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Ombré Gratin
Alexa Weibel
2575 ratings with an average rating of 4 out of 5 stars
2,575
3 hours
Updated March 19, 2024
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Soak rice in cold water 30 to 45 minutes, then drain.
Meanwhile, prepare the xawaash: Combine all the spices in a spice grinder and finely grind. Set aside.
Prepare the topping: Heat olive oil in a wide, deep pot over medium-high heat and add the onions, stirring occasionally until translucent. Add raisins and allow to soften, about 2 minutes, then add red bell pepper and cook until softened, about 5 to 7 minutes. Season with salt and set aside on a paper towel.
In the same pot, make the rice: Heat ½ cup oil. Add onions and sauté, stirring frequently, until softened, 6 to 8 minutes. Add garlic, cinnamon sticks, cardamom, cloves and xawaash and cook, stirring, 1 minute.
Stir in stock and rice. Bring to boil, then cover and cook on low heat 20 minutes. Stir in saffron and raisins and season to taste with salt. Cover, turn off heat and steam for 5 more minutes. Transfer to a serving platter, using a large spoon to pile rice in a heap onto a platter. Sprinkle topping over rice and serve.
For Xawaash, do I grind the whole green cardamon pods or just the seeds inside?
generally it's just the seeds you want, not the shells.
Tastes kind of Moroccan. Goes with everything. Spicy sweet pungent. We love love love it.
I tried this recipe on Thanksgiving day and it turned out a big blob. I had to throw it away. My take on this misfortune was the soaking of the rice. I will try this recipe again but will skip the soaking.
It would be pronounced " ha-WASH "
The onion, raisin, and red pepper ARE the topping—they are sautéed in oil, then that onion/raisin/pepper mix is set aside and that same oil in the same pot is used to sauté the spice mix and then cook the rice. Same pot, same oil, for steps 3-5. It's easy to miss something while trying to manage a new recipe—so I always read an entire recipe before beginning to cook it.
I've found my favorite rice dish. Excellent. Great with lamb.
Does anyone know for sure how to pronounce "Xawaash?" I have a feeling this will be a favorite rice recipe and if guests ask what's in it, I don't want to make a fool of myself!
I would suggest adding the saffron at the beginning so it cooks withs the rice, not after the rice is cooked.
Fantastic. I made this plant-based so omitted the oil, salt, and chicken broth. (used water instead of broth). I also cut the recipe in half and it still made a lot. :)
This is literally the best rice I've ever eaten - no exaggeration. It's soft, fluffy, warm, delicately and perfectly spiced. If you made the spice blend before hand, it'd be a quick dish. I made mine vegan by replacing chicken broth with vegetable broth.
I will make this again, hopefully a thousand times.
This is delicious. I made half the amount (which is plenty). Soaking the rice first (common in many cuisines) makes the rice cook more evenly and gently. When done, place a tea towel or several thicknesses of paper towel across the pot and recover. This will absorb excess moisture.
This recipe is a winner.
The letter X in Somali is closest to the letter H in English. You can just pronounce it Hawaash.
Hoe much ground fenugreek can I substitute for the seeds?
Grind the cardamom, pods and all.
I cooked this today, since I had all the spices at hand. This will go in my rotation for a holiday dish. I served it with Cuban pernil (leftovers) from yesterday and it was absolutely divine.
Tasty and the recipe makes A LOT of rice. A crowd pleaser.
Everything is good but you are missing one ingredient that will take it to another level. Cumin seeds. Add them with the Hawaash.
Thank you so much
This is an amazing recipe that goes with everything, especially Hawa Hassan's Digaag Qumbe from Bon Appetit. What I also love about the recipe is that it divides well--I quartered the recipe and it came out great.
I make this rice to feed a crowd. It works in winter or summer and everything in between. It’s just the right amount of spice and flavor to have a personality without overwhelming the other dishes. Since mix makes enough for three batches.
After tasting a rice dish made by an Ethiopian woman who worked for my mother, I learned from her that she did not measure anything, just used her memory from cooking with her grandmother. I kept looking on the New York Times recipe list hoping for hints until this popped up. It sounded and looked right, so I tried it. Big success. I have been cooking it ever since and always get asked for the recipe. The only changes I made are doubling the amount of topping. It's SO good.
You can find already prepared xawaash at any halal market. At least in Minnesota.
This rice is delicious, and enjoyed by family and friends. The mixture of aromatic spices makes it tasty.
Exc ellent!!, Made the whole amt. for 6 adults and they scarfed it up and took what few leftovers home! I used a cup less of chicken broth and would love more of the topping, so...
Wow, wow, wow. Delicious combi of spices. Gonna make it again, too yummy.
I wonder if anyone has made this in an instant pot
Definitely no soaking. I had a risotto instead of rice. Very soggy. Good flavor though. Will try again. Ate it with local Somali sambusas.
This is delicious. I made half the amount (which is plenty). Soaking the rice first (common in many cuisines) makes the rice cook more evenly and gently. When done, place a tea towel or several thicknesses of paper towel across the pot and recover. This will absorb excess moisture.
This recipe is a winner.
I made this with Jasmine rice without soaking. I also used all previously ground spices in the Xawaash. I added chard and leftover grilled pork and it was delicious.
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