The story behind Tahdig-ته دیگ, Persian crispy saffron with saffron chicken

In previous episodes, Calvin and I looked for the best Yang chow fried rice in Hong Kong. Then we made an Italian twist of the HK Classic Claypot rice all using Jasmine rice. During my travels to India and Bangladesh, I learned that they cooked rice differently. Then I met Meh-Noosh, a Persian-Australian living in Hong Kong with her American Partner, Jerry. The food lovers said I must learn to make Tahdig using basmati rice. Making a good Tahdig is an obsession and once you try it, you'll be forever haunted by this decadent dish.

Meh-Noonush's Tahdig Recipe

Ingredients:
2 Cup of Basmati Rice
2 teaspoons of Salt
1 Pinch of Saffron or a packet of Saffron powder
4 tablespoons of Butter

Directions:
1. grind saffron into powder and add 2 ice cubes to let it soften and bloom.
2. Rince rice 3-4 times until water is clear
3. add 6 cups of cold water in a large pot and add rice.
4. Add salt and boil for 7-10 minutes until rice is soft on the outside but still hard on the inside.
5. Drain the rice and give it a quick rinse to remove starchy water
6. Mix cooked rice with saffron bloom
7. In a nonstick heavy duty pan, with medium heat, add butter and olive oil to the pan
8. Add saffron rice, press down onto the bottom of the pan, and cook for 10 minutes in medium heat with the lid covered tight
9. Reduce heat to very low and cook with the lid closed for another 2 hrs.
10. Remove from heat, invert onto a plate, and serve with your favorite roast.

Saffron Chicken

To go with Tahdig, Meh-Noosh showed me how to make her Saffron Chicken

Ingredients:
1 whole chicken cut into 8 pieces, marinated with salt and pepper
1 Green Pepper, Diced
1 small Yellow Onion, Diced
1 teaspoon of Saffron, bloomed with two iced cubes
1 teaspoon of Salt
1 tablespoon of Olive Oil

Directions:
1. In a heavy pot with medium heat, add olive oil and brown chicken pieces until the skin is golden.
2. Remove chicken and sautee onion and green pepper with chicken fat and 1 tablespoon of olive oil.
3. Add the saffron bloom and 2 cups of water, bring to a boil, close the lid, and simmer on low heat for about 1 hour until the chicken is tender and falls off the bone.
4. Serve with Tahdig with lots of gravy.


0:00 Introduction
0:39 Journey of Rice
1:37 YIO Farm visit with Alan Wong
1:50 my rice quests in the past
2:05 Lunch with Meh-Noosh in Kam Tung Kitchen
2:26 Taste Squad taste testing Basmati vs. Jasmine rice
3:14 How Basmati came to the Persian Empire
3:40 Chef Ada from Kam Tung Kitchen show us how to make HK Claypot rice
4:58 Make Tahdig at home with Meh-Noosh
9:00 Preparing Saffron Chicken
10:58 Dishing up the Tahdig
12:06 Recap of Tahdig cooking experience


For my recipes: https://ylorecipe.blogspot.com/
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email: [email protected]
Website: https://yloproduction.com

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