Albaloo Polo is a fragrant and beautiful rice dish made with sour cherries and topped with saffron rice, almonds and pistachios. It is a sweet and sour dish that can be served with these fabulous lamb meatballs, chicken or even ham.
Although many Persians love sour foods, they also have a sweet tooth. There are many ways they add sweetness to savory dishes, using dried fruits as well as fresh fruits.
Although albaloo polo is a sweetened rice dish, it offers a sweet and sour combination that is pretty fabulous. Unlike shirin polo, which is prepared with raisins, candied orange peels and carrots, this sour cherry rice dish is much simpler and is cooked with actual sour cherries simmered in a sweet syrup.
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Why this recipe works
- Unique: This is not a common dish that is served here in the US. So whenever I introduce to friends, they are always impressed by it. Not all Persian families serve this dish either.
- Versatile: There are a number of ways to prepare this rice. You can also serve it with a number of different meats, too, as it is a meatless dish. I even share how to make it with brown rice.
- Flavor: This rice dish is made with sour cherries and not regular cherries. It is meant to be a sweet and sour dish, not a super sweet meal. Persians have several sweet rice dishes, like shirin polo. When I was little, my mom made albaloo polo for Christmas. It goes beautifully with a roast turkey or holiday ham.
Ingredients you need
Rice Ingredients
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- Ground saffron: Just like basmati rice, you want high quality saffron, too. The amount you need depends on the quality. If you find that your rice is not a vibrant yellow, you are probably using a lesser quality saffron. Look for Persian saffron. I mix saffron with some of the cooked rice to sprinkle over the albaloo polo as well as use it for the tahdig.
- Sour cherries: You can use frozen or fresh sour cherries. I have made this with both options. I usually use frozen because fresh sour cherries are so difficult to find.
- Sugar: You will simmer the cherries in a sweet syrup for this dish. Simple granulated sugar is all you need. You can also use honey.
- Basmati rice: You want to choose a high quality basmati rice. Many of the varieties you find at the grocery store have less flavor and are processed so they cook faster. You want long grain basmati rice, preferably Indian. Several brands I like are Royal, Pari and Zaffaroni.
- Salt: I use sea salt to season my rice.
- Butter: For this tahdig (the crust on the bottom of the rice) I mix rice with butter and saffron. You can also use olive oil and potatoes like I do for this simple Persian rice (chelo).
- Garnish with almond slices and chopped pistachios (optional)
Lamb Meatball Ingredients
- Ground lamb: If you are not a fan of lamb, you could use ground beef instead.
- Fresh herbs: I prefer fresh herbs in this dish. You will need green onions, parsley and mint.
- Seasonings: Ground cinnamon, turmeric, garlic powder, salt and ground black pepper
- Extra virgin olive oil: I brown the meatballs in olive oil. You can also use canola oil.
- Egg: This is used as a binder for the meatballs.
Step-by-step directions
- Prep the rice. Soak the rice in a bowl full of water. Gently stir rice with your hand. Pour out water and repeat two more times. After washing rice a third time, rinse and then cover with water and soak.
- Bloom the saffron. In a small bowl combine crushed saffron with 1 TBS hot water and set aside.
- Prep the cherries. If using fresh sour cherries, clean and pit them. If using frozen cherries, thaw first. Place cherries in a saucepan and sugar then cook on medium-low heat for 15 minutes. Strain out cherries. Continue cooking until juices are syrupy. Return cherries to syrup then remove from heat and reserve.
- Parboil the rice. Fill a large non-stick pot with water and salt and bring to boil. When water has come to boil, pour out water in the bowl containing the soaking rice. Add drained rice to the boiling water. When water comes to boil again and rice floats to the top of the pot (approx. 6 minutes), pour contents of the pot into a fine colander.
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- Set up the rice tahdig. Return pot to the stove over medium heat. Add some saffron water. When butter has melted, add enough rice to cover the bottom of the pot. Mix with saffron butter then gently spread flat in the bottom of the pot.
- Layer the cherries and rice. Scatter about ⅓ of the rice over this buttered layer. Spoon ⅓ of sour cherries over the rice, using some of the syrup but not a lot. Repeat layering in rice and sour cherries until all of the cherries and rice are in the pot.
- Steam the rice. Reserve leftover syrup. Using the handle of a long wooden spoon, poke a hole down to the bottom of the pot. This allows the steam out.
- Cover the lid of your pot with a clean towel or several paper towels, and set firmly over your pot to prevent steam from escaping. Reduce heat to low and continue cooking the rice for 45 minutes.
- Make the meatball mix. While rice is cooking, prepare the meatballs. Mix ingredients (except for the oil) together in a large mixing bowl. Scoop out enough meat to form a 1-inch meatball, approximately 20.
- Fry the meatballs. Once all meatballs have been formed, heat a large pan over medium high heat and add oil. When oil is hot, begin frying the meatballs until browned all over. This will take about 10-15 minutes. Transfer meatballs to a large bowl. Mix in 1-2 tablespoons of reserved cherry syrup and coat the meatballs evenly.
- Serve. When rice is done cooking, scoop out about ½ cup of cooked rice and transfer to a bowl. Stir in saffron water and mix until golden. Scoop out the rest of the rice onto a serving platter and top with saffron rice.
- Break up the tahdig (crust) and place around the rice. Arrange the meatballs on the serving platter. Garnish with almonds and pistachios and serve.
