Shirin Polo Recipe; How to Make Persian Shirin Polo?

Jump to Recipe Print Recipe

Shirin Polo is a Persian rice dish made with rice and a mixture of fruits, vegetables and nuts. This food is usually cooked with chicken, but in some cities, this food is also cooked with red meat.

Shirin Polow is also known as “Shirin Polow” or “Persian Shirin Polo“. It can be served as the main course or as part of a festive meal. Shirin polo can be served with yoghurt or sour cream on the side.

In Iran, Shirin Polo is traditionally served at Nowruz celebrations (the Iranian New Year) in March, but it can also be made during other times. Join Cooking County with the Shirin Polo Recipe.

How to Make Shirin Polo?

Ingredients of Shirin Polo Recipe

200 grams chicken breast
3 cups rice
3 onions
1 large orange
4 tablespoons sliced pistachios and almonds
4 tablespoons barberry
3 carrots
⅓ cup rose water
Butter as needed
Brewed saffron as needed
6 tablespoons sugar
Salt, black pepper, and turmeric as needed

Directions

Step One

To prepare a delicious Shirin polo with chicken, choose a suitable bowl, and pour the rice with 1 teaspoon of salt. Then, cover the rice with water, and let it soak for 3 hours.

Step Two

Pour the pistachio and almond slices into a bowl, add some rose water to them and let them soak for 2 hours.

Step Three

Choose a suitable pot. Put the chicken breast in it. Peel the onion, then chop the onion into 4 pieces and add it to the pot containing the chicken breast. Add salt, black pepper and turmeric to the ingredients.

Step Four

Pour enough water onto the top of the chicken breast, put the pot on medium heat and let the chicken breast cook for 1 hour.

Step Five

Peel an orange, leaving the skin on. Use a sharp knife to peel off the entire outer zest without touching the white pith. Cut all strips of zest into thin pieces. Then fill a pot half full with water, put it on the heat, add the orange peel to the pot, and let the water reach boiling point.

Step Six

Drain the orange peel to remove the excess water. Do this four times to remove the bitterness of the orange peel altogether.

Step Seven

Wash the carrots, and peel them. Chop the carrots into slices, then put a suitable pan on medium heat, fry the pieces with half of the saffron, and add a little butter to the pan.

how to cook carrot for shirin polo ba morgh

Step Eight

Remove the fried carrots out of the pan. Then, choose another pan, put it on a gentle heat, add the butter to the pan, and let the butter melt completely.

Step Nine

Now add the barberry with the sugar to the pan and fry for minutes, then remove from the heat. Directly pour the orange slices with the rest of the sugar into the pan and fry until the orange slices are completely fried.

Step Ten

At this stage, pour the soaked pistachio and almond slices into a pan and fry with a bit of butter. Next, put the chicken in a colander to remove excess water, then chop it into large cubes.

how to cook chicken for shirin polo with chicken recipe

Step Eleven

Fill half of the pot with water, then put it on high heat until the water reaches the boiling point. Add the rice to the pot and boil it for 8 to 10 minutes until the rice is cooked.

Step Twelve

Now rinse the rice, select a suitable pot, and place a piece of bread on the bottom of the pot. Now, add some drained rice, then brew some saffron and pour it on it.

Step Thirteen

Pour the fried carrots and chicken over the half of the rice, pour the rice over the ingredients again and continue in the same way until no ingredients are left.

Step Fourteen

Put the lid on the pot and place it on medium heat. Let the rice stay on the heat for 40 to 45 minutes to cook.

How to Serve Persian Shirin Polo?

Finally, after 45 minutes, mix the Shirin polo ingredients well, put them in the desired dish, and decorate the food with sliced pistachios, sliced almonds and barberry. Enjoy your meal with your favourite drink.

Key Points in Shirin Polo Recipe

The amount of added sugar depends on your taste. You can increase or decrease it, but adding too much sugar causes the rice to stick.
Optionally add some barberry or raisins to the above ingredients.
First, you can prepare the syrup with some water and sugar, then pour all the nuts into the syrup and pour it over the rice with the chicken.
Brew saffron with ice to have more color.
You can also add 1/3 cup of rosewater if you want.
You can add 2 grated carrots to the above ingredients.
After brewing rice, you can sprinkle a little cinnamon on it.
If you like your rice to be yellow and golden when you want to drain, pour a little turmeric and saffron into the rice and then drain.
If you replace oil with butter, it will give the food a unique taste.
The amount of salt and sugar you add to Shirin polo depends on your taste.

Do not forget to make this recipe and share it with us. If you also have any related questions about the Shirin Polo recipe, please do not hesitate to ask.

Make Ahead Options

As I mentioned, if it’s more convenient for you, you may prepare part of this recipe in advance to reduce cooking time right before serving.

Prior to it, you can:

To make the orange rind somewhat candied, cook it and stew it in sugar syrup. After that, just filter it, storing the orange and syrup in two different containers. Although they could stay together, I believe it would be better for the orange chunks to be apart because the syrup would likely make them too thick.
Chop and sauté the carrots until they become tender. Then, just store in a refrigerator-safe container. If you’d like, you can also combine the entire recipe and preserve it with the almonds and orange zest.
Cook the rice until it’s just done, but not too soft. After that, let the rice cool and store it in the refrigerator (be careful to handle cooked rice securely).

FAQs About Shirin Polow Recipe

Can I use lemon peel instead of orange peel?

It is better to use orange peel.

How much does Shirin Polo take to get ready?

It takes around 3 to 4 hours to get ready.

Is Shirin Polo difficult to make?

Making Shirin Polo is a rather easy recipe. After the rice has been soaked and brought to a boil, it is layered with additional ingredients and let to steam.