Shah Ash - Royal Pilaf! (Khan-pilaf). Photorecept

It is known that cooking is the oldest art, and pilaf is one of the oldest dishes cooked by man. The first recipes for this dish appeared simultaneously with the period when people began to cultivate grain crops. There is a famous saying in Turkey that there are as many recipes for this treat as there are cities in the Muslim world. In the East, there are other proverbs and folk sayings associated with this dish. However, even in this variety, there are recipes that can rightfully be called masterpieces of world cuisine. One of these amazing dishes is generally recognized Shah pilaf - a royal dish worthy of the most solemn event.

Baku pilaf with dried fruits has long gained immense popularity all over the world and still remains the main dish of Azerbaijani cuisine. It is impossible to imagine any solemn event in this eastern country without khan pilaf.

It is prepared for weddings and birthdays, put on the table when meeting close friends.

An incredibly tasty and stunningly beautiful treat always takes pride of place in a feast. The peculiarity of this dish is that when served it looks more like a delicious pie than a traditional pilaf. Rice with meat and dried fruit is inside the royal crown of dough.

There are several recipes for Azerbaijani shah pilaf: it can be cooked with meat, with fruit, or with a combined filling. Regardless of the composition and main components in this treat, its form always remains the same. All products are inside a thin dough, which is baked until golden brown.

Ingredients

Azerbaijani royal pilaf is usually prepared from the meat of a young lamb. If desired, it can be replaced with any poultry or veal. Shah pilaf can also be cooked in a sweet version, without adding meat at all, but this will no longer be a classic recipe, but one of its variations.

To prepare 6 servings you will need:

• Lamb - 1 kg;
• Devzira or basmati rice - 1 kg;
• Butter - 3-4 tbsp. l .;
• Onions - 1-2 pcs.;
• Carrots - 2 pcs.;
• Dried fruits, raisins, chestnuts, dried apricots - 350 g;
• Salt to taste.

For the test:

• Flour - 2 cups;
• Ghee - 150 g;
• Water - 1/2 cup;
• A pinch of salt.

How to cook shah pilaf

Preheat the oven well before cooking the pilaf, otherwise it may dry out.

The classic shah pilaf is decorated with ruddy gazmah - a thin tender crust of dough, however, in some versions, you can cook this dish using thin pita bread. To make a treat according to a real Azerbaijani recipe, first of all, gazmah is prepared from flour, oil and water.


Put the oil in a convenient dish and heat well. When the butter has cooled to room temperature, add salt, flour and water and knead into a soft elastic dough. You can find out what consistency the dough for gazmakh should be by looking at the recipe with the photo. Wrap the resulting dough in a plastic bag, set aside for 40 minutes, so that it becomes smooth and pliable. After that, it will be possible to divide it into several small parts, roll it into a thin layer and put it in a pilaf baking dish.

Step-by-step recipe for shah pilaf

Cooking royal pilaf step by step in the oven will help to make a delicious treat even for a beginner. Unlike the classic cooking options, when a cast iron cauldron is used, you can use any baking dish. It is better if it has a round shape, then it will have the traditional appearance of a large pie or the crown of the shah (king).

For shah pilaf in Azerbaijani style, it is not required to prepare zirvak - meat sauce with vegetables and spices.

Cook rice separately in lightly salted water. After the grains reach the floor of readiness, carefully drain the water through a strainer or colander, leave the cereal for 10-15 minutes to cool slightly. You can boil rice cereal in bags, then put it on a plate, in which it will have to cool down to room temperature.



Rice should be boiled in plenty of water to prevent the grains from sticking to each other. Heat the water separately and after cooking, rinse the cereals well and let the excess water drain. Heat some of the melted butter so that it is slightly warmer than room temperature. Spread the rice in an even layer on the prepared dough and pour well with oil.

When making a large portion, you can lay out the rice in several layers, each of which needs to be lightly oiled.

Stirring the groats is not recommended, it should lie in an even, but loose layer. Do not forget to oil and the mold in which the dough is laid. If thin pita bread is used for the crust, it should be spread on a table or cutting board and cut into several thin strips, 5-6 centimeters wide.

