Ghanbar Polo Recipe _ Persian Rice with Meatballs and Pomegranate

Ghanbar polo or ghambar polo is a delicious, popular dish of Shiraz, but it is also very popular in other cities. Ghanbar polo is a very nutritious and useful food.

 The main ingredients of Persian spiced rice are meatballs, pomegranate paste, raisins, saffron, and walnuts, which are fried together and mixed with Iranian rice.

Like kalam polo, ghambar polo is one of the most authentic foods in Shiraz. It has a very good flavour, and the ingredients needed to prepare it are very nutritious, making this dish useful.

According to news and reports, ghambar Polo is an Iranian dish very popular in America. In addition to Iranians living in America, the American people have recently developed a special interest in Persian pilaf.

Also, this Persian food is beneficial for curing anaemia due to the presence of grape juice and raisins.

Today in Meals Cook, we will teach you Persian Rice and meatballs, which are very delicious. Be with us with this traditional and valuable dish.

For: 4 people

Preparation time: 15 minutes

Cooking time: 1 hour

Ingredients:

Instruction:

1. To prepare ghambar polo Shirazi, the first step is to pour the minced meat into a suitable bowl, add some turmeric, salt, and black pepper, and then knead the minced meat for a few minutes until the ingredients are well combined and consistent and uniform.

2. In the second step of preparing this food, we make the minced meat into balls the size of a hazelnut. We heat a pan, pour in some oil, and then fry the meatballs in the heated oil.

3.  Put aside the small pieces of fried meat and peel and wash the onion.

then cut the onion into slices and in the pan where we fried the meat, we also fry the chopped onions until the onions are light and golden.

4. Add chopped the walnut kernels to the pan, and fry them. 

5. Now, Next, we add raisins to walnuts while frying them together. we dilute the pomegranate paste with some boiling water, add it to the pan along with a tablespoon of brewed saffron, and mix it with the ingredients.

Fry the ingredients in the pan for a few minutes until the pomegranate and saffron paste cover all the ingredients, and then remove the pan from the heat.

6. At this stage, pour half of the water into a suitable pot and heat it until it boils; after the pot starts to boil, we add some salt and a tablespoon of liquid oil.

We add the rice that we have already soaked in lukewarm water to the boiling water and let it stay in the boiling water for five to ten minutes until it becomes soft; then, we rinse the rice with lukewarm water.

7. Now, we heat a pot of suitable size for cooking rice and pour a little liquid oil into it. You can add sliced potatoes or lavash bread to the bottom of the pot for Tahdig.

Pour a layer of rice on the potatoes and a little meatball ingredients on the rice; pour rice again and then a layer of meatballs on it until the pot is full.

Note that the last layer should be rice. Two tablespoons of oil and the remaining saffron should be poured over the rice.

Then, put the lid on the pot and let the rice cook and brew for 45 minutes to an hour.

8. when the rice is ready, we mix the ingredients and pour them into the desired dish for serving. You can use meatballs to decorate ghambar polo.

History 

This food is called ghanbar polo and this dish is prepared from the combination of grape juice and raisins; because of this, the color of the food is a little dark.

The ancients believed that the name Ghanbar was suitable for this rice. This food is warm and is a very good choice for the cold days of the year. 

Some believe this dish’s original and correct name is ghambar polo, which makes you forget your sorrows.

In another place, it is stated that the name of this pilaf is because, in the past, Ghanbar was the name of a black slave who made this dish, and because of the brown colour, this name was chosen.

Preparing this polo is a bit time-consuming and laborious. However, this hot dish is very suitable for cold winter days.

This dish is excellent along with other dishes of Shiraz city such as kalam polo Shirazi, salad shirazi, havij polo, eshkeneh, and loobia polo.

What is served with Ghambar polo?

• Next to this delicious Iranian pilaf, Salad Shirazi is the best option as a salad.
  
• Sir torshi, mast o khiar, and Torshi Haft Bijar can be used as side dishes.
  
• Carbonated drinks and Persian doogh can also be used to better digest this food.
  
• You can cook this dish along with other Shirazi dishes as a formal meal for your guests.

Notes :

FAQ

1. Can I freeze Ghanbar polo?

No, you must serve this polo fresh; it can be kept in the refrigerator for five days.

2. Can I reheat this Polo?

Yes, you can reheat Ghambar Polo. To warm the dish gently, use a microwave or stove. Cover it to prevent the rice from drying, and stir it occasionally to distribute the heat evenly.

 3. Can I use other types of chicken instead of meat in Ghanbar Polo?

Yes, you can use chicken instead of beef. By choosing chicken, you can increase the protein in the food.

4. What is served with ghanbar polo?

This polo is served with salad shirazi, mast o musir, mast o khiar, sir torshi, and sabzi khordan.

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