Pelow Shirin - Festive Persian Rice Dish

Time

Prep 30 min · Cook 90 min · 120 min total

Difficulty

medium

1. 1

   For candied orange peel:. Coarsely grate orange peels and put in a small saucepan. Cover with 1 liter water and bring to a boil, then drain and repeat this process (to reduce the bitterness).

2. 2

   Cover peels with the sugar and add 1 L water. Bring to a boil and then simmer, stirring. After 15 minutes, taste it. It should be very sweet syrup. If it's not, add sugar. If it's too thick, add some water.

   15 min
3. 3

   Simmer until rind looks translucent around the edges and is swimming in sugary syrup. For roasted chicken:.

4. 4

   Put whole chicken into an oven roasting dish and drown in the orange concentrate and pats of margarine.

5. 5

   Cover and roast in 375°F oven until cooked (approx 1 1/2 hours). When it is done, let it cool slightly in the covered pot until you can safely peel off the skin and cut into bit-sized pieces.

   120 min
6. 6

   Drown the pieces in the chicken's sauce until it is time to serve. For carrot mixture:. Heat 50g margarine and oil in frying pan and sauté the carrots for 5 minutes.

   5 min
7. 7

   Add the cinnamon, then add any of the optional dried fruits or nuts and cover and simmer a few minutes longer, until everything has softened.

8. 8

   Add the candied orange peel with its syrup. For rice:. Rinse rice until no longer starchy (water should be clear, not milky).

9. 9

   Boil rice with 4 cups water and 1/2 tsp salt, then simmer for 7 minutes. Do not remove the lid, rather leave the rice to cook in the steam for 1/2 hour.

10. 10

    Putting it all together:. Drain carrot-orange mixture, keeping syrup to be drizzled on according to taste.

11. 11

    Add the carrots and chicken pieces to the rice and serve.

Notes and swaps

Allergens

Not assessed yet. Check each ingredient if you have an allergy.