Loobia Polo (Persian Beef and Green Bean Rice)

Method12 steps · about 2 hr 15 min

1. 1

   Step 1: Rinse the dry basmati rice (3 cups) in cold clean water and drain, repeating until the water runs clear. Cover it with fresh cold water and soak for at least 30 minutes. While it soaks, prepare the saffron and sauce in steps 2–6.

   Soak basmati rice for at least 30 minutes · 30 minUses 3 cups dry basmati rice · Cold clean water, enough to rinse and soak rice and rinse the emptied pot

2. 2

   Step 2: Stir the ground saffron into ¼ cup of the divided water (¼ cup) and leave it to bloom while the rice soaks. Reserve the saffron water for the sauce and tahdig.

   Uses ⅛ teaspoon saffron threads, ground · ¼ cup water for blooming saffron

3. 3

   Step 3: Heat the olive oil (2 tablespoons) in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the diced onion (1 large) and sauté until golden, about 5 minutes.

   Sauté onion until golden · 5 minUses 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil · 1 large onion, finely diced

4. 4

   Step 4: Stir the minced garlic (2) into the onion and oil from step 3, then add the ground beef (1 pound). Break it apart as it cooks and continue until browned.

   Uses Sautéed onion and olive oil · 2 garlic cloves, minced · 1 pound ground beef

5. 5

   Step 5: Stir the turmeric (1 teaspoon) and ground cinnamon (1 teaspoon) into the browned beef mixture from step 4, then stir in the tomato paste (1 tablespoon). Add the green beans (1 pound), cinnamon stick (1 medium) and remaining 1½ cups sauce water. Season with 1 teaspoon of the divided salt (1 teaspoon), the measured black pepper (½ teaspoon) and lemon (½) juice. Stir in half of the bloomed saffron water from step 2.

   Uses Browned beef, onion, garlic and oil · 1 teaspoon ground turmeric · 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon · 1 tablespoon tomato paste · 1 pound green beans, trimmed and cut into ½-inch pieces · 1 medium cinnamon stick · Remaining 1½ cups water for sauce · 1 teaspoon kosher salt for sauce

6. 6

   Step 6: Lower the heat and simmer the beef-and-bean mixture from step 5, stirring regularly, for about 20 minutes until the beans are tender and most of the water has evaporated, leaving very little sauce. The ground beef must be fully cooked to 71°C (160°F). Turn off the heat, taste and add the optional extra salt or pepper only if needed.

   Reduce beef and green-bean sauce · 20 minUses Beef, beans, seasonings and sauce liquid · Additional kosher salt, only if needed after tasting the sauce · Additional black pepper, only if needed after tasting the sauce

7. 7

   Step 7: Bring 8 cups fresh parboiling water and the remaining 3 teaspoons of the divided salt to a boil in a large nonstick pot. Drain the soaked rice from step 1 and discard its soaking water, then add the rice to the boiling pot. Check from 5 minutes; the usual guide is 5–7 minutes, until the grains are softened outside but still firm in the center. Drain and discard the cooking water, set the rice aside and rinse the emptied pot with clean water.

   Check parboiled rice from 5 minutes · 5 minUses Soaked rice drained from its soaking water · 8 cups fresh water for parboiling rice · Remaining 3 teaspoons kosher salt for parboiling water · Clean water to rinse the emptied pot

8. 8

   Step 8: Measure 1½ cups of the drained parboiled rice from step 7 into a bowl and mix it with the remaining half of the saffron water from step 2. Pour the neutral oil (3 tablespoons) into the rinsed pot, leaving it off the heat. Spread the saffron rice evenly over the bottom with the back of a spoon.

   Uses 1½ cups drained parboiled rice · Remaining ½ saffron water for tahdig · 3 tablespoons neutral oil for tahdig

9. 9

   Step 9: Above the saffron-rice and oil base from step 8, alternate layers of the remaining drained rice from step 7 and the cooked beef-and-bean mixture from step 6. Build a mound away from the pot sides. Use a spoon handle to make five holes through the rice down to the bottom for steam circulation.

   Uses Saffron-rice and oil tahdig base · Parboiled rice remaining after the 1½-cup tahdig draw · Reduced beef-and-green-bean mixture

10. 10

    Step 10: Cover the assembled rice pot from step 9 and turn the heat to high. Watch closely; as soon as steam rises, reduce the heat to low, usually after about 5 minutes. Avoid burning the tahdig while waiting for the steam.

    Uses Assembled rice, beef, beans and tahdig pot

11. 11

    Step 11: Wrap a clean tea towel around the lid and secure its ends above the pot, clear of the heat. Cover the steaming pot from step 10 again and cook for 1 hour over low heat, allowing the rice to finish steaming and the tahdig to crisp.

    Steam layered rice over low heat · 60 minUses Steaming layered rice pot

12. 12

    Step 12: Remove the lid from the finished pot in step 11. Remove and discard the cinnamon stick, gently fluff and mix the rice, then spoon it onto a serving dish. Carefully loosen and lift the crispy tahdig with a spatula and serve it separately or in pieces around the rice.

    Uses Cooked rice, beef, beans and tahdig, excluding the cinnamon stick after removal