A Persian Feast
Thursday, December 1, 2011 at 1:00AM 
Not every home cooked meal has to be eaten in our own home. Last night we went to our friend’s apartment for a Persian Feast. Her apartment is no ordinary place; rather it’s perched on a high floor of a skyscraper with spectacular views of the ocean, mountains and downtown city lights of Los Angeles.
Sweet spices, fragrant rice and roasted meats wafted down the elevator shaft for a delicious welcome long before we arrived on her floor. Persian meals are well-balanced affairs with salad, vegetables, piles of fresh herbs, pickles, walnuts, feta cheese and of course the famous rice dishes.
The boys love Persian food as it’s been part of their diets since we moved to Los Angeles. Their favorite Persian dish, at the moment, is Tahdig. Tahdig, the crispy rice rescued from the bottom of the pot, is the star of the show. It’s one of those dishes that looks easy on paper, but is difficult to master. The good news is, unless you really scorch the rice, it will still be delicious. They say good tahdig is a journey, so please enjoy this new challenging way to cook rice.
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Crispy Persian Rice (Tahdig)
1 cup basmati rice
1 tablespoon sea salt
¼ cup vegetable oil or butter
Pinch of tumeric
Rinse rice until water runs clear.
In a large saucepan over high heat, bring 6 cups water and salt to a boil. Stir in rice and boil for 10 minutes. Drain and rinse rice in a colander.
In a large nonstick saucepan, coat the bottom with oil or butter or a combination of each. Add rice and tumeric. Cover pan with a kitchen towel and lid. Fold edges of the towel over the lid and cook on low heat until crust has formed, about 30 to 40 minutes.
Spoon rice onto a serving platter. Dip pan into a bowl of cold water to loosen the crust at the bottom of the pan. Using a spatula, remove the tadig and place on top of the rice.
Makes 4 servings
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