Rinse the rice in large quantities water, changing it periodically. The last water should be absolutely clear. Soak rice in bottled water for 30 minutes. Then boil 1.5 liters of fresh water, lightly add salt, add rice and cook, removing the foam, until half cooked, 7 minutes.
Prepare the dough for the flatbread. Sift flour with salt, add egg, 1 tbsp. l. water and melted butter. Knead into a smooth elastic dough. Roll it into a thin layer and cover the bottom and walls of the cauldron with it.
Drain the rice in a colander. Melt the butter. Place half the rice on the dough, smooth the surface and pour half the oil on top. Add the remaining rice, pour in the other half of the oil, cover and cook over low heat for 30 minutes. Leave the finished rice in a warm place (wrap it in a blanket).
Boil chestnuts in a small amount of boiling water for 7 minutes. Coarsely chop the onion. Rinse dried fruits in warm water. Squeeze the juice out of the pomegranates. Cut the chicken into small pieces and fry in 2 tbsp. l. ghee over high heat for 5 minutes. Place in a thick-bottomed saucepan. In the skillet where the chicken was fried, fry the onion until soft, 5 minutes. Add onion, pomegranate juice and 1/2 cup boiling water to pan with chicken. Cook covered over low heat for 30 minutes. Add chestnuts and dried fruits, salt, stir and cook for another 10 minutes.
Dissolve saffron in 1 tbsp. l. boiling water Mix with 1 tbsp. l. butter. Remove the finished rice from the cauldron and divide into 2 parts. Pour the saffron mixture into half the rice and stir. Place white and saffron rice in strips on a large shallow dish. Place the chicken with chestnuts and dried fruits in the center or on the side. Serve immediately. Tear the flatbread with your hands and also serve it to the table on a separate dish.
Azerbaijani pilaf is a popular National dish. True, local housewives most often prepare it on holidays. This dish even looks different from the pilaf that many people imagine it to be.
Azerbaijani pilaf with lamb
The main difference between Azerbaijani pilaf and other options is the original technology of its preparation. According to the rules, rice and filling must be made separately. Both parts are connected together only at the time of serving.
Currently, about 40 recipes for this dish are known. The most popular option is the one using lamb meat.
To prepare it you need the following components:
2 cups rice cereal;
35 grams of butter;
0.5 kilograms of fresh lamb;
salt;
1 onion;
pepper;
a little saffron (about 0.25 grams);
¼ teaspoon of cumin.
Pilaf is prepared in stages:
1. The day before, soak the rice in advance. After this, rinse the cereal well, put it in a saucepan, add water, add a little salt and cook until half cooked for about 6-7 minutes. Next, place the rice in a colander and allow all the water to drain.
2. Cook a whole piece of meat until cooked, be sure to add salt, a little pepper and onion to the pan. Cut the slightly cooled lamb into pieces randomly.
3. Pour boiling water (about 20 milliliters) into a glass of saffron and let it brew thoroughly.
4. To prevent the dish from sticking to the cauldron, local housewives use “kazmag”. It is usually placed at the bottom of the container. You can use regular thick dough or a piece of lavash as kazmag. This recipe uses fresh potatoes. It needs to be peeled and cut into slices no more than 5 millimeters thick.
5. Put the cauldron on fire.
6. Place oil on the bottom. It should warm up well.
7. Line the bottom with potato pieces and add salt. You can move the pieces a little so that they don’t stick right away.
8. Sprinkle some of the rice on top in a 1-centimeter layer.
9. Distribute pieces of meat on it.
10. Cover the food with the remaining rice and pour saffron infusion over it.
11. Simmer covered over low heat for 40 minutes. To prevent condensation from getting inside, it is better to wrap the lid with cloth.
12. Pour melted butter over the dish and simmer for another 10 minutes.
Rice is laid out first on the dish, and juicy, aromatic meat is poured on top of it.
How to cook with chicken
Using a similar technology, you can also prepare Azerbaijani pilaf with poultry meat.
