By Ismail Vəlizadə
Shah pilaf (traditional Azerbaijani dish)
1 step
Prep:2hCook:4h
A dish worthy of a king - or perhaps simply the main course of a wedding ceremony - shah pilaf (translated as crown pilaf) is a traditional Azerbaijani meal infused with a medley of local aromas. It goes through several stages of preparation before reaching its distinctive final shape.
First, basmati rice is cooked, then placed inside a bowl lined with lavash (a thin and soft wheat-based flatbread). Layers of dried apricots, plums, chestnuts, and raisins are added on top of the rice to create a unique blend of textures and flavors.
For an even more diverse flavor profile, some variations also include lamb or chicken meat dispersed within the layers. The filling is completed by pouring a small amount of saffron water into the bowl, after which it is covered with lavash and baked until golden-brown. Due to the fact that the dish can remain warm for up to several hours, it is a favorite at weddings, dinner parties, and other special occasions.
Updated at: Thu, 17 Aug 2023 03:38:44 GMT
Nutrition balance score
Unbalanced
Glycemic Index
57
Moderate
Glycemic Load
60
High
Nutrition per serving
Calories951.4 kcal (48%)
Total Fat48.9 g (70%)
Carbs104.5 g (40%)
Sugars27.9 g (31%)
Protein32.8 g (66%)
Sodium414.2 mg (21%)
Fiber9.9 g (36%)
% Daily Values based on a 2,000 calorie diet
Ingredients
7 servings
Instructions
Step 1
Recipe: Rince rice thoroughly in water until it becomes completely transparent. In saucepan add rice, pour salted water, add few thyme and coriander and 1/3 of pilaf spices.
Cook until half cooked, approximately 5-8 minutes. Then rinse rice quickly under running water, let it drain well.
Put in the bowl raisins, cranberries and dried apricots pour boiling water for 2-3 minutes, then pour water out and dry dried fruits.
Cut onion into half rings of medium thickness. Clean from meat films and cartilage, if any. Cut into cubes about 2-3 cm.
Dried apricots cut into thick strips, chop garlic cloves with knife.
In a cauldron melt 100 g butter and fry onion until golden-brown, but not too brown.
Remove onion from a cauldron, put meat in the remaining oil and fry over medium-high heat until golden-brown.
Return fried onions to the meat, add dried fruits, chopped garlic, rest of spices, salt, pour in the water and add another 50 g of butter.
Bring contents of the cauldron to a boil and simmer for 10 minutes under closed lid.
Melt rest of butter in a saucepan over low heat. Cut lavash into long strips, approximately 5 cm. (Note! Choose lavash form of rectangular sheets, the longer strips are, the better)
Grease saucepan generously with melted butter, bottom and walls almost to the top. Place a few strips of lavash overlapping, so that they cover bottom and hang off the sides of the saucepan.
Continue in the same way to lay out the strips of lavash, periodically oiling them with melted butter, until the entire bottom and walls of the saucepan are closed.
Put a third of the rice in the resulting «nest» and pour over a little melted butter. Then put half of meat and dried fruits over rice and pour it with meat juice from frying.
Then continue to lay out in layers. Cover the contents of the saucepan with the remaining ends of the lavash, grease surface generously with melted butter.
Close a saucepan with a lid and put into preheated oven, cook at 200 degrees for 1 hour.
Serve hot, cut into portions. Proper Shah pilaf will not be like a pie: rice and meat should spill out of the crispy shell.
Serve with fresh herbs and tomato salad with onions (shakarap salad).
Appetite comes with eating…
Notes
1 liked
0 disliked
There are no notes yet. Be the first to share your experience!
