Every culture has its beans and rice dish, some bring you good luck, some keep you from bouncing checks and some just taste good. This week, I am trying to go meatless, and like anything, when you don't have it, you want it. All I can say is that it's pancetta I've been fantasizing about all week long.
If you read my about me page, you will realize that I was a vegetarian with minor lapses into smoked salmon for about ten years. Those years were great. No one put a gun to my head and told me to eat tofu. I did it by choice. I also stopped eating tofu by choice. Occasionally a tub will fall into my shopping basket. I can't really remember what I ate back when I was a vegetarian. I know it had a lot to do with the Mollie Katzen's Moosewood series of cookbooks, the first one and the Enchanted Broccoli Forest. Every dish either had dill or cumin, but blessedly never both at the same time. I remember eating a lot of popcorn and baby carrots, but that might have been grad school more than being a vegetarian.
When I was thinking of a suitable vegetarian dish to share this week, I immediately thought of addas polo or lentils and rice. It was one of my favorite dishes growing up. I loved its meatiness, especially when my mom would add extra lentils. I loved it even better with catsup and hot dogs. My palate is more refined these days, I prefer my addas polo with barbeque sauce and cutlets. It is also my father's stand by dish when he's by himself. Its super easy to make and like most things, is pretty tasty the next day.
This recipe is a little different than my dad's version. It adds sauteed dates and raisins at the end to give a it nice finish, slightly sweet and a bit more substantive and fancy.
Addas Polo serves four Americans, or two average Iranians
1/2 cup brown lentils, picked over and rinsed
2 cups water
1 cup basmati rice, rinsed with fresh water and drained
1 t salt
2 T butter
1/4 cup raisins
1/2 cup dates, chopped
1/4 cup sliced blanched almonds (optional)
Place lentils in pan with water and simmer until lentils partly cooked, al dente, but not mushy approximately 10 minutes. Drain the lentils, reserve lentil broth and add water to lentil broth to bring the volume back up to two cups.
Add water back to pan, add rice and salt, bring to a boil, add lentils back in and cook the rice/lentil mixture with the lid off for approximately 10 minutes, or until the water is nearly done. Turn down heat, place lid on pan and steam for approximately 10 minutes. During the steaming, melt butter in saute pan, add raisins and chopped dates, and optional almonds and saute until they are warmed through anc coated with butter, remove from heat.
When rice is done steaming, remove lid and spoon rice onto a warmed serving plate, garnish with raisins and dates and serve.
Suggested accompaniments include: a nice low fat plain yogurt, baked chicken legs, persian cutlets and a healthy dose of KC masterpiece barbeque sauce.