Cooking the filling for the khan's pilaf

Let's prepare the filling with which we will fill the royal pilaf in pita bread (or in dough).
Cut the meat across the grain in medium slices 3-4 centimeters wide. Put the pieces of fat tail fat in a dry frying pan and melt the fat well (the cracklings must be removed so that they do not give the finished treat the taste of burnt meat). Add a piece of butter and, when it warms up well, put the prepared lamb in the fat. You can replace it with young veal. When the meat is browned until golden brown, cover it and reduce the heat to slightly simmer and soften. Place it on a separate plate.


Peel the onions, chop into thin rings and fry until soft in hot oil. Add cumin, spices and mix a little salt. Chop the carrots into strips, put them on the onions, stir and let them lightly brown for 1-2 minutes. Add the fried meat, the rest of the dried fruits, spices and seasonings and simmer for another 5-10 minutes, if necessary, you can add a little water. Cook until the liquid evaporates, place the filling on the rice.

This pilaf recipe can be changed by removing meat and vegetables from the ingredients, and add a little honey or sugar syrup instead of salt and spices. So you get another wonderful treat - sweet pilaf from dried fruits.

Smooth the filling over the entire surface and gently fold the edges of the dough so that it completely covers the contents of the mold. Cut off excess dough around the edges if necessary. If using pita bread, wrap the strips clockwise, overlapping them. Place the pilaf in the oven and cook for 50 minutes at a temperature of 150-160 degrees.


When the crust is slightly dry, remove the mold and brush with the remaining piece of butter. For even oiling, it is best to use a cooking brush. Increase the temperature to 180 degrees and bring the treat to full readiness (the top crust should become a beautiful golden color).



It is recommended to serve pilaf on a round or oval dish, cutting the dough into 8-12 pieces in a circle into equal sectors (like a cake). Gently peel back the edges of the dough to make it look like a crown and serve the royal treat to the table.

The traditions of the Azerbaijani people are inextricably linked with the national cuisine. There are many recipes for khan plov - each city and village has its own specific way of preparing this wonderful treat. However, there are certain rules that every cook adheres to. According to popular belief, it is thanks to the special subtleties, which only folk plovdov know about, that a real culinary masterpiece is obtained, worthy of the royal table.

• Instead of bread, pieces of fried crust are served with pilaf, which can be carefully cut off before serving the dish to the table. If a treat is prepared for a large number of guests, it is cut into equal triangular pieces, after which the filling can be laid out in a heap on a plate, and pieces of fried lavash or dough can be used instead of bread.
• You can add a pinch of turmeric or saffron to the water while cooking to give the rice a beautiful yellow hue. If saffron is used, it is enough to add 1 or 2 fine threads. Since the spice has a rather specific taste, it must be added in small quantities, otherwise the aroma of rice will overwhelm the smell and aroma of other components.
  
  
  
• A cast-iron cauldron has always been considered the most suitable dish for cooking any pilaf. However, in this case, it is best to cook the treat in a round baking dish (you can use a pan for jellied pies or a biscuit, a cast-iron pan with a removable handle is suitable. ...
• At home, you can make a dish for 6-8 servings using a convenient kitchen appliance - a multicooker. Using this modern device, it is best to use ready-made thin pita bread instead of dough. The dish is prepared in the pilaf mode for 40 minutes, after which it is carefully turned over and brought to readiness for another 20 minutes. This will give the treat a beautiful golden brown crust on both sides.
  
  
• In the homeland of this wonderful treat, in Baku, a festive dish is cooked in a wood-burning oven. In an urban setting, it can be cooked both in an electric and in a gas oven. In order for the dish to turn out ready, but not burn out, it is important to change the temperature regime in time. The first 40 minutes, pilaf is cooked at + 130 ° C- + 150 ° C, after which it is increased to 180 ° C.
• Be careful not to press on the rice filling when cutting through the top crust. For convenience, you can take culinary scissors, carefully pierce the crust in the middle and move towards the edges. After the entire upper part is divided into sectors, carefully open the resulting petals also, from the middle to the edge. Before serving, you can add fresh pomegranate seeds on top to make it look even more impressive.
• As a filling, you can use not only meat with fruits. Optionally, you can cook sweet pilaf from dried apricots, nuts and prunes. In some cases, it is made with only rice. In this case, all spices and seasonings are added to the water in which the cereal is cooked.
  
