Kabuli Pulao

About This Recipe

Kabuli pulao is the dish Afghan families serve to honoured guests — a tall mound of pearl-coloured basmati, every grain separate and slick with the perfume of caramel, cardamom, and lamb fat. Lamb shanks are braised until falling-apart tender, the rich gosht stock used to cook the rice. Carrots are julienned and candied in sugar syrup spiked with cardamom; raisins are plumped in the same syrup; almonds and pistachios are slivered. The components are layered with the rice and steamed under a damp cloth so the bottom forms a delicate golden crust (tah dig). Served on a platter big enough to feed the whole room, eaten with the right hand, no spices on the table — none are needed.

Ingredients

Serves 6

• 4lamb shanks (about 1.4 kg total)
• 2 tbspvegetable oil
• 2 largeyellow onions, finely chopped
• 2 tspsalt
• 1.5 Lwater
• 500 ggood basmati rice, rinsed and soaked 30 minutes
• 3 largecarrots, in long matchsticks
• 100 graisins (mix golden and brown)
• 60 gslivered almonds
• 60 gslivered pistachios
• 120 gsugar
• 1 tbspground cardamom
• 1 tspground cumin
• 4 tbspghee, melted
• 1 pinchsaffron, bloomed in 2 tbsp hot water

Instructions

1. 1

   Brown the lamb

   Heat oil in a heavy pot. Brown lamb shanks hard on all sides, about 12 minutes. Lift out.

2. 2

   Cook the onions

   Add onions to the pot, lower the heat, and cook 12 minutes until deep golden. This colour is what tints the rice.

3. 3

   Braise

   Return shanks, add salt, water, and 1 tsp cardamom. Cover and simmer gently 90 minutes until meat is fork-tender. Lift shanks out; strain and reserve the gosht broth.

4. 4

   Candy carrots and raisins

   Combine sugar and 200 ml water in a wide pan; simmer 4 minutes. Add carrots and cook 8 minutes until softened and glassy. Lift out with a slotted spoon. Drop raisins into the same syrup for 1 minute until plump; lift out. Reserve syrup.

5. 5

   Toast nuts

   Wipe the pan, add 1 tbsp ghee, and toast almonds and pistachios over medium heat for 2 minutes until fragrant. Set aside.

6. 6

   Parboil rice

   Bring a wide pot of salted water to the boil. Add the drained rice and boil 5 minutes — grains should be flexible but still firm in the centre. Drain immediately.

7. 7

   Layer for steaming

   Wipe the lamb pot. Pour in 3 tbsp ghee and a ladle of gosht broth. Spread half the parboiled rice over the bottom. Lay shanks on top, then half the carrots and raisins. Cover with remaining rice. Drizzle saffron water, the rest of the ghee, remaining cardamom, and cumin.

8. 8

   Steam under a cloth

   Wrap the lid in a clean kitchen towel and clamp it on tight. Steam over very low heat 30 minutes — the bottom should form a golden crust without burning.

9. 9

   Crown and serve

   Mound rice onto a wide platter. Pull lamb meat onto the top in big pieces. Crown with remaining candied carrots, raisins, and the toasted nuts. Drizzle any leftover syrup.

Variations

• •

  Some Kabuli households add 1 tbsp rosewater along with the saffron.

• •

  Kandahari version adds dried apricots alongside the raisins.

• •

  Vegetarian Kabuli pulao replaces lamb with roasted chickpeas and uses vegetable stock plus a knob of butter for richness.

Storage

Refrigerate up to 3 days. Reheat covered with 2 tbsp water in a 160°C oven for 20 minutes — microwaving turns the rice gluey.

Frequently Asked Questions