A Beefy Pilaf from 'America's Test Kitchen' In Its 25th Season

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America's Test Kitchen is celebrating 25 years on public television with a new season premiering Saturday, September 21 at 2:30 pm and a special premiering Monday, September 16 at 8:00 pm (both will also be available to stream via the PBS app). Over that quarter century, the recipes they have meticulously researched and developed have come to encompass an ever broader definition of "America's" cuisine, incorporating more and more immigrant traditions. 

This Uzbek plov or pilaf from the upcoming 25th season is a perfect example. Central Asian restaurants have been sprouting up around the Chicago area to give immigrants a taste of home and offer others a new cuisine to explore. Now you can try a sample at home with America's Test Kitchen's recipe to whet your appetite for more Central Asian food and try one of the restaurants near you. 

Rice Pilaf with Beef and Carrots (Plov)

Why this works: This revered beef-and-carrot rice dish from Uzbekistan is worthy of being the centerpiece of the table. The most challenging part of making it is getting the meat to reach perfect tenderness at the same time that the rice finishes cooking and the moisture has evaporated or been absorbed into the rice. To eliminate tricky timing issues, we removed the beef from the saucepan when it was tender and added it back to the pilaf only when the rice was nearly done. Placing a layer of aluminum foil between the saucepan and the lid ensured a tight seal, so all of the flavorful cooking liquid was retained during the braising step and then absorbed into the rice on the stovetop. A grated carrot added at the beginning of cooking provided sweet, earthy flavor throughout, while larger carrot chunks added later with the rice became tender but remained intact. Traditional dried barberries supplied bracing pops of acidity. A whole head of garlic, simmered with the meat and then used to garnish the platter, distinguished this dish from other Silk Road pilafs. 

Before you begin: Grate the largest carrot on the large holes of a box grater. You can substitute 1 1/4 pounds of blade steak, about 1 inch thick, for the boneless short ribs; halve the steak along the central line of connective tissue, and then remove the tissue. Don’t substitute bone-in short ribs. If barberries are unavailable, combine 2 tablespoons of dried currants and 1 tablespoon of lemon juice in a small bowl. Microwave, covered, until very steamy, about 1 minute. Add the currants (and any residual lemon juice) to the plov as directed. Diners can mix individual cloves of the cooked garlic into the pilaf. 

Ingredients

5 carrots, peeled
1 pound boneless beef short ribs, trimmed
1 1/2 teaspoons table salt, divided
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 onions, quartered through root end and sliced 1/4 inch thick
2 tablespoons dried barberries, divided
3 garlic cloves, minced, plus 1 head garlic, outer papery skin removed and top 1/2 inch cut off
1 tablespoon ground cumin
2 teaspoons ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 3/4 cups water
1 cup basmati rice, rinsed and drained
2 scallions, sliced thin

Directions

1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350 degrees. Grate largest carrot. Cut remaining 4 carrots into 2- by 1/2-inch pieces.

2. Pat beef dry with paper towels and sprinkle all over with 1/2 teaspoon salt. Heat oil in large saucepan over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add beef and cook until well browned on all sides, 10 to 12 minutes. Using tongs, transfer beef to bowl. 

3. Add onions and remaining 1 teaspoon salt to saucepan. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally and scraping up any browned bits, until onions are soft, about 5 minutes. Add grated carrot, 1 tablespoon barberries, minced garlic, cumin, coriander, and pepper and cook, stirring constantly, until garlic and spices are fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes. Spread mixture into even layer. Return beef to saucepan, nestling it into vegetables. Add water and any accumulated beef juices. Place garlic head in center of saucepan. Increase heat to high and bring mixture to vigorous simmer. Remove saucepan from heat; place large sheet of aluminum foil over saucepan, crimp tightly to seal, and cover tightly with lid. Transfer saucepan to oven and cook until meat is fork tender, 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 hours.

4. Transfer beef and garlic head to cutting board. Stir rice and remaining carrots into cooking liquid (saucepan handle will be hot). Bring to simmer over medium heat. Adjust heat to maintain simmer; replace foil, cover, and cook until liquid level has dropped below rice and rice is half cooked, about 10 minutes. While rice cooks, cut beef into 1/2-inch cubes. Gently fold beef into rice mixture, making sure to incorporate rice on bottom of saucepan. Replace foil, cover, and continue to cook until rice is tender and moisture is fully absorbed, 10 to 15 minutes longer. (Check rice every 5 minutes by sliding butter knife to bottom of center of saucepan and gently pushing rice aside; if bottom appears to be drying out, reduce heat slightly.)

5. Pile pilaf on platter. Sprinkle with scallions and remaining 1 tablespoon barberries. Garnish with garlic head and serve.