  
• If poultry meat is used for the filling, it is pre-marinated. This makes the meat more juicy and flavorful. The easiest marinade option for chicken or turkey: ripe tomatoes are chopped in mashed potatoes, a few drops of vegetable oil, salt and spices are added. The meat is laid out in the tomato marinade (preferably in a large piece) and left for 3-4 hours. Before frying, the meat is cut into portions. Marinade can be added to stew meat.

Shah pilaf in azerbaijani

Shah pilaf.
1. Boil the rice until half cooked in a large amount of salted water, add a little saffron or turmeric to the water so that the color of the water is yellowish. Take long-grain rice, sort "Basmati" or "Jasmine". Not steamed. It is important. Throw in a colander.
2. Meat (lamb or beef, cut into larger pieces than regular pilaf). You can also use chicken or turkey. Duck and rabbit won't go. Wash the meat, put in a cauldron, add a little salt. On low heat without seasoning the meat until cooked, practically in its own juice, without water. After cooking, remove from the cauldron and put in a cup.
3. While cooking meat and rice, prepare the most important thing - the sauce. Put 3-4 tablespoons of ghee in a frying pan, add pitted cherries, chopped apples or apricots, currants, etc. Any fruit that will produce juice. Stew the fruit over low heat until soft, almost mashed potatoes, add sugar, so that the taste is sour-sweet, more sour. Or whatever you like to taste.
4. Prepare the dough for the flatbread - kazmag. Place 1 egg yolk in a glass, without protein, add warm water, salt, a little yeast and knead the elastic dough.
5. If you plan to cook pilaf in a cauldron in the oven, then roll out a large circle of dough. Thickness is about 0.5 cm or less. If you cook pilaf in a cauldron on a stove, then roll out the circle in sizes larger than the bottom of the cauldron by 3-4 cm.
6. Now we collect pilaf, having salted rice and ready-made meat, and dough for kazmag.
7. Pour melted ghee into the bottom of the cauldron, sprinkle with a little cumin (cumin). We put the thinly rolled dough so that the edges hang from the edges of the cauldron or distribute a circle to the bottom if the pilaf is cooked on the top plate.
8. Pour slightly melted butter on the dough - 3-4 tablespoons, sprinkle with cumin (cumin). We put half of the meat.
9. Pour rice without tamping, not tightly.
10. Sprinkle with raisins generously, barberry if desired, cumin and pour 2-3 tablespoons of ghee butter.
11. We put the remaining meat,
12. Pour rice without tamping, not tightly.
13. Sprinkle with raisins generously, barberry if desired, cumin and pour 2-3 tablespoons of ghee butter.
14. Cover with dough, grease with an egg and put in a hot oven, on very low heat for 1-1.5 hours. Check the readiness by the color of the dough.
15. If you cook on the top stove, put the cauldron on the divider and very low heat.
16. When the dough is browned, simply turn the cauldron over onto a large dish, and you get pilaf baked in the dough, the shape of a cauldron. Cut it like a cake.
17. Served flat cake - kazmag on a plate, and rice with meat from the middle. If desired, pour the fruit sauce directly on the plate or just on the edge of the plate 2-3 tablespoons of sauce.
Proportion:. 1 kg of meat, 1 glass of rice for 1 person, which means about 1.5-2 kg of rice, about 200 g of raisins (preferably light royal), melted melted butter, about 300-400 grams, 50 g of barberry.
Sauce: 500 g pitted cherries, 5-6 apricots or 2 peaches and 1 apple. (this is the most delicious version of the sauce in my opinion), You can use any fruits and berries that will give juice.
All the same can be done without meat, with raw pumpkin, cut into large pieces of 6-8 cm. It tastes better than with meat.
At first glance, a lot of fuss, but in fact, not very much. But very tasty and effective. Good luck!

Rinse the rice and cover with water overnight, rinse in the morning, boil for 3 minutes, fold on a sieve. You can boil it in a multicooker in the "Groats" mode.

Dried fruits - raisins, prunes, dates, dried apricots, wash dried berries, cut large into small pieces. Place in a bowl, stir and pour boiling water over.

Cut the lamb pulp (I have chicken fillet) into small pieces.

Fry the prepared meat in vegetable oil, pour more of it than usual so that the finished pilaf is not dry. Cook over high heat, stirring constantly. When the pieces of meat are lightly browned, add the chopped onion and sauté for a couple of minutes. Cut the carrots into cubes, the onions into half rings and add to the pan, fry everything together for another 2 minutes. Add your favorite spices to your taste.

