Sohla El-Waylly has found the turkey recipe she plans to use for the rest of her life

Zhaleh’s Classic Saffron-Stained Tahdig

Serves 4 - 6

Prep Time: 30 minutes • Cooking Time: 1 hour • Total Time: 1 ½ hrs

Tahdig is the crunchy layer you end up with at the bottom of the pot when steaming basmati rice. Sometimes the pot is lined with potatoes or bread, but this is my favorite version, where the rice itself turns into a caramelized and crackly cake. The rice goes through two cooking steps here: First we boil it in lots of salted water until it’s al dente— mostly tender with a bite left at the core. Next, some of the rice is mixed with yogurt, egg, and fat and spread onto the bottom of the pot. The remaining rice is piled on top, and the pot is placed onto super- low heat, crisping the bottom while steaming the rice on top. This is how you get the fluffiest, longest grains of basmati rice with a crunchy tahdig underneath.

Ingredients 

• 2 1/2 cups aged extra- long basmati rice, preferably sella rice
• 3/4 cup plus 1/2 teaspoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt
• A big pinch of saffron threads
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1 large egg yolk
• 2 tablespoons whole-milk Greek yogurt
• 6 tablespoons malted ghee, clarified butter, or neutral oil
• 1/3 cup dried barberries, currants, or cranberries

Instructions

1. Rinse and soak the rice: Place the rice in a medium bowl. Cover with cool tap water, use your hand to gently agitate the grains, and drain. Repeat at least two more times until the water runs clear enough to see your hand through it. Cover with cool tap water and soak for at least 15 minutes and up to 2 hours.

2. Parboil the rice: In a large nonstick pot, bring 3 quarts water and 3/4 cup of the salt to a rapid boil over high heat. Add the drained rice all at once to the boiling salted water. Initially the water will stop boiling and the rice will sink to the bottom. Stir a few times with a wooden spoon to prevent sticking, then stop stirring. After a couple of minutes, the water will return to a simmer and a few grains will begin appearing near the surface. The rice is ready to drain when the grains have nearly doubled in size, the water returns to a boil, and most of the rice rapidly bubbles to the surface. When you bite into a grain, you want to see a small white core; just like pasta cooked al dente, the grains should remain firm. Depending on the quality of your rice, this can take anywhere from 3 to 7 minutes, so begin tasting the grains early and often. Drain the rice and rinse under cool running water to stop the cooking. Wash and dry the pot. Set aside.

3. The rice can be parboiled in advance and stored in the refrigerator for up to 2 days; just be sure to take the chill off by either letting it sit at room temperature or running it under warm tap water in a colander before proceeding.

4. Mix the tahdig layer: With a small mortar and pestle, grind the saffron threads and sugar into a fine powder. Add 2 tablespoons hot tap water and stir to dissolve to make a saffron tea.

5. In a medium bowl, stir together the egg yolk, yogurt, 1 tablespoon of the saffron tea, 3 tablespoons of the ghee, and the remaining
   1/2 teaspoon salt. Add 11/2 cups of the parboiled basmati rice and gently stir to combine. Spread the rice mixture with the back of a spoon in one even layer in the clean nonstick pot.

6. Assemble: Fold the barberries into the remaining rice. Using a large spoon, mound the remaining rice on top in a small hill, taking care that the rice does not touch the sides of the pot. Using the back of a wooden spoon or a chopstick, make a hole in the center of the mound all the way to just above the tahdig layer. (This helps the steam circulate throughout the rice.) Drizzle on 2 tablespoons hot tap water, the remaining saffron tea, and remaining 3 tablespoons ghee. Wrap the lid of the pot with a clean dish towel so the towel covers the underside of the lid (the side toward the rice), securing the ends of the towel to the lid handle with a rubber band or twine. Cover the pot with the lid.

7. Steam: Place the pot over medium- high heat. Do not open the lid at any point— you need to rely on sound, smell, and time cues from this point forward. Cook until the sides of the pot are very hot to the touch and you can hear simmering inside the pot, about 5 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium- low and cook, undisturbed, until the rice begins to smell toasty (not burnt) and the simmering sounds have subsided, 40 to 45 minutes. (If it’s your first time making this, start checking for audio and olfactory cues after 25 minutes. Timing can vary greatly depending on the thickness of your pot and the strength of your burners.)

8. Now, remove the lid and check for doneness; the rice should be fully cooked and fluffy. Using an offset spatula or fork, lift up the base and take a peek to see if the crust has formed. If it has not, re- cover the pot and continue cooking for another 10 minutes. If it has, remove the pot from the heat and let it rest, covered, for 10 minutes.

9. Open the lid and scoop the rice off the tahdig layer to a serving platter. Loosen the rice crust with an offset spatula and either flip it out onto another plate or break it into large pieces in the pot and place on top of the rice. Serve hot.