Carrot Rice
Haveeg Polo
(By Mrs. Soheila
Amiri)
(4-6 servings)

Ingredients:

4 cups (32 Oz.) of white long grain rice.
8 table spoons of cooking oil.
4-6 large carrots, peeled and grated (using the large teeth).
4 Oz. of water.
1 lb. of ground beef.
1 medium onion, chopped.
1/2 tea spoon of turmeric (zardchoobeh).
2 cups (16 Oz.) of tomato sauce.
A touch each of salt and pepper.


Directions:

For best results, soak the rice for a few hours in hot water and
salt before cooking.

In a medium size pot, half-way filled with water, bring the water
to a boil. Add the rice (and the water it was soaking in), and
let it cook for a few minutes until it starts boiling. Occasionally
pick a few rice grains with a spoon and chew on them to see if they
have softened. When the rice is half-crunchy half-soft, take it
out and drain it in a kitchen stringer. Run the tab water on it
to wash out some of the excess salt.

In a medium size pot, over medium heat, pour 4 table spoons of oil,
add the chopped onions and stir fry until they turn a golden brown
color. Add the meat, turmeric and pepper and continue to stir fry
until the meat is brown. Add the tomato sauce and salt and con-
tinue to stir fry for a few more minutes. Add the grated carrots
and stir fry for another 5-10 minutes. The meat sauce is done when
it starts to thicken (most of the water evaporates).

Pour the remainder of the cooking oil in a separate medium size
pot, add 4 Oz. of water, then loosely spread a thin layer of rice
and a thin layer of meat sauce. Continue in this fashion until
all the rice and meat sauce have been exhausted. With the back
of a spoon, make five holes one in the center and four around it
so that the rice can breath in the cooking process.

Spread a little water on top and close the lid. Let it cook for
a couple of minutes on high heat. When the rice starts to steam,
change the setting to medium heat and let it cook for about 15
minutes. Then turn the heat to medium-low, sprinkle some cooking
oil to stop it from drying, and let it cook for about another 10
minutes.


HINTS:

If you have a choice, use any of the Basmati brands of
long grain rice (i.e., AftAb, Pari, Feel-Neshan, etc.)
you can buy from middle eastern or Indian stores. But
be careful not to overboil these types. They get pretty
sticky if you over cook them. If all else fails, use
Mahatma brand (American from supermarket). They take
longer to soften, and there is less chance of coming
out sticky.

Often times on the onset of stir frying ground meat,
large lumps are formed. During the course of stir frying
the meat, with a back of a large spoon keep pressing
on the lumps to separate them. Your meat sauce comes
out with finer granularity this way.

You can optionally add a few table spoons of either
carrot or orange jam (not jelly) to the meat sauce to
add more flavor and sweetness to the dish.