Add dried fruits, salt, cook, stirring for a couple of minutes.

Combine the rice with the contents of the pan. We taste it, add salt, pepper and other spices, if necessary. Remove skillet from heat and add finely chopped garlic.

Dense thin pita bread (4-5 sheets) cut along the longest side into strips about 5 cm wide. The strips should be long enough to cover the top of the pilaf. Brush each strip with softened butter.

Pour out the pilaf, compact it a little and cover it on top with strips of pita bread. Additionally, you can "strengthen" the bottom and sides with pieces of lavash.

Grease the top sheets of pita bread with the remaining butter. Turn on the "Baking" mode, cook pilaf for 1 hour. After the pilaf is cooked, let it stand in the bowl for 5 minutes to dry the pita bread and turn it over onto a wide dish. Make sure that the lavash crust is well dried and browned, otherwise the pilaf on the dish will not keep its shape.

It is difficult to imagine at least one Azerbaijani holiday without fragrant, crumbly and fatty pilaf. It is an integral part of the national cuisine and is considered its pinnacle. You can find a great variety of recipes, and not only in Azerbaijan, but in general in the East. Dishes will differ in both taste and preparation method and ingredients used. One of the most famous variations is the magnificent shah - we will reveal the recipe and the secrets of its preparation in our article, but first, a few words about the history of this amazing dish.

From the history of the dish

Eastern pilaf is so ancient that historians cannot reliably establish its origin. It is assumed that the basic principles of its preparation originated in the Middle East and India in the 2-3 centuries BC. This time, in principle, coincides with the beginning of rice cultivation in the region. In China, the plant began to grow much earlier, but the technologies of how pilaf is prepared (including shah) do not fit into Japanese or Chinese cuisine. Probably, the historical roots of the dish go back to the gastronomy of India. There are similar methods of cooking rice in the country, but they are vegetarian. The meat component of pilaf most likely appeared in ancient Persia. In favor of the Indian origin is also the tradition of dyeing rice in an appetizing yellow color using turmeric and saffron threads.

The main components of pilaf

There are thousands of recipes for making delicious and aromatic pilaf. However, not all of them meet the basic requirement. The dish should consist of two parts: zirvak and cereal. Shah-pilaf in Azerbaijani (the recipe with the photo is presented below) meets these conditions. Zirvak means a meat or fish component (including ready-made minced meat in the form of meatballs), game, vegetables, dried fruits, spices. In Azerbaijan it is called "gara". The cereal part does not always consist only of rice, sometimes chickpeas, corn, mung bean, wheat, jugara, or even a mixture of these components are used. There is a lot of variability in the set of ingredients. The main secret of this oriental pilaf lies in the cooking process. There are two options - Central Asian and Iranian, the latter, in particular, adopted in Turkey and Azerbaijan.

According to one of the versions, pilaf shah is named so because of the way of serving. The finished dish resembles the crown of a medieval eastern ruler. According to another version, pilaf cooked in this way tastes so good that it is worthy of the Shah's table and the most solemn ceremonies. On ordinary days, women prepare it, but during the preparation for the holidays, men and even specially invited masters take up the work. We offer a recipe for a traditional Azerbaijani dish from a famous chef. Everyone can cook it, you just need to show patience and put a particle of the soul into the process.

Shah - pilaf in azerbaijani: ingredients

Of course, the most delicious pilaf comes from products that are produced in his homeland. The market is perhaps the most suitable place to buy them. The products there are mostly homemade, fresh and delicious. The main component of pilaf is rice. A long-grain variety such as Basmati works best. The second important ingredient is meat. This can be lamb, beef, or chicken. The choice depends on your personal preference. Don't forget about butter, too. It will take quite a lot. In Azerbaijan, buffalo butter is often used, which has a characteristic, completely white color.

In order to cook shah - pilaf in Azerbaijani style (photo from the text), you will need another extremely original ingredient - an iron horseshoe. For what? Read on - and you will learn one ancient secret.

So, the required ingredients:

• basmati rice - 500 g;
• butter - 500 g;
• meat - 500 g;
• hot onions - 300 g;
• walnuts - 500 g;
• pomegranate juice - 1 glass (can be squeezed out of ripe fresh fruit);
• cherry plum puree - 1 tablespoon;
• pita bread - 5 pcs.;
• saffron to taste.

