Vermicelli Rice from Afghanistan

Afghanistan vermicelli Rice has been cooked with pasta for ages and the word recital which means thread in Persian is found in old foods. There are two types of rice. The easier version is the one below, while the more difficult meat version is in the following recipe. The combination of sweet and salty flavors makes both interesting. The beef version produces an exquisite one-pot meal, while the simpler one is great served with stews or grilled or roasted meats.

Both of these are recipes that I modified from Helen Saberi’s Afghan Food & Cookery. This rice pairs well with many Persian khoresht, including Persian Quince Stew, Iranian Mixed-Herb Lamb Stew, Persian Lamb and Eggplant Stew, and Persian Yellow Split Pea Stew.

SERVES: 4–6

Ingredients:

• Two and a half cups (500 g) of long-grain rice, rinsed and soaked in slightly salted water for thirty minutes with sea salt.
• a half-cup (125 milliliters) of vegetable-based oil.
• 250 grams, or 9 ounces split into 1-inch (2.5-cm) pieces of vermicelli.
• 200 grams, or 1 cup unrefined cane sugar.
• A good pinch of threads from saffron.
• forty grams, or ¼ cup chopped almonds (40 g) and ¼ cup of slivered pistachios.

DIRECTIONS:

Drain the fice. six cups of 1.5 liters of water must be added to a large pot and cooked to a boil over medium-high heat. Drain the rice and cook for 3 minutes after adding 1 tablespoon of salt. Set aside 1/4 of the rice and move the rest into a Dutch oven (or other oven-safe pot). Cover the lid with a fresh dishtowel. Lay on top of the pot and reserve.

Cook On Slow Heat.

Heat 60 milliliters 1/4 cup of the oil in a pan over medium heat. Add the vermicelli and cook mixing a lot for a few minutes until it is lightly golden. switch off the heat.

Set oven temperature to 300°F, or 150°C.

Put the sugar and a small cup of 225 ml of water in a medium pot. continue boiling until a thin syrup forms after transferring to a medium-high heat source. add the fried vermicelli saffron nuts and almonds and stir. Place a generous portion of the set-aside rice into the sieve, followed by a generous portion of the vermicelli and nut blend. Once you’ve used up all of the reserved rice and nut/syrup combination, keep layering. Don’t worry about the rice getting overly sweet; the majority of the syrup will evaporate.

Mix the remaining 1/4 cup 60 ml oil 1/3 cup 80ml water and a bit of salt then spoon over the rice in the Dutch pan After giving it a quick swirl, spread the vermicelli rice out over half of the plain rice without mixing it in. Refit the lid onto the pot after unwrapping it. When the oven is hot, place the Dutch oven inside and steam the rice for forty-five minutes.

Transfer the vermicelli rice to a platter for serving. Spoon the plain rice onto a sizable serving dish. Serve hot, scattering the vermicelli rice on top.