Şehriyeli pilav (Turkish rice with vermicelli)

Şehriyeli pilav is a staple Turkish side dish served with most Cypriot stews and oven dishes. Pronounced 'sheh-ree-yeh-lee pih-lahv', it combines long grain rice with fried tel şehriye (broken vermicelli), giving it a fragrant, nutty flavour and adding a touch of colour. The dish has a delicate balance of textures, with the slightly chewy şehriye contrasting the soft, tender rice perfectly.

Traditionally, before mass production of şehriye, women in Cypriot villages would gather at one household during the summer harvest period to make a different type of şehriye by hand, called arpa şehriye. They would roll dough very thinly, before cutting each pasta piece at speed. Arpa şehriye is thicker than tel şehriye used in this recipe and is similar to orzo pasta, which is shaped like grains of barley (giving its Turkish name, arpa). Once cut, they would be laid out on a paner (woven basket), dried under the hot summer sun and then stored in sacks, ready to be used in the colder months.

You can use either type of pasta for this rice, with arpa şehriye giving it a heavier texture. It is purely down to your preference. Also, we use 'Easy Cook' long grain white rice for this recipe for fluffier rice.

Serves 4 as a side | Preparation time: 5 minutes | Cooking time: 35 minutes | Additional time: 30 minutes to let the rice settle

Ingredients

For the rice
400g 'Easy Cook' long grain white rice, washed well until the water runs clear and drained	​½ chicken or vegetable stock cube
50g tel şehriye (or broken vermicelli)	1 tsp salt, or as desired
1 tbsp butter	​Sunflower oil, for frying
1L hot water

Hob heat settings

Method

1. Lightly oil a large saucepan with sunflower oil and place on a medium-high heat. Once hot, fry the tel şehriye, stirring continuously for 1-3 minutes, or until lightly browned.  

2. Add the rice and half stock cube and fry while continuously stirring for 2-3 minutes more, breaking up the stock cube to evenly coat the rice.

3. Add the hot water and salt, stir well and leave to simmer while loosely covered for 10-15 minutes, or until the water runs low (gently part with a spoon to check).

4. Gently stir in the butter and lower to a medium-low heat for a further 5-10 minutes, or until the rice has completely absorbed the water.

5. Place a large clean tea towel loosely over the rice (so that it is not touching it) and place the lid on top of this. Leave to stand for at least 30 minutes and fluff up with a fork before serving warm.