Stage 1. Cooking rice

Before starting to cook the groats, soak a few strands of saffron in a cup of boiling water and let it brew for at least one hour.

Rinsing rice before boiling it is a process that has become almost an axiom for us. In this case, in order to cook pilaf shah, you do not need to do this. In a large saucepan, bring enough water - 2-3 liters - to a boil, add salt and dry rice. Boil the cereal until half cooked, in time it will take about 5-10 minutes. Remember that you are only steaming it lightly, not cooking it. Then place the rice in a colander.

Stage 2. Meat preparation

Meat (chicken, beef, lamb) must first be boiled in order for it to be soft. This should be done within 2-2.5 hours. Quite a long process, so it's best to do it beforehand.

Scroll spicy onions through a meat grinder and squeeze dry from the juice. In a preheated frying pan with a small amount of butter, fry it over low heat.

Step # 3. What is a horseshoe for?

This is another secret of how to cook shah-pilaf in the best traditions of the East. The use of metal objects (in this case, horseshoes, which is very symbolic) when preparing food was practiced by the ancestors of modern eastern peoples for a very long time. This served as a kind of natural source of free and available iron for the body. Now the horseshoe is used more for entourage.

Combine pomegranate juice with sour cherry plum paste and mix thoroughly until smooth. Heat the horseshoe to red on the fire. Then, using tongs, dip it into the pomegranate juice. Ideally, the procedure should be repeated three times.

Stage 4. Cooking meat

In a frying pan, combine the onion, boiled meat chopped into large pieces, crushed walnuts, pomegranate juice. Stir all the ingredients, and put the same horseshoe in the middle. Simmer the meat over low heat for 10-15 minutes. It should take on a dark, almost black color.

Stage 5. Baking rice

In order to cook pilaf shah, it is best to take a small rounded lavash, which is sold in a package of several pieces. In this case, you will need 5-6 pcs. Dip the lavash in pre-melted butter and gently overlap in the cauldron, gradually closing the bottom and walls of the dishes, as shown in the photo above. Then sprinkle the cooked rice in layers, pouring saffron infusion and oil over it. Close the top with the edges of the pita bread. It is preferable to use a conical cauldron, then the finished dish will even more resemble the crown of the shah. Put the rice laid in this way in the oven or oven for 35-40 minutes at 200 degrees.

Stage 6. How to serve the dish

From the photo we presented in the article) has one more feature. In Azerbaijan, meat and cereal components are not mixed at the cooking stage. This is done only during the meal. The finished pilaf is taken out of the oven, transferred to a large serving dish and the toasted crust is carefully cut. Aromatic, juicy and soft meat is spread around the "crown". The dish looks very impressive and luxurious. Let's say the option with portioned serving, as, for example, in the photo below. For beauty, dried fruits are used when serving.

Pilaf shah: recipe in a slow cooker

Shah-pilaf is a dish that differs not only in its special ingredient composition, but also in its preparation method. Is it possible to do without a special cast-iron cauldron in this matter? This is a rhetorical question. Pilaf and a cast-iron cauldron are a duet, without which it is impossible to get a traditional and truly delicious dish.

However, now almost every housewife has a slow cooker. A miracle technique that hides a huge functionality. The principle of its operation in many ways reminds everyone of the familiar oven, since the bowl is heated evenly from all sides. In the event that there is a great desire to cook shah-pilaf, but there is no cauldron, a slow cooker will come in handy. How to do this - we will tell you below. The recipe is slightly different from the one above in terms of ingredients, but no less interesting.

Ingredients for pilaf with dried fruits

As mentioned above, the composition of the ingredients can vary significantly depending on the recipe. Above, a traditional version was presented, including a minimum set of products, spices and spices.

In one of the regions of Azerbaijan, shah-pilaf (photo above) is prepared contrary to the principle of separating cereal and meat components. Here it is customary to lay out the ingredients in the cauldron, alternating them, so during the baking process they are saturated with the smell and taste of each other.

