    • Hong Kong
    • France
    • Belgium
    • Boston
    • California
    • United Kingdom
    • Germany
    • Spain

    Support Us

    Support Tiny Urban Kitchen by making purchases on Amazon through our affiliate link:

    Recognition


    Featured on the front page
    of the FOOD Section: 2015

    Best Food Blog Awards:
    Restaurant & Dining 2012

    Footer

    ↑ back to top

    About

    • About Me
    • My Equipment
    • In the Press
    • Project Food Blog
    • Privacy Policy

    Eating Guides!

    Eating & Travel Guides
    Trip Reports
    "Kawaii" (Cute Foods)
    Around the World

    • Pinterest
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Twitter
    • LinkedIn
    • YouTube
    • Mail
    • RSS Feed

    As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

    Shop at Amazon

    Copyright © 2024 Tiny Urban Kitchen