You will need few ingredients for this:
Part of a chicken carcass (about 800 grams);
3 cups long grain rice;
2 tablespoons each butter and olive oil;
0.5 teaspoon dried saffron.
The whole process consists of several stages:
1. Soak the rice in cold salted water for 40 minutes.
2. Pour boiling water over the saffron.
3. Cut the carcass into portions.
4. Fry them on all sides over medium heat with olive oil.
5. Rinse the rice and add water again in a ratio of 1 liter to 1 glass.
6. Cook it until al dente, and then strain it in a colander.
7. Place rice on top of the fried chicken and pour saffron over it.
8. Simmer for 25 minutes over low heat, placing a towel under the lid.
9. Add butter. Continue simmering for about another half hour.
Traditionally, such pilaf is usually placed on a large oval-shaped plate. It looks very beautiful on the table.
With dried fruits and meat
Classic pilaf in Azerbaijan is a dish in which, in addition to rice and meat, they put a lot of onions and fruits. It tastes significantly different from other options. The meat becomes more tender and acquires an unusual fruity aroma, and the rice, in turn, acquires a delicate creamy taste.
The list of products you will need is quite large:
1 kilogram of lamb;
150 grams of butter;
7 onions;
4 potatoes;
100 grams of raisins and dried apricots;
1 bunch of cilantro and parsley;
2 cups long grain rice;
½ teaspoon each of dried thyme and turmeric;
salt;
pepper;
1 tablespoon sumac.
To prepare real Azerbaijani pilaf with dried fruits and meat, you need:
1. Rinse the rice thoroughly, then add water and cook al dente. This will take 10 minutes.
2. Place the cooked rice in a sieve and wash with cold water.
3. Peel the potatoes and cut into slices.
4. Place a little butter on the bottom of a deep saucepan and melt it.
5. Line the bottom with potato pieces.
6. Cover them with rice on top, pour the remaining oil and sprinkle with turmeric.
7. Place the pan in the oven, preheated to 180 degrees, for one hour.
8. Cut the meat into pieces. First fry them in a frying pan and then put them in a cauldron.
9. Add chopped onion into half rings, chopped herbs and spices.
10. Pour water over it all and simmer for 40 minutes.
11. Pour boiling water over dried fruits and let stand for 10 minutes. Transfer the processed products into a cauldron and simmer everything over low heat for another half hour.
12. Add salt, a little pepper and turn off the heat. Let the meat stand in this position for about 15 minutes.
When serving, rice is first placed on a plate, and a complex filling is placed on top of it. You can put a couple of pieces of potatoes nearby.
Shah-pilaf in Azerbaijani style
For the most dear guests, local housewives prepare a special dish.
“Azerbaijani-style Shah-pilaf” is a dish prepared in the form of a dome with a crispy crust and a classic puff filling of meat, rice and dried fruits.
To make such a work of culinary art, you will need:
0.4 kilograms of long grain rice;
0.6 kilograms of lamb;
1 package of pita bread (2 sheets);
2 onions;
4 cloves of garlic;
70 grams of butter and the same amount of raisins;
100 grams of dried apricots;
spices (salt, cumin, paprika, pepper, barberry and turmeric).
Prepare pilaf step by step:
1. Place the washed rice in a cauldron mixed with thin pieces of butter. Sprinkle it with turmeric, salt, add water (1:2) and cook until tender.
2. Cut the meat into small pieces and lightly fry them in vegetable oil in a frying pan.
3. Add diced onions. Fry for another 6-7 minutes.
4. Pour boiling water over raisins and dried apricots for just 5 minutes. After this, they need to be squeezed out, crumbled randomly and added to the meat.
5. Add all the prepared spices here, mix and fry for a couple more minutes.
6. Add garlic cut into small pieces and immediately remove the pan from the heat.
7. Cut the pita bread into strips 5 centimeters wide.
8. Line the inside of the cauldron with them like a fan so that the pieces of strips hang out.
9. Place some rice on the bottom.
10. Cover it with a small amount of meat.
11. Continue adding layers. Until all the products are gone.
12. Cover the filling with the hanging ends of the pita bread.
13. Place the cauldron in the oven and bake for 40 minutes at 180 degrees.
After this, all you have to do is put the finished pilaf on a dish, cutting it into pieces like a cake.