Now we suggest you try pilaf with dried fruits. Prunes, dried apricots, raisins - all this is very popular not only in Azerbaijan, but also in the East in general. Dried fruits retain their aroma and taste, moreover, it becomes even richer. In traditional cuisine, such a dish is called turshchi-kaurma-pilaf. In this case, chestnuts are optional and may be absent. So, in order to cook traditional Azerbaijani (5 servings), you will need:

• basmati rice - 500 g;
• fatty lamb - 500 g;
• butter - 500 g;
• onions - 300 g;
• cherry plum paste - 3 tablespoons;
• chestnuts - 200 g;
• dried apricots - 150 g;
• raisins - 300 g;
• lavash - 8-10 pcs.;
• pepper, saffron, salt - to taste.

Step # 1

Boil rice in salted water until half cooked for 5-10 minutes. Then fold the cereal in a colander and let the excess moisture drain. Cut the meat into large pieces and boil until soft. The broth can then be used to make soup.

Prepare the onion in the same way as indicated in the previous recipe. Namely, peel and scroll through a meat grinder. Then squeeze the juice and fry in a pan with a little butter over low heat.

Cut the finished boiled meat into portions. Add it, dried fruit, cherry plum paste and chestnuts to the onions. Bring the mixture to the desired harmonious taste with salt and pepper, heat for 10-15 minutes over very low heat, stirring occasionally, not allowing it to burn.

Step # 2

Melt the butter. Dip sheets of thin pita bread into it one by one. Then put them in an overlap in the multicooker bowl, closing the walls and bottom. Place about 1/3 part of the cooked rice on the bottom, sprinkle with pre-cooked saffron water, add 1/2 part of the meat mixture. Next, cover it all up with another piece of rice. Top with a little saffron water and butter. Spoon the leftover meat and cover with a third portion of the rice. Cover the pilaf with lavash on top, thereby creating something like a basket.

Turn the multicooker to Bake mode and cook for 50 minutes. During this time, the rice will completely steam out, but remain crumbly. Finally, place a small piece of butter on top of the pilaf, close the lid and let it "rest".

Serve the pilaf shah, the recipe for which is presented, whole on a wide flat dish so that each guest can put as much as needed. In Azerbaijan, the dish is placed on the table not very hot, but only warm (so that the butter does not freeze). It is traditionally eaten with hands, without stirring rice and meat on a plate.

Lavash for pilaf

For pilaf shah, as you already understood, lavash is required. You can certainly buy it at any grocery store. However, if you set out to cook a delicious dish with your own hands from start to finish, then you may need Thin unleavened dough cakes not as difficult to prepare as it might seem at first glance. They are traditionally cooked in the oven, but in modern conditions, a non-stick frying pan or even an ordinary cast iron pan is quite suitable.

In order to make pita bread, you will need approximately 700 g of flour, 300 g of water and salt to taste. Knead a tough dough from the specified ingredients, divide it into parts and roll out a very thin (no more than 2 mm thick) cake out of each. Fry it in a dry hot skillet without adding butter.

Azerbaijani pilaf is a popular national dish. True, local housewives prepare it most often on holidays. This dish is even outwardly different from the pilaf as many people imagine it.

Azerbaijani pilaf with lamb

The main difference between Azerbaijani pilaf and other varieties is in the original technology of its preparation. According to the rules, rice and filling must be done separately. Connect both parts together only at the time of serving.

Currently, about 40 recipes for this dish are known. The most popular is the option using lamb meat.

To prepare it, you need the following components:

2 cups of rice cereal;
35 grams of butter;
0.5 kilograms of fresh lamb;
salt;
1 onion;
pepper;
a little saffron (about 0.25 grams);
¼ teaspoon of cumin.

Pilaf is prepared in stages:

1. Soak the rice the day before. After that, rinse the cereals well, transfer to a saucepan, add water, salt a little and cook until half cooked for about 6-7 minutes. Next, the rice must be thrown into a colander and allowed to drain all the water.
2. Cook a whole piece of meat until tender, be sure to add salt, a little pepper and an onion to the pan. Cut the slightly cooled lamb into pieces at random.
3. Pour the saffron in a glass with boiling water (about 20 milliliters) and let it brew well.
4. To prevent the dish from sticking to the cauldron, local housewives use "kazmag". It is usually placed on the bottom of the container. As a kazmag, you can use ordinary dense dough or a piece of lavash. This recipe uses fresh potatoes. It needs to be cleaned and cut into circles no more than 5 millimeters thick.
5. Put the cauldron on fire.
6. Put butter on the bottom. It should warm up well.
7. Line the bottom with potato pieces and season with salt. You can move the pieces a little so that they do not stick immediately.
8. Pour some of the rice on top in a layer of 1 centimeter.
9. Spread the pieces of meat on it.
10. Cover the food with the leftover rice and pour the saffron infusion over it.
11. Simmer covered over low heat for 40 minutes. To prevent condensation from getting inside, it is better to wrap the lid with a cloth.
12. Pour melted butter over the dish and simmer for another 10 minutes.
Rice is laid out first on the dish, and juicy, aromatic meat is poured on top of it.

