Baghali Polo | Persian Dill Rice

Baghali polo is a fresh, light, and delicious Persian mixed rice made with broad beans (typically fava), fresh dill, and a touch of garlic.  It is a common dish in traditional Persian cuisine.  When made with fresh fava beans from the pod or shell of the beans plus fresh dill weed, the process can be extremely labor-intensive (see the pic share of the day my mom insisted on making it the old fashion way with our girls).  Here I share my time-saving tips and techniques for this old-world classic recipe.  I often substitute green peas for fava beans (when fava beans are not in season) in this classic layered rice recipe.

You may be asking what is a Persian ‘mixed rice’?  We refer to mixed rice for all rice recipes where it’s necessary to parboil (or partially boil) the rice first, then add special add-in ingredients (usually vegetables, beans, legumes, herbs, and spices) for a particular rice dish – in this case with fava beans and dill.  

In this version, we substituted the fava beans with green peas and served it with a side of potatoes.

But first, a quick story – My favorite memory of eating baghali polo was with Leyla’s class way back when she was in elementary school.  The science curriculum was developed and run by parents and it was simply called ‘garden’.  In Garden, the kids had the opportunity to cook with what they planted, cultivated, grew, and harvested. 

side note, when fava beans are young the outer skin is still soft, the pod/outer skin can also be consumed

If you ever there were doubts that picky eaters would eat peas or beans, plant them, water the seedlings and plants together, allow them to pick the beans, then watch them devour up before your eyes!

The garden science curriculum was wonderful in going deep into the nutritional benefits of fava beans. Fava beans are a powerhouse of nutrition!

Why are favas good for you?

• very good source of plant-based protein and fiber
• loaded with micronutrients:  vitamins including a high level of folate (in the vitamin B family), minerals including manganese, iron, selenium
• low in calories yet filling

If you haven’t tried fava beans you’re in for a treat.  They taste like a milder version of baby lima beans and have a nutty, less bitter, and slightly sweet pleasant flavor. Please note that it can be a challenge finding fresh fava beans as the window they are in season is very short.  Fresh fava beans in the pod are in season for about two weeks in the spring around May.  If you are lucky you may find fava beans in frozen or canned form, most often in middle eastern or international markets.  

There are a few steps for cleaning and shelling favas from fresh fava bean pods.

Steps for preparing fresh fava beans from the pod:

• remove beans from pods
• blanch and remove outer shells (ice bath to stop cooking after a quick 1-minute blanch)
• cut to a smaller size for mixed rice

Here is a short video demonstrating how to shell fava beans from fresh fava bean pods:

If you’d like to try this recipe but are having trouble tracking down favas, fortunately, there are a few good substitutes for fava beans in this recipe.

Good substitutes for fava beans in this recipe:

• green peas
• edamame
• lima beans

My go-to fava bean substitute for this recipe is green peas.  We always have them both frozen and in canned and everyone in the family likes the sweet, familiar taste of green peas.  My next choice is edamame.  We all really like the taste of edamame as well.  Many people including Iranians substitute baby lima beans for fava beans – they are similar in appearance and texture but to me, the taste is stronger and more bitter with lima beans.

Watch this handy recipe for a visual on how to layer the parboiled rice, green peas (or favas if you are lucky to find those), dill, and spices in a big pot, preparing for the 2nd round of cooking the rice after it’s been layered and mixed.

Steps for layering rice for mixed green pea and dill Persian rice:

• pour oil along with some saffron to coat the bottom of a large pot
• layer with parboiled rice
• sprinkle in fava beans (or substitute such as green peas)
• next, add dill weed and spices
• gently stir and combine the layer
• start again and layer with parboiled rice, fava beans (or substitute such as green peas), dill, and spices

An important step when cooking layered Persian rice is to wrap the lid of the pot securely with a dish towel (paper towel also works) to secure and keep the steam inside the pot while it’s cooking.  This technique helps to keep the rice fluffy – a soggy or sticky Persian rice is considered a ‘fail’!  Just be sure that it is folded up and wrapped tightly away from the heat source.

The good news is that dill is relatively easy to find in markets fresh, freeze-dried, and dried as a spice.  The rice tastes best with fresh herbs but I find freeze-dried to work nicely as well.

As per usual with all Iranian dishes, there are variations as to which spices are used according to the person or family’s recipe.  The ‘advieh’ or spice mix is different in each Persian cook’s home.  We like to keep it simple and close to the traditional version.

Spices used in our recipe:

• fresh or freeze-dried dill weed
• garlic
• saffron
• salt and pepper

Make a bowl of Persian Cucumber Yogurt Dip |  Mast O Khiar to enjoy with Persian fava bean rice.  If you liked this mixed Persian rice, you’ll love Persian Green Bean Rice – check out the recipe for Loobia Polo Morgh.

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