This is another interesting sweet-savory rice, this time from Azerbaijan, where they cook the rice in milk and flavor it with saffron, dark raisins, and dates. My nephew happened to marry an Azerbaijani girl and we all went to their lavish wedding reception in Baku, which they followed the next day with an equally lavish lunch, with a huge buffet of all kinds of Azerbaijani dishes that reminded me of what people ate in the ’50s, with half the dishes drowning in commercial mayonnaise. Somehow, they didn’t think it would be more interesting to have local dishes rather than Soviet dishes and I wish they’d had this rice with a whole roast lamb and a few salads instead of the rather unappetizing Russian salads and smoked fish and so many other practically inedible dishes. I have used tiny dried raisins from southeastern Turkey here as they contrast nicely with the saffron-colored rice; also I find their drier texture more suitable than the plumper golden raisins. Serve with the Arabian Spiced Fried Fish.
SERVES: 4 TO 6
INGREDIENTS:
- 2 cups (400 g) long-grain rice, rinsed and well drained
- 1 cup (150 g) dark raisins
- 3 cups (750 ml) whole milk
- 1 stick plus 3 tablespoons (175 g) unsalted butter
- 1 tablespoon raw cane sugar
- Sea salt, to taste
- 12 pitted dates, quartered lengthwise
- Good pinch of saffron threads
- ¼ cup (60 ml) rose water
- ¼ cup (60 ml) water
INSTRUCTIONS:
- Put the saffron threads to steep in the rose water and ¼ cup (60 ml) water.
- Put the rice and raisins in a medium saucepan. Add the milk, butter, sugar, and saffron rose water. Add salt to taste. Bring to a boil over medium-low heat, being careful not to let the milk boil over, then reduce the heat to simmer, cover, and cook for 7 minutes, or until the rice has absorbed almost all the milk. Stir in the dates.
- Wrap the lid with a clean kitchen towel and cover the pan—the towel helps to absorb the steam. Turn the heat down to very low and let the rice cook for another 7 minutes, or until it is tender and the milk is fully absorbed.
