This pilaf dish used to be a treat that I would make a few times a year, towards the end of the fava bean season, now that I have found already shelled and peeled beans in the freezer section of my favourite Middle Eastern store, I started making it more often.
To be honest, making this pilaf does not take more time than making a regular pilaf if you are using store bought ones or if you have a bag that you froze. Before my recent discovery, I would take the time to prepare a large batch to store in the freezer to use later. You can see detailed instructions for shelling and peeling the beans here. To freeze the beans, shell them and blanch in hot water, cover with cold water, peel the beans, flash freeze them on a baking sheet covered with parchment or wax paper and transfer to a resealable bag until you are ready to use them.
- 1 ½ cup jasmine rice or any other long grain rice
- 1 medium onion
- 4 tbsp olive oil
- 1 ½ cup shelled and peeled fava beans
- ¼ cup chopped dill
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
If you are using fresh fava beans, shell and cook the beans for about 3 minutes in boiling water, remove the beans and place them in bowl filled with cold water and ice cubes. Once the beans are cooled, peel and place in a pot with hot water, gently cook until they are tender, remove the beans and set them aside.
Measure the rice and place in a sieve, rinse well and set aside. In the meantime, peel and finely chop the onion. Heat the olive oil in a medium size pot, add the onion and cook for 3-4 minutes over high heat, add the rice and cook over medium heat for 2-3 minutes, until each grain is coated with olive oil and slightly toasted, add 1 ¾ cup of water, season with salt and pepper and let it come to a boil. Cover with a lid and turn down the heat to the lowest setting. Add the fava beans when most of the liquid has been absorbed, cover again with a lid, turn off the heat. Stir in the chopped dill before serving.
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