Beef recipe
You can also prepare Azerbaijani pilaf with beef.
To do this, you can use the following set of ingredients:
600 grams of beef tenderloin;
1 thin pita bread;
2.5 cups rice;
2 onions;
120 grams of butter;
a pinch of ground cloves;
a little cinnamon.
Pilaf preparation technology:
1. Chop the peeled onion into cubes. Fry them in oil with the addition of cinnamon and cloves.
2. Roughly cut the meat into pieces. Fry them also in oil in another frying pan.
3. Place the processed meat into a saucepan.
4. Cover it with fragrant fried onions.
5. Pour water (750 milliliters) over the food, add salt and simmer until the meat is soft enough.
6. Cook the rice a little in salted water. Then it should be rinsed well and strained.
7. Line the inside of the cauldron with lavash.
8. Pour rice on top, pour oil over it and cook until done.
When serving, rice is first poured onto the dish in a heap, and then the meat is placed on it. The finished dish can be poured with the juice that remains after stewing.
Cooking with milk
Sometimes Azerbaijani pilaf is prepared with the addition of milk. This option will definitely appeal to those who don’t eat meat at all.
To work you will need:
0.5 cups rice (round grain);
250 milliliters of milk;
70 grams of butter;
400 milliliters of boiled water;
1 pita bread;
60 grams of raisins;
½ teaspoon of saffron tincture.
In this case, the cooking method will be different:
1. Pour milk and water into a saucepan and heat (but do not boil).
2. Add rice and salt there. Cook until the cereal is ready.
3. Then rinse the rice with hot water, strain and pour it onto a towel to dry for 15 minutes.
4. Soak raisins in boiling water.
5. Treat the inside of the cauldron with oil and cover with lavash.
6. Pour dried rice with raisins into it. Simmer the food covered over low heat for at least 30 minutes.
Pour hot oil mixed with saffron tincture over the finished pilaf in a plate.
Azerbaijani khan pilaf
“Khan-pilaf” is also found in Azerbaijani cuisine. This is one of the options for a popular dish. It is very reminiscent of “check pilaf”. True, instead of thin lavash, dough (“kazmag”) is used, which forms a crust and prevents the filling from burning.
For this recipe you will need:
400 grams of long grain rice;
For Kazmag:
0.5 kilograms of wheat flour;
150 milliliters of water;
220 grams of melted butter;
10 grams of table salt.
For filling:
0.5 kilograms ground beef;
15 dates and the same amount of dried apricots;
20 chestnuts;
250 grams of onions;
1 handful of raisins (preferably raisins).
To prepare khan pilaf in Azerbaijani style, you need to follow these steps:
1. First make kazmag. To do this, collect all the products in one container and mix thoroughly. Roll out the finished dough into a layer 3 millimeters thick.
2. Coat the inside of a deep pan with oil. You can add some sesame seeds for flavor.
3. Line the pan with dough so that there are no gaps.
4. Combine the minced meat with chopped onion, add a little pepper, salt and mix.
5. Place the mixture in a frying pan and simmer for 45 minutes over medium heat, adding half a glass of water.
6. As soon as all the moisture has evaporated, add oil and start frying.
7. Add washed dried fruits and keep on low heat for no more than 10 minutes.
8. Now you can start assembling the pilaf. First, you need to pour rice into the bottom of the pan. The thickness of this standing should be no more than 3 centimeters.
9. Place a little fry on top of it.
10. Repeat layers several times. Rice should end up on top. It must be poured with oil and saffron tincture.
11. Add a little water (70-80 milliliters) and fold the edges of the dough. The result was a kind of pie.
12. Bake it for 2 hours in the oven at 160 degrees.
This dish looks very festive on the table. Cut it very carefully, since the pilaf inside still remains crumbly.
Azerbaijani pilaf, with chicken
Azerbaijani pilaf with chicken is good to cook the whole company: one will do rice, the second will do chicken, the third will do dough, there is a lesson for others. And it will take less time, and the pilaf will seem even tastier to everyone.
