Rice · Recipe · Lebanon · Reference page
Lebanese rice with vermicelli
رز بشعيرية (riz bi sh'arieh)
The everyday rice of Lebanon: broken vermicelli fried golden in butter and oil, then cooked with medium-grain rice and boiling water until every grain is separate. This version is the rice that Norma Dakhoul serves with her pea stew, bazella w riz, for SBS Food.
- Servings
- 4
- Preparation
- 5 min
- Cooking
- 20 min
- Total
- 25 min
- Difficulty
- Easy
Equipment
- Heavy-based saucepan with a lid
- Kettle
Ingredients
Method
Heat the butter and oil in the saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the vermicelli and fry, stirring, for 3–4 minutes until golden.
Why Toasted vermicelli gives the rice its nutty flavour and colour; it burns quickly, so keep stirring.
Timer · 4 min4:00Immediately add the boiling water, the rice and the salt.
Why The water stops the vermicelli browning further.
Cover, bring to the boil, then lower the heat and cook covered for 12–14 minutes, until the water is absorbed and the rice and pasta are tender.
Timer · 14 min14:00
To drink & serve with
Norma Dakhoul serves it with bazella w riz, a Lebanese stew of minced meat, peas and carrots, and Greek yoghurt.
Substitutions
- Vermicelli → Capellini or angel-hair pasta broken into short pieces (editorial).
- Butter (dairy-free) → All olive oil (editorial).
Common mistakes
- Walking away from the vermicelli: it goes from golden to burnt in seconds.
- Lifting the lid during cooking: the steam escapes and the rice cooks unevenly.
Storage & reheating
Cool within an hour, keep in the fridge no more than a day and reheat once, until steaming hot (UK FSA).
Safety
Contains gluten (vermicelli is wheat pasta) and milk (butter).
Allergens
Gluten · Milk
Check labels: stock, bacon and sauces can contain further allergens.
Dietary
vegetarian
The rice under every stew
Norma Dakhoul gives this rice as the partner to bazella w riz, a pea and meat stew she calls "a classic Lebanese recipe" that "you simply cannot enjoy without the revered rice pilaf with vermicelli". Rice with toasted vermicelli is the plain rice of the Lebanese table, served under stews and beside grilled meat.
Toast the pasta, not the rice
Only the vermicelli is fried: 3–4 minutes in butter and olive oil until golden. Boiling water goes in at once, with the washed rice and salt, and the pan is covered for 12–14 minutes until the water is gone. The ratio is simple, two volumes of water to one of rice, and the result is loose, separate grains flecked with brown pasta.
How it connects
Place
- origin Lebanon In preparation
Recipe
- related Mujaddara (rice and lentils)
- related Kushari
