Story No. 2:

The most unforgettable smelly memory is our neighborhood in Sāri, where I grew up, in spring and blossoms of orange trees. The composition of scent of Kateh and orange blossoms is still present for me each spring here in Berlin, although I could hardly find those fresh fragrances. The overwhelming scent of cooking rice in any street of our neighborhood at lunch time used to make me walk the fastest I could, as a school girl, everyday on the way back home from school. I just wanted to reach home as see what my mom with her magical hands cooked for me. I used to squat at the table with my back pack on, fork and spoon in hands. How patient my mom was! we had the same challenge everyday. She was reminding me everyday "اول دست و صورت، بعد غذا!" (first wash your hands, then you are allowed to eat), She used to help me taking off my backpack, changing my clothes and washing my hands and face before eating.

Polo is the queen of Iranian cuisine and "Kateh", typically cooked in North Iranian cuisine, is my very favorite one. It is fast, easy, juicy and healthy, so what could I need more?!

Ingredients for four people:

-3 cups of Rice (Iranian one of course!)

-4 cups of medium temperature water

-1 tea spoon of salt

-2 spoon of vegetable oil

Instruction:

let's cook "Kateh" together:

1. wash the rice 3 to 4 times with medium temperature water until the water goes clear

2. Then pour 4 cups of water on  top. The water should stay approximately 1,5 centimeter above the flat surface of rice in the pot.

3. Add salt and oil and let it soak for about 1 hour*.

4. After maximum one hour put the lid of your Laveh, not all way through, and let the rice boil on medium heat.

5. When all water has evaporated, pile the rice in the middle.

6. Cover the lid with "Damkoni"** cover the pot with and lower down the heat and let the rice cook slowly for around half an hour.

7. After half an hour, you are ready with your Kateh!

* As a tip keep in mind that the time that rice soaks in water differs from place to place and depends on kind of rice you want to cook. As my first experience in Berlin I did the same method that I used to do in Iran and I let the rice soak for half a day. In the end what I had was more like a thick soup than Kateh. So with trial and error I understood maximum one hour is perfect for my darling rice seeds to bath.

** Damkoni is a piece of clean and thin cloth which absorbs steam and helps rice not get over steamed.