Tahdiq (Crisped Persian Rice)

Ingredients

• 2 medium size potatoes
• 2 cups uncooked basmati rice
• ⅓ cup vegetable oil
• Salt (as desired)
• Water

Method

1. Peel and slice the raw potatoes into ½ inch thick slices.
2. Rinse and drain rice. Bring 4–5 cups of water to a boil in a 3-quart pot, adding salt if desired. Add rice, and continue to boil the water, stirring occasionally, for about 10 minutes. Check to be sure that the rice doesn't cook completely at this point.
3. When rice is roughly half cooked, drain into a colander.
4. Pour ¼ cup of cooking oil into the pot and lay the potato slices in the bottom close together in a single layer. Add a small amount of salt (if desired). Layer the half-cooked, drained rice loosely atop the potatoes.
5. Place pot on stove over medium high heat for 4–5 minutes or until rice begins to steam.
6. Lower heat and add 5 tbsp water and 2–3 tbsp oil on top of rice. Cover and let simmer for about ½ hour or until cooked and tender. The higher the heat, the crunchier the tahdig.
7. Scoop out the rice and use a soft spatula to remove tahdig at bottom, or try to make the contents of the pot come out as an entire cake of rice on the serving dish.