Expert tips and recipe FAQs
There are a number of different ways you can serve, albaloo polo. I adapted my lamb meatball recipe and coated them in the extra sour cherry syrup I had made for the rice dish. But you can also serve it with my dry rub chicken kabobs which are made in the oven or jujeh kabob (chicken kabob). It is also delicious with koobideh kabob (ground meat kabob).
When I was a kid, my mom would serve it with our Christmas ham or roast turkey. So you see, it is very versatile and festive.
My cousin shared with me her secret way of preparing albaloo polo. She makes some brown basmati rice, then after it is cooked, mixes in the sour cherries and syrup. The brown rice offers a delicious nuttiness to this dish that I really love! This is pictured below.
Some people say to use sour cherry jam (moraba albaloo) for this dish, but this is way too sweet. The cherry syrup I prepare uses much less sugar and less sweet. You want a sweet and sour flavor where you can taste the flavor of the sour cherries. This is not supposed to be a sugary sweet rice.
Storing/Freezing Instructions
TO STORE: Store any leftover rice and meatballs in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 4 days.
TO FREEZE: You can also freeze leftovers. I personally don’t like how the rice texture changes when thawed after freezing, so I don’t freeze it. Meatballs can be frozen without any issues. Either way, transfer to a resealable bag or freezer safe container and freeze for up to 4 months.
Sour cherries have a very short season and are freshest in the summer, peaking in July. If you cannot find fresh sour cherries, you can use frozen ones to make albaloo polo (sour cherry rice) or maraba albaloo (sour cherry jam).
Albaloo polo is a Persian dish that translates to sour cherry rice. It is made in a pot where basmati rice is steamed with layers of sour cherries and a mildly sweet sour cherry syrup. It can be served alone or with lamb meatballs, saffron chicken or your favorite kebab.
Albaloo Polo (Sour Cherry Rice)
Ingredients
Rice Ingredients
- ¼ teaspoon ground saffron steeped in 1 TBS hot water
- 14 ounces sour cherries
- ½ cup sugar
- 2 cups rice
- 1 tablespoon salt
- 2 tablespoon butter
- 1 tablespoon almond slicers
- 1 tablespoon chopped pistachios
Meatball Ingredients
- 1 lb lamb
- ¼ cup chopped green onions
- 2 tablespoon fresh parsley
- 1 tablespoon fresh mint
- 1 egg
- ½ teaspoon turmeric
- ¼ teaspoon cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
Instructions
- In a medium-sized bowl soak rice in water. Gently wash the rice by stirring rice in water with your hand. Pour out water and repeat two more times. After washing rice a third time, rinse and then cover with water and soak.
- In a small bowl combine crushed saffron with 1 tablespoon hot water and set aside.
- If using fresh sour cherries, clean and pit them. If using frozen cherries, thaw first.
- Place cherries in a saucepan and sugar then cook on medium-low heat for 15 minutes. Strain out cherries.
- Continue cooking until juices are syrupy. Return cherries to syrup then remove from heat and reserve.
- In a large non-stick pot add 6 cups of water and 1 tablespoon salt and bring to boil. When water has come to boil, pour out water in the bowl containing the soaking rice. Add strained rice to the boiling water.
- When water comes to boil again and rice floats to the top of the pot (approx. 6 minutes), pour contents of the pot into a fine colander.
- Return pot to the stove over medium heat. Add 2 tablespoon butter and 1 teaspoon of saffron.
- When butter has melted, add enough rice to cover the bottom of the pot. Mix with saffron butter then gently spread flat in the bottom of the pot.
- Scatter about ⅓ of the rice over this buttered layer. Spoon ⅓ of sour cherries over the rice, using some of the syrup but not a lot. Repeat layering in rice and sour cherries until all of the cherries and rice are in the pot.
- Reserve leftover syrup.
- Using the handle of a long wooden spoon, poke a hole down to the bottom of the pot. This allows the steam out.
- Cover the lid of your pot with a clean towel or several paper towels, and set firmly over your pot to prevent steam from escaping. Reduce heat to low and continue cooking the rice for 45 minutes.
- While rice is cooking, prepare the meatballs. Mix ingredients (except for the oil) together in a large mixing bowl. Scoop out enough meat to form a 1-inch meatball, approximately 20.
- Once all meatballs have been formed, heat a large pan over medium high heat and add oil. When oil is hot, begin frying the meatballs until browned all over. This will take about 10-15 minutes.
- Transfer meatballs to a large bowl. Mix in 1-2 tablespoons of reserved cherry syrup and coat the meatballs evenly.
- When rice is done cooking, scoop out about ½ cup of cooked rice and transfer to a bowl. Stir in saffron water and mix until golden.
- Scoop out the rest of the rice onto a serving platter and top with saffron rice.
- Break up the tahdig (crust) and place around the rice. Arrange the meatballs on the serving platter. Garnish with almonds and pistachios and serve.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition Disclaimer
Nutritional information is an estimate provided to you as a courtesy. You should calculate the actual nutritional information with the products and brands you are using with your preferred nutritional calculator.
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Written by Laura Bashar
Hi, I’m Laura, a certified professional cook and cookbook author living in San Diego. I have been sharing my family’s favorite recipes inspired from all over the world since 2008. Let’s cook up something fun!