How to cook with chicken

A similar technology can also be used to cook Azerbaijani pilaf with poultry meat.

You will need a few ingredients for this:

Part of a chicken carcass (approximately 800 grams);
3 cups long grain rice
2 tablespoons of butter and olive oil;
0.5 teaspoon dried saffron

The whole process consists of several stages:

1. Soak rice for 40 minutes in cold salted water.
2. Pour boiling water over the saffron.
3. Cut the carcass into portions.
4. Fry them on all sides over medium heat with the addition of olive oil.
5. Rinse the rice and add water again in a ratio of 1 liter to 1 glass.
6. Boil it until it is al dente, and then strain it in a colander.
7. Place the rice on top of the fried chicken and sprinkle with the saffron.
8. Simmer for 25 minutes over low heat with a towel under the lid.
9. Add butter. Continue extinguishing for about half an hour.
By tradition, it is customary to lay out such pilaf on a large oval-shaped plate. It looks very nice on the table.

With dried fruits and meat

The classic pilaf in Azerbaijan is a dish in which, in addition to rice and meat, they put a lot of onions and fruits. In taste, it differs significantly from the rest of the options. The meat becomes more tender and acquires an unusual fruity aroma, while the rice, in turn, acquires a delicate creamy taste.

The list of products will be quite large:

1 kilogram of lamb;
150 grams of butter;
7 onions;
4 potatoes;
100 grams of raisins and dried apricots;
1 bunch of cilantro and parsley;
2 cups long grain rice
1/2 teaspoon each dried thyme and turmeric;
salt;
pepper;
1 tablespoon sumac.

To cook real Azerbaijani pilaf with dried fruits and meat, you need:

1. Rinse the rice thoroughly, then add water and boil al dente. This will take 10 minutes.
2. Put the cooked rice on a sieve and wash with cold water.
3. Peel the potatoes and cut into slices.
4. Put some butter on the bottom of a deep saucepan and melt it.
5. Line the bottom with potato pieces.
6. Cover them with rice on top, drizzle with the rest of the oil and sprinkle with turmeric.
7. Place the pan in an oven preheated to 180 degrees for one hour.
8. Cut the meat into pieces. First, fry them in a pan, and then put them in a cauldron.
9. Add the onion chopped in half rings, chopped herbs and spices there.
10. Pour it all over with water and simmer for 40 minutes.
11. Pour boiling water over dried fruits and let stand for 10 minutes. Transfer the processed foods to a cauldron and simmer everything over low heat for another half hour.
12. Add salt, a little pepper and turn off the heat. Let the meat stand in this position for about 15 minutes.
When serving, rice is first laid out on a plate, and on top of it is a complex filling. You can put a couple of potato slices nearby.

Shah-pilaf in azerbaijani

Local housewives prepare a special meal for the most dear guests.

“Shah-pilaf in Azerbaijani style” is a dish prepared in the form of a dome with a crispy crust and a classic puff filling of meat, rice and dried fruits.

To make such a piece of culinary art, you will need:

0.4 kilograms of long grain rice;
0.6 kilograms of lamb;
1 package of pita bread (2 sheets);
2 onions;
4 cloves of garlic;
70 grams of butter and the same amount of raisins;
100 grams of dried apricots;
spices (salt, cumin, paprika, pepper, barberry and turmeric).

Pilaf is prepared step by step:

1. Put the washed rice in a cauldron mixed with thin pieces of butter. Sprinkle it with turmeric, salt, add water (1: 2) and cook until tender.
2. Cut the meat into small pieces and lightly fry them in vegetable oil in a frying pan.
3. Add the diced onions. Fry for another 6-7 minutes.
4. Pour boiling water over raisins with dried apricots for only 5 minutes. After that, they need to be squeezed out, crumbled arbitrarily and added to the meat.
5. Add all prepared spices here, mix and fry for a couple of minutes.
6. Add the garlic, chopped into small pieces, and immediately remove the pan from the heat.
7. Cut lavash into strips 5 centimeters wide.
8. Line the cauldron with a fan from the inside so that the pieces of the strips hang out.
9. Put some of the rice on the bottom.
10. Cover it with a little meat.
11. Continue to lay out the layers. Until all products run out.
12. Cover the filling with the hanging ends of the lavash.
13. Put the cauldron in the oven and bake for 40 minutes at 180 degrees.
After that, the finished pilaf will only have to be put on a dish, cut into pieces, like a cake.

