Name: Uzbek Carrot Palov with Cumin
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 45 min
Total time: 1 h
Yield: Servings: 4
Cuisine: Uzbek
Ingredients: 1 tablespoon sugar; 3 cups water; 2 cups chopped fresh cilantro, parsley or basil; 2 teaspoons salt; ½ teaspoon ground turmeric, or ½ teaspoon saffron dissolved in 2 tablespoons hot water; ½ cup blanched, raw almonds, peanuts, or pine nuts; 1 cup currants; 1 cup carrots, peeled and shredded; ½ bell pepper, seeded and shredded; 2 teaspoons cumin seeds; 2 large onion. peeled and thinly sliced; 1 Thai bird or serrano chili, seeded and chopped, or ½ teaspoon paprika; 2 cups long-grain Indian white basmati rice, picked over and washed; 8 tablespoons vegetable oil, butter, or ghee

Preparation info

Servings:
4

Difficulty
Easy
Ready in
1 hr

Appears in

Silk Road Cooking

By Najmieh Batmanglij

Published 2000

About

The original version of this festive dish comes from Uzbekistan. There it is made with short-grain rice and large amounts of fat from the fat-tailed sheep of the region—a welcome addition to the diet of people whose daily food is mostly flat bread and tea. Although women generally have done most of the cooking in Uzbekistan, palovs were generally made by men (this is also the case for paella in Spain). Today women make it as well—this is said to be one of the achievements of the Communist P