Potato Tahdig Recipes

Steps:

• Stir saffron and 2 Tbsp. lukewarm water in a small bowl; set aside to bloom.
• Meanwhile, place rice in a strainer or fine-mesh sieve and rinse with lukewarm water, swishing around with your hands to get rid of excess starch, until water runs clear. Cook rice in a large pot of boiling generously salted water for 7 minutes. Check one grain; it should be soft on the edges but firm inside. You should be able to break it into two using your fingertips, but the grain should still be firm in the middle. If not, cook 1 minute longer and check again. Drain rice and rinse with cold water to stop the cooking.
• Wipe out pot. Pour 1/3 cup oil into pot and heat over medium. Add saffron mixture, tilting pot to make sure it covers the bottom.
• Arrange potato slices in an even layer in bottom of pot. Season with 2 tsp. salt. Return rice to pot on top of potatoes in a mound (so it's higher in the middle than the edges) without pressing or packing it down. Using the handle of a wooden spoon, make 5 holes in rice, going all the way down to the potato layer, so steam can escape. Pour 1/2 cup water around outer edge of potatoes. Cover lid with a clean dish towel, tying the ends up over the handle so they don't catch fire, then cover pot with lid. Cook over medium-high heat until steaming, 7-10 minutes (check after 7 minutes; if you don't see steam, cover and continue to cook).
• Pour remaining 1/4 cup oil evenly over rice, cover pot, and let steam over low heat until rice and potatoes are cooked through, 30-40 minutes. Taste to make sure rice is fully cooked; if not, add 1/4 cup more water, then let steam another 10 minutes.
• Spoon rice onto a platter. Using a spatula, lift crispy potatoes and rice off bottom of pot (this is the tahdig) and arrange, browned side up, over rice.

Steps:

• Rinse and drain rice 2 times.
• Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add rice and salt; cook for 6 minutes. Drain in a colander. Rinse rice and drain again.
• Put oil in the bottom of the pot and place potato slices in a single layer over top. Pour cooked rice on top of potato slices, cover, and cook over low heat until rice and potatoes are tender, 20 to 30 minutes.
• Invert carefully onto a serving plate so sliced potatoes are on top of rice.

Steps:

• Place rice in a medium bowl and cover with tepid water. Gently swish it around with your finger to activate the starches, then tip the bowl to drain water. Repeat this process until water runs clear, about 7 rinses. Cover rice with cold water, add 1/2 tablespoon salt, stir gently, and soak for 1 hour. Drain rice without rinsing.
• Crush saffron threads to a powder in a small mortar and pestle. Transfer to a small bowl with 2 tablespoons boiling water. Stir, cover, and set saffron water aside.
• Fill a 5-quart nonstick pot with 9 cups water and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Add 3 tablespoons salt and stir until dissolved. Break roasted noodles into thirds and add to the boiling water with the rice. Stir once gently, and watch carefully as it cooks so water does not boil over. Taste water for salt and adjust accordingly. Cook until the first rice grain pops up to the surface. Set a timer for 4 minutes and cook, scooping off any foam from the surface, until the timer goes off. Test rice and continue to cook until tender on the outside but still firm to the bite on the inside, 6 to 8 minutes more.
• Drain rice and noodles in a colander and rinse quickly with lukewarm water and a spray faucet to rinse off extra starch. Taste and gently rinse again if too salty. Set aside to drain completely. Wash and dry the pot.
• Place the clean pot over medium heat. Add oil, 1 tablespoon saffron water, and a pinch of salt; swirl the pot until the bottom and lower sides are coated with the oil mixture. Tightly overlap potato slices in a single layer covering the bottom of the pot to create the tahdig layer.
• Gently scatter rice-noodle mixture over the tahdig in a pyramid shape, making sure potatoes are completely covered and moving noodles away from the sides of the pot. Gently poke the handle of a wooden spoon into the rice and noodles a few times, being careful not to hit the tahdig; this will allow steam to escape while cooking. Cover and cook until you see steam escaping from the sides of the lid and tahdig starts to set, about 10 minutes.
• Meanwhile, combine 1/4 cup boiling water with 2 tablespoons melted butter and remaining saffron water. Lay a kitchen towel out on a heatproof surface.
• Test the tahdig by quickly tapping the side of the pot with a wooden spoon. When the pot sizzles, remove it from the heat. Remove the lid and place it on the kitchen towel, being careful that none of the condensation drips into the pot. Wrap the towel around the lid and secure the ends at the top by the handle so they will not hang near the heat source. Drizzle the butter mixture over the rice and cover with the towel-wrapped lid.
• Place a heat diffuser on a burner over low or medium-low heat and return the pot to the stove. Cook until crispy, rotating the pot a few times, about 35 minutes. Remove from the heat and place on a damp kitchen towel; let sit, uncovered, for 5 minutes so tahdig will release easily.
• Meanwhile, melt 3 tablespoons butter in a small pan over medium heat. Add dates, raisins, and cinnamon; sprinkle with a little salt. Cook and stir until dates are glistening and soft, 3 to 5 minutes.
• Gently scatter rice on a platter and remove potato tahdig pieces and serve on the side. Sprinkle raisin-date sauce over top.