Beef recipe

You can also cook Azerbaijani pilaf with beef.

To do this, you can use the following set of ingredients:

600 grams of beef tenderloin;
1 thin pita bread;
2.5 cups rice
2 onions;
120 grams of butter;
a pinch of ground cloves;
a little cinnamon.

Pilaf cooking technology:

1. Chop the peeled onion into cubes. Fry them in oil with the addition of cinnamon and cloves.
2. Chop the meat at random into pieces. Fry them also in oil in another pan.
3. Transfer the processed meat to a saucepan.
4. Cover it with fragrant fried onions.
5. Pour food with water (750 ml), salt and simmer until the meat is tender enough.
6. Boil the rice a little in salt water. Then it should be rinsed well and filtered.
7. Cover the cauldron with lavash from the inside.
8. Pour rice on top, pour oil over it and cook until tender.
When serving on a dish, rice is first poured in a slide, and then meat is placed on it. The finished dish can be poured with juice, which remains after stewing.

Cooking with milk

Sometimes Azerbaijani pilaf is prepared with the addition of milk. This option will definitely appeal to those who do not eat meat at all.

For work you will need:

0.5 cups of rice (round grain);
250 milliliters of milk;
70 grams of butter;
400 milliliters of boiled water;
1 pita bread;
60 grams of raisins;
½ teaspoon saffron tincture.

In this case, the cooking method will be different:

1. Pour milk and water into a saucepan and heat (but do not boil).
2. Pour rice there and salt. Cook until the cereals are ready.
3. Then rinse the rice with hot water, strain and sprinkle it on a towel to dry for 15 minutes.
4. Soak the raisins in boiling water.
5. Treat the cauldron from the inside with oil and cover with lavash.
6. Pour dried rice with raisins into it. Simmer the food covered over low heat for at least 30 minutes.
Pour over the prepared pilaf in a plate with hot oil mixed with saffron tincture.

Azerbaijani khan-pilaf

There is also "khan-pilaf" in Azerbaijani cuisine. This is one of the variants of a popular dish. It is very reminiscent of "shah-pilaf". However, instead of thin lavash, dough ("kazmag") is used, which forms a crust and prevents the filling from burning.

This recipe will require:

400 grams of long grain rice;
For kazmag:
0.5 kilograms of wheat flour;
150 milliliters of water;
220 grams of ghee;
10 grams of edible salt.

For filling:

0.5 kilograms of ground beef;
15 dates and the same amount of dried apricots;
20 chestnuts;
250 grams of onions;
1 handful of raisins (preferably "raisins").

To cook khan-pilaf in Azerbaijani, you need to do the following:

1. First, make a kazmag. To do this, collect all the products in one container and mix thoroughly. Roll out the finished dough into a layer 3 mm thick.
2. Grease a deep saucepan from the inside with oil. For flavor, you can add some sesame seeds.
3. Line the pan with the dough so that there are no gaps.
4. Combine minced meat with chopped onion, add a little pepper, salt and mix.
5. Put the mass in a frying pan and simmer for 45 minutes over medium heat, adding half a glass of water.
6. Once all moisture has evaporated, add oil and start frying.
7. Introduce washed dried fruits and keep on low heat for no more than 10 minutes.
8. Now you can start assembling the pilaf. First, pour the rice into the bottom of the pan. The thickness of this standing should be no more than 3 centimeters.
9. Put a little frying on top of it.
10. Repeat the layers several times. As a result, there should be rice on top. It must be sprinkled with oil and saffron tincture.
11. Add some water (70-80 ml) and wrap the edges of the dough. It turned out to be a kind of cake.
12. Bake it for 2 hours in the oven at 160 degrees.
On the table, such a dish looks very festive. Cut it very carefully, as the inside of the pilaf still remains crumbly.