Ingredients
1 chicken weighing 1.3-1.5 kg
2 large grenades
500 g dried fruits (figs, dried apricots, raisins)
500 g peeled chestnuts
4 medium onions
melted butter
for cooking rice:
2 cups long grain rice
190 g butter
pinch of saffron
salt to taste
for dough (flatbread):
1.5 cups flour
1 egg
half tbsp. spoons of butter
half a teaspoon of salt
Cooking method
The rice must be washed until completely transparent, and then soaked for another half hour in clean (not tap) water. Then put the cereal in 1.5 liters of salted boiling water and after boiling, cook for 7 minutes, i.e. until half cooked.
Preparing the dough for the flatbread. Pour fine salt into the flour, sift it together into a bowl, add the egg, warm melted butter (more than half a tablespoon), add 1 tbsp. spoon of water and knead the dough. After letting it sit for a while, we roll it into a flat cake of such a size that there is enough for both the bottom and the walls of the cauldron. We fix the cake in it.
Melt 150 g butter.
Place the cooked rice in a sieve or colander. Place half the rice on a flatbread in a cauldron and pour half the melted butter. Place the second portion of rice and pour in the remaining oil.
Place the cauldron on low heat and keep it covered for about 30 minutes. When the rice is ready, remove from the heat and wrap it warmly to keep it warm.
While the rice is cooking, we have time to boil the chestnuts: to do this, they just need to simmer for 7 minutes in a small amount of water.
Wash dried fruits in warm water.
Finely chop the onion.
We squeeze the juice out of the pomegranates, which is easier to do if you crush and mash them with your hands on the table, and then remove a piece of peel from the top and drain the juice.
Cut the washed and dried chicken into small pieces. Heat the melted butter in a frying pan and quickly fry the chicken for 5 minutes, stirring and turning the pieces. Place in a thick-walled pan.
Fry the onion in the same oil for 5 minutes, add it to the pan with the chicken, pour in the squeezed pomegranate juice and half a glass of boiling water. When it boils, cover with a lid, reduce the heat to low and leave to simmer for 30 minutes.
Then put chestnuts and dried fruits into the pan, add salt, mix and leave for another 10-12 minutes.
Place the finished rice from the cauldron into two bowls. In one we pour dissolved in Art. spoon of boiling water saffron, stir.
Place the rice beautifully on a large dish, alternating yellow and white. On rice - stewed chicken with dried fruits.
We cut the fragrant flatbread or simply tear it with our hands - and it’s time for the whole honest company to sit down at the table and evaluate the results of their work.
To prepare pilaf with chicken, kazmag and dried fruits According to the recipe of Azerbaijani cuisine, pour the washed rice into boiling salted water and boil until half cooked. When the rice is cooked, place it in a sieve and let the water drain.
Break the chicken into portions. Cut the onion into half rings and lightly fry in butter. Place the chopped chicken on the onion, add salt and pepper and fry over medium heat until cooked.
In a separate frying pan, fry the dried fruits in butter. Dried fruits must be fried over very low heat, stirring occasionally, so as not to burn.
While the rice is cooking, you need to prepare the kazmag. Lightly beat the eggs with water, salt and melted butter. Add flour little by little and knead the dough. Roll out the prepared dough into a layer of 1-1.5 mm. Heat the frying pan, grease well butter, post kazmag.
Grease the kazmag with oil and place some of the rice on top, sprinkle with melted butter and saffron diluted in it, and cover with the rest of the rice. Drizzle the remaining saffron oil on top of the rice. Cover the roasting pan tightly with a lid and place over low heat or a divider until the liquid has completely evaporated (15-20 minutes). When the rice is completely cooked, you can assemble it. Place rice on a large plate or tray, place fried dried fruits around it, cut the kazmag into segments or diamonds and also place on the rice. Also beautifully place pieces of chicken with onions on rice and serve. In addition to dried apricots and raisins, you can add dates and chestnuts to this pilaf, and the taste of the meat can be complemented by adding sumac.
