ZERDE

turkish saffron rice pudding

Rice pudding is common across the Middle East and North Africa, with each country having its own variation. The Lebanese, Syrians, Egyptians, and Moroccans prepare it with milk, while the Turks and Iranians have a less creamy but equally luxurious version served at weddings and circumcisions that is flavored with saffron, the world’s most expensive spice. In Turkey, the pudding is called zerde, from the Persian shol-e zard, and unlike the others, it is made with just water. Here, you can use either short-grain rice for a more mushy texture that resembles congee, or the superior Calasparra (paella) rice, which retains its shape even when cooked for a long time. Made with the latter, your pudding will have more texture, with the grains remaining separate even when very soft. You can store the ungarnished rice pudding, covered with plastic wrap, in the refrigerator for up to 2 days; bring to room temperature before serving.

SERVES 6

¹/₂ tsp saffron threads

2 Tbsp rose water

Heaping ¹/₂ cup [110 g] Calasparra rice or other short-grain rice

³/₄ cup plus 2 Tbsp [175 g] superfine sugar

1 Tbsp slivered almonds

1 Tbsp slivered or chopped pistachios, plus more for garnish

Pomegranate seeds for garnish (optional)

Put the saffron threads to soak in the rose water.

Rinse the rice under cold water to get rid of some of the starch and put in a saucepan. Add 5 cups [1.2 L] water and place over medium heat. Bring to a boil. Add the sugar. Turn the heat to low and let simmer for about 30 minutes, or until the rice has expanded and is very soft.

Add the nuts, saffron–rose water mixture, and another ¹/₄ cup [60 ml] water. Simmer for another 5 minutes. The rice should be like a thin porridge; it will thicken as it sits. Divide equally among six individual bowls or pour into one large serving bowl. Let cool to serve at room temperature, garnished with more pistachios and pomegranate seeds, if desired.

spices

Spices are used quite regularly in both Middle Eastern and North African sweets. Aniseed, the seeds from a flowering plant in the fennel family, is native to the eastern Mediterranean and southwestern Asia. Tasting of licorice, aniseed is used in both seed and ground form to flavor desserts.

Caraway seed is also used as a dessert flavoring. It is known as Persian cumin, probably because it resembles cumin, but it tastes a little like anise.

Cardamom (hal in Arabic) is native to India, Nepal, and Bhutan. A member of the ginger family, it is obtained from several plants of the similar genera Elettaria and Amomum. It is the second-most expensive spice in the world, after saffron. In Lebanon, cardamom is mostly used in Turkish coffee, whereas in other parts of the Arab world, and especially in the Arabian Gulf, it has wider culinary applications. I prefer to use green cardamom pods, which are basically the fresher version of the pale ones. Neither should be confused with black cardamom, which is actually not cardamom but a close relative.

Cinnamon (qerfa in Arabic) is obtained from two different types of cinnamon tree, both from the laurel family. The thin sheets of the inner part of the bark of Cinnamomum zeylanicum are dried and rolled into thin quills to produce “real” stick cinnamon. These are sold in the West, usually cut to the same short length, whereas in Lebanon and elsewhere in the Middle East they are left uncut and can be found measuring as long as 12 in [30.5 cm]. The thick, dark bark of Cinnamomum cassia is known as cassia and is the variety chiefly used in the Middle East because of its strong flavor.

Saffron (za’faran in Arabic) is the most expensive spice in the world, obtained from the stigmas of the crocus flower, which are picked by hand. Because each flower has only three stigmas, masses of flowers have to be picked to produce a few grams of saffron. Saffron is used extensively in Iran and the Arabian Gulf but less so in Lebanon, Syria, and Turkey. Its quality varies, with the costliest saffron grown in Kashmir. As long as the stigmas are not mixed with anything else, any variety will be fine. Beware the fake saffron that is sold cheaply in souks; it is safflower, and all it will do is give you a yellow color but no flavor. And worse than safflower is the totally fake saffron made up of colored threads that color water red instead of yellow. Iranians and Gulf Arabs soak the threads in water or rose water before using them. Iranians also crush the saffron first, which makes it easier to measure. I prefer to use the threads whole, as I love seeing them scattered inside puddings or other desserts. The flavor is also more intense in the bite that has the thread in it, because the saffron continues to bleed into the pudding.

Mahlab is a spice ground from the kernel of a black cherry (Prunus mahaleb), native to Asia Minor. You can buy mahlab whole or ground to use in cookies. The flavor is pronounced, nutty with a hint of bitterness, and a little goes a long way.