Kabuli pulao recipe

Afghanistan's national rice dish: long-grain rice browned with burnt sugar, steamed over lamb broth and buried under sugar-glazed carrots, raisins and almonds.

2 hours and 40 minutesmedium12 ingredients

Ingredients

• 500 g basmati rice
• 1000 g lamb shoulder
• 3 carrots
• 100 g raisins
• 4 tbsp sugar
• 1 tsp green cardamom
• 1 stick cinnamon stick
• 1 tsp cumin
• 2 onions
• 50 g almonds
• 6 tbsp oil
• 2 tsp salt

How to make Kabuli pulao

1. Rinse 500 g basmati rice until the water runs clear, then soak it for 1 hour in salted water.
2. Brown 1 kg bone-in lamb shoulder in 6 tbsp oil with 2 sliced onions, cover with 1.2 l water and simmer 1 hour 30. Keep this broth: the rice cooks in it, never in plain water.
3. Cut 3 carrots into matchsticks. Fry them in 6 tbsp oil with 2 tbsp sugar for 5 minutes until they glaze and darken, add 100 g raisins and cook 2 minutes until they swell. Set aside.
4. Melt 4 tbsp sugar in a dry pot until it turns dark amber, then take it off the heat and pour in 250 ml of the hot broth. This burnt-sugar caramel is what gives the rice its brown colour.
5. Boil the drained rice in salted water for 5 to 7 minutes and drain it while still firm.
6. Layer the rice over the lamb in the pot, pour on the caramel and 500 ml broth, then dust with 1 tsp ground cumin, 1 tsp crushed green cardamom seeds and 1 broken cinnamon stick.
7. Wrap the lid in a cloth, cover, and steam on the lowest heat for 30 to 40 minutes without lifting it.
8. Pile the rice on a platter, set the lamb in the middle and cover with the carrots, raisins and 50 g slivered almonds.

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