Iraqi Crispy Saffron Rice

My family is originally from Iraq. My mother used to cook basmati rice in a number of ways, but this method is my favorite. It has a crispy crust called hakkaka in Iraqi that is sort of like a cake. We usually enjoy this rice with a stew of some kind, and more often than not, it is made of chicken seasoned with lemon and cardamom (see recipe in “Mains,”). The basmati rice is incredibly fragrant, and the aroma fills the house as it cooks. At our family g