Chelo Kebab

Chelo Kebab or Chelow Kebab is a Persian dish made with steamed saffron rice and kebabs. This version parboils the rice which then browns in a large pan, covered with a cloth, and steams with a little bit of butter to deliver a crispy, golden crust.

The lamb kebobs are marinated for hours to lock in flavor. The result is probably one of my favorite dishes I’ve made recently; it’s well worth the morning prep to have an amazing dinner!

Ingredients:

Kebab:

• 2 onions, very finely chopped (or pureed)
• 2 garlic cloves, minced (or pureed)
• 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 1/2 pounds boneless leg of lamb, trimmed and cut into 1-inch cubes
• 18 grape tomatoes
• Cooking spray

Chelo:

• 1 1/2 cups uncooked basmati rice
• 6 cups water
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and divided
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1/4 teaspoon saffron threads, crushed
• 2 tablespoons chopped green onions
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh mint
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
• 1 lemon, cut into 6 wedges

In the morning, add the onions, garlic, lemon juice, olive oil, salt and pepper in a large zip-top bag. Add the lamb and seal. Shake the bag a bit to evenly coat the lamb. Marinate in the fridge for at least 8 hours. (If you have the ability to turn the bag occasionally throughout the day, go for it.)

When ready to cook, add the rice to a fine sieve and rinse for 1-2 minutes with warm running water.

Drain. Bring 6 cups of water and 2 teaspoons salt to a boil in a large skillet over high heat. Add the rice and boil, uncovered for 5-7 minutes, stirring occasionally. (The rice will not be fully cooked)

Drain the rice through a sieve into a bowl, reserving both the rice and cooking liquid.

Rinse the rice with warm running water.

Combine 2 tablespoons of the reserved rice cooking liquid, 2 tablespoons melted butter, 1 tablespoon olive oil, and the crushed saffron in a nonstick skillet.

Place over high heat and add 1/3 of the rice, stirring to coat. Spread evenly over the bottom of the pan.

Add remaining rice, and do not stir, just spread evenly over the other rice.

Drizzle with the remaining 1 tablespoon melted butter. Add a clean dish cloth over rice, and fold in to fit within the pan. Cover with a lid.

Cook over high heat for 3-4 minutes.

Reduce the heat to low and cook for 20 minutes, or until the rice is both tender and crisp with a browned layer on the bottom of the pan.

Remove the lid and towel and divide among 6 plates.

Preheat your grill to medium-high heat or preheat your broiler.

While waiting for the rice to cook, thread the lamb onto 6 (10 inch) metal skewers. Thread the tomatoes on to 2-3 (10 inch) metal skewers. Add the skewers to a grill rack or broiler pan coated with cooking spray.

Cook the tomatoes for 4-5 minutes and the lamb for 10-12 minutes or until desired degree of doneness, turning occasionally.

Remove tomatoes from the skewers. Place a lamb skewer and 3 tomatoes on each plate.

Combine green onions, mint, and cilantro and sprinkle 1 tablespoon over each serving. Serve with lemon wedges.

Isn’t this such a pretty dish?

The texture of the rice is really nice, both crunchy and tender.

The marinade for the lamb is so simple but so tasty!

Be careful with the tomatoes; grilled whole tomatoes really hold in their heat so you might want to let them cool or cut into them to let some of that heat escape.

Although the recipe does need some prep in the morning, it really pays off at night; you can have this absolutely delicious meal on the table in 40 minutes!