Loobia Polo
Loobia Polo is one of the famous Persian recipes in the Persian cuisine . It is a one pot Persian dish with rice, ground beef, green beans, tomato sauce. In this website you can find more recipes of exotic foods like loobia Polo.
Preparation
Green beans: Wash and trim the green beans and cut them into 1 ½ inch pieces
Onion: Chop the onion finely
Saffron: Mix ¼ teaspoon ground saffron with 3 tablespoons of boiling water in a small glass and soak it for 30 minute
Mushroom (optional):Wash the mushrooms and chop them.
Preparing rice
Washing rice: Add 2 cups of dried rice to a medium size bowl. Add some cold water to it and gently scrub it and drain it. Refill the bowl with cold water and repeat this process until the water inside bowl becomes clear. ( washing rice removes powdery substance and prevents rice grains from sticking together)
Soaking rice: Refill the bowl with cold water and add two tablespoon of salt soak it for two hours. ( Soaking rice with salt water add flavor to your rice)
Cooking method
Step 1
In a frying pan add 2 tablespoons of cooking oil and stir fry the green beans until the color of the bean changes. Then set it aside.
Step 2
In a pot, saute the chopped onions with 3 tablespoons of vegetable oil over a medium heat . Keep stirring until its color turns into golden brown.
Step 3
Add the grind beef/lamb to the sauteed onion and then add pepper and salt to it and keep stir frying for few more minutes until the color of the meat changes. ( Our vegetarian friends can now add the mushroom and corn to the mixture)
Step 4
Add two tablespoons of tomato paste to the mixture and stir fry it for 2 minutes. Then Add the crushed tomato and ½ cup boiling water to the mixture. Place the lid and bring it to a boil. Then turn down the heat and simmer covered for about 15 minutes. After 15 minutes ,add the friend beans to the mixture. Set aside. ( So far you have prepared the loobia polo sauce. I suggest you to cook a large portion of lobia polo sauce and put it in freezer for later.)
Step 5
In a large pot and pour 10 cups of water in it. Add 2 tablespoons of Salt and some Oil. Place the lid and bring it to a boil over high heat. When the water starts boiling ,Add 4 cups of rinsed Basmati rice and stir occasionally.
Step 6
After 5 minutes scoop some rice grains from the water by a spatula or a slotted spoon. Taste to make sure the rice grains are (Al dente), then turn off the heat. Pour the rice into the colander to drain and rinse it with some warm water . Set it aside. (For cooking Loobia polo, We mix the drained rice with loobia polo sauce therefore the rice should be al dente and not very soft. Otherwise because of the water in the sauce the rice becomes so soft and eventually becomes sticky.)
Step 7
In a pot heat 2 tablespoons of cooking oil over a medium heat. Put the tortila bread on the bottom of the pot and add a layer of drained basmati rice on the top of the tortilla bread. Then add a layer of Loobiya polo sauce on the top of the drained rice. Repeat the layers (Rice, Loobia polo sauce ) and form a sort of pyramid. Splash 1 teaspoon of cinnamon on the top of the rice pyramid. Poke three holes With a handle of a wooden spatula or spoon in the rice. Then pour ¼ cup water mixed with 1 teaspoon of cooking oil. Place the lid and let it cook over medium heat for ten minutes. After 10 minutes , Turn the heat to medium-low and place the lid of the pot . Make sure that the lid is on properly. After 40-50 minutes the rice is ready to be served.
