Berenj Sefid.........White Rice + Tah-e-Dig

This is a tribute to my mother in law Victoria, a true masterchef and my mother Helga, comfort food specialist. Included are all the recipes they prepared, some original recipes from professional chefs, my own creations/favorites, and several entries on knowledge I collected over the years about health/nutrition/medical conditions/home remedies. You will find answers to every common health issue browsing through my collection.

subheading: TAH-E-DIG Types:

PLAIN WHITE Rice set aside 1 cup of half-cooked white rice (before mixing rest with ingredients for polo)

POTATO "thick slices" + set aside ½ cup of half-cooked white rice (before mixing rest with ingredients for polo)

BREAD Pita

RICE CAKE "mix with fork" 2 cups half-cooked white rice + 1 raw egg + little Saffron

subheading: ZAFFRON - general use:

very bitter. never use more than half teaspoon

place in mortar + add few sprinkles of sugar or salt + crush to powder with pestle

pour just couple of tablespoons of boiling water to mix, then add to just about any recipe, not only rice.

subheading: ZAFFRON - TAH-E-DIG + RICE:

add ½ cup boiling water + ½ cup oil + Saffron water (see above general instructions)

mix a little of that Saffron water (1 to 4 Tbs) with 2 cups of half-cooked rice for the Tah-e-Dig

about 15 min into the "steaming process", gently pour remaining Saffron water over steaming rice pyramide

subheading: R I C E Preparation STEP 1:

uncooked Rice portion per person = 100 gr (PLAIN Rice recipe) 50 to 80 gr (MIXED Rice recipe)

in addition ALWAYS add about 100 gr uncooked Rice just for the Tah-e-dig

wash rice in pot + rinse 3 to 5 times until water you rinse is no longer cloudy (removes dirt + starch, makes it easier to digest)

then cover rice with plenty of water + add plenty salt (easily 1 to 3 tablespoons, don't worry, later rinsing will remove access salt) + add few drops oil (prevents boiling over)

(if you want a YELLOW RICE base, simply add 2 to 4 Tsp Turmeric to the water + mix well)

bring to BOIL + then REDUCE to MEDIUM for 10 to 15 min (rice should have softened, but not be fully cooked)

drain in colander (This is the B A S E from where you continue any rice recipe)

(NO NEED to rinse this half-cooked rice, ONLY DRAIN, UNLESS it is too salty. Rinsing this half-cooked rice once, or as needed to achieve proper salt level, will solve the problem of "over-salting")

for any POLO /RICE recipe other than White Rice, set aside 1 to 2 cups of this half-cooked rice (you will use it for the plain tah-e-dig or as base "cushion" between Potato/Pita tah-e-dig and any Polo mixture on top). Why?......Rice mixtures burn easily (the herbs/vegetables) and make the tah-e-dig black (bitter+cancerous). That small portion of white half-cooked rice will create the nice and crunchy tah-e-dig without burning.

if you want a YELLOW RICE base, simply add 2 to 4 Tsp Turmeric to the boiling water

subheading: TAH-E-DIG Preparation + Rice Steaming STEP 2 :

always prepare about a small glass of rice (1 to 2 cups, as described above) extra just for the tah-e-dig

place good amount of oil in pot + add salt + Turmeric + wait until SIZZLING HOT

add enough Tah-e-Dig ingredient to nicely cover bottom of pot

then add the rice dish (any polo mixture) or just the remaining half-cooked rice in the colander

with serving spoon sort of create a pyramid (press rice into pointy mountain) + with handle end of spoon poke 10 to 12 holes all the way to the bottom of the pot into the rice mound. (that technique allows the rice to steam better).

place lid in slanted position to allow steam to escape + LOWER the HEAT to SMALL.......for an EVEN BETTER, SUPERB TAH-E-DIG: place a towel over pot - under slanted lid. (It truly makes a big difference, just the right amount of humidity gets "captured + recirculated" to achieve unbelievable "fluffy rice + crispy tah-e-dig) (you could technically leave the rice on the lowest setting for many hours, the longer it "simmers" the better the tah-e-dig).............JUST DON'T LEAVE THE HOUSE.........the towel could catch fire

rice needs to steam at least 30 to 40 min, but the longer you let the rice steam, the better the Tah-e-dig

"JUICING UP" STEP about 15 min into the "steaming process"

option 1: mix small glass of WATER (8 to 10 Tsp) + OIL (2 to 4 Tsp)

option 2: use the remaining SAFFRON/OIL/WATER mix (see above instructions)

gently pour this water/oil/saffron mix over the top of the rice pyramid. This allows the rice to become juicy and assists in the steaming process. Return the towel/slanted lid + continue to steam.

By: Bianca learned from Mamani

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