Jeweled Saffron Four Fruit Rice

Jeweled Saffron Four Fruit Rice

Orange & Saffron fragrant fruit rice

This week we travel to Tehran to visit chef Katayoun Amidi of the very popular Instagram page Katbanou's Kitchen to learn about her original and creative Persian style Jeweled Orange Saffron Four Rice masterpiece with crispy rice "Tahdig."

"My Four fruits rice with orange saffron chicken was a personal inspiration and a tribute to the richness and colorfulness of Persian Cuisine. It’s a voyage of taste with an essence of traditional ingredients such as saffron and rosewater accompanied with mystical perfumes of freshly selected dried fruits. This combination of fruits and spices glides you through a beautiful journey across different regions of Iran. This dish will glitter as a colorful painting on a table and will become the main attraction of your serving." - Katayoun Amidi.

Chef Katayoun Amidi

Instagram: @Katbanou.Kitchen

Ingredients

Fruit Mixture:
  • 125 grams of almond flakes
  • 125 grams of dried cranberries
  • 125 grams barberries
  • 450 grams of dried apricots
  • 2 teaspoons oil
  • 3 tablespoons honey
  • 3 tablespoons of sour orange juice
  • 225 ml of orange juice
  • 1 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1 teaspoon ground coriander seeds
  • 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1/3 teaspoon ground cardamom
  • 1 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon ground Saffron
  • 1 tablespoon rosewater
  • 1 tablespoon orange blossom water
  • The Rice:
  • Rice 5 cups or 600 grams
  • Salt as much as you desire
Crispy Rice
  • 4 tablespoons yogurt
  • 3 tablespoons oil
  • 3 tablespoons hot water
  • 1 teaspoon ground saffron
Orange and Saffron Chicken
  • 2 medium onions
  • 2 garlic cloves
  • 2 tablespoon of butter
  • 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
  • 1 teaspoon onion powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
  • Salt and pepper as you desire
  • 1/2 teaspoon cumin
  • 1 teaspoon turmeric
  • 12 pieces of chicken fillets
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground Saffron
  • 350 ml of orange juice
  • 3 tablespoon lemon juice

Directions

  • In a large skillet add the almond flakes over medium heat until they are golden and aromatic. Start with firmer ingredients and slowly shift towards soft ones.
  • After the almond flakes are a bit roasted add the bite-size dried apricots.
  • Cook over medium heat for five minutes stirring occasionally.
  • Now it’s time to add the cranberries and once again we give it a gentle stir for 2 to 3 minutes. Drizzle some vegetable oil as needed. Sauté for about 5 min until everything combines.
  • We shall now start to add the wet ingredients. First, create a well at the center of the mixture in order to drizzle the honey. Quickly after pouring some sour orange juice, and bring it to boil. Follow this step by adding some orange juice and stir for a few seconds and bring it to simmer.
  • At this stage add all the spices: Black pepper, ground coriander seeds, cinnamon powder, cardamom, and cumin.
  • Give it a stir for 1 min on medium heat and finally add some salt.
  • For more flavor and color add some ground saffron. Mix well!
  • We finish this process by adding barberries, orange blossom water and rosewater that shouldn’t be cooked for more than 30 sec. This will give the mixture a traditional texture and rich scent.
The Chicken
  • Start by dicing the onions very fine and delicately as well as our garlic cloves.
  • In a medium skillet fry the onions until they are light, then add the garlic and sauté for few seconds.
  • Follow these steps by adding some garlic powder and onion powder as desired. Then the turmeric powder, some cumin, and black pepper.
  • Now it is time to add our chicken fillets on top of the sautéed onions. Season with salt and pepper.
  • While cooking the chicken, add some ground saffron and cover the chicken with orange juice and pour some fresh lemon juice.
  • Cover with lid and let it cook for 35 minutes or until the chicken is tender and the sauce is thickened.
The Rice
  • In a large non-stick pot, bring water to boil on high heat. Once the water is brought to boil, add the rice and cook it for 10 min (depending on the quality of your rice). Now taste a few grains and if softened and al dente, it is ready. Drain the rice in a large colander.
  • For the famous Persian Tahdig (crispy rice), mix some hot water with a few tablespoons of full-fat yogurt and drizzle of vegetable oil. Once again add some ground saffron and whisk until the mixture is even and smooth.
  • To this mixture, we add some cooked rice and stir it all together to obtain yellowish rice. Spread it evenly at the bottom of the pot.
  • Now add 1 layer of white rice on top of the yogurt saffron rice mixture.
  • Then add a layer of dried fruits mixture then continue this process until we reach the top of our pot. Add some vegetable oil or butter as you wish on top and cook it for 45 min on medium heat.
  • Hopefully, you and your guests will enjoy this aromatic and colorful Persian dish.

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