This recipe for Kuku rice vegetable cooking with vegetable roulette and saffron serves herb rice with a layered herb-and-tuna kuku roulade and a golden saffron garnish.
Although the translated title calls it “vegetable roulette,” the centerpiece is a savory rolled kuku. It is made in three stages: a thin saffron egg layer, a green herb kuku layer, and a tuna filling. Chilling the roll before slicing gives the spirals their clean shape.
Ingredients for Kuku rice and vegetable roulette
- About 800 g cleaned and finely chopped herbs, or 8 small bowls, divided
- 2 tablespoons finely chopped parsley, about 10 g
- 16 eggs, divided
- 3 tablespoons wheat flour, about 50 g
- ¼ tablespoon bloomed saffron
- 1 can tuna, about 180 g, thoroughly drained
- 3 cups rice, about 350 g
- Up to 2 cups cooking oil, divided between the mold, pan and rice
- Salt, as needed
For the chopped herb mixture, use dill, coriander, leek greens and parsley. The original recipe begins with roughly 2 kg uncleaned herbs and yields about 800 g after tough stems and damaged leaves are removed.
Make the thin saffron egg layer
Heat the oven to 170°C, within the original 160–180°C range. Oil a 27 × 37 cm rectangular nonstick baking pan, using about half a cup of the measured oil to coat the base generously.
Whisk two eggs with the three tablespoons flour until no dry lumps remain. Add four more eggs, the bloomed saffron, two tablespoons chopped parsley and a pinch of salt. Whisk just until evenly mixed.
Pour this mixture into the prepared pan and tilt it carefully into a thin, level layer. Bake on an upper oven rack for about five minutes, until the surface has set but is still flexible enough to roll.
Add the herb kuku and tuna filling
Mix three small bowls of chopped herbs with six eggs and a pinch of salt. Spread the green kuku mixture evenly over the set saffron egg layer.
Return the pan to the oven for about 10 minutes. The herb layer should be set enough to lift without breaking, but it should not become dry or deeply browned.
Drain the 180 g can of tuna very well, then arrange the tuna in a compact line along one short edge of the kuku. Starting at that edge, roll the layered kuku around the filling. Place the roll back in the oven for about five minutes so its shape firms.
Let the vegetable roulette cool, cover it, and refrigerate it for one to two hours. Once firm, cut it with a sharp knife into even rounds.
Cook the sliced roulette in a second kuku
Whisk four eggs with two small bowls of chopped herbs and a little salt. Heat about one cup of oil in a medium nonstick frying pan, then pour in the herb-and-egg mixture.
Place four roulette rounds upright in the soft kuku mixture so their spiral faces remain visible. Cover the pan and cook over medium-low heat until the surrounding kuku is set and the underside is golden.
Instead of turning the entire kuku, cut it into portions around the roulette slices. Turn each cut portion onto its exposed side briefly so the cut edge cooks and colors, then transfer the pieces to a plate.
Prepare the herb rice
Rinse the three cups rice until the water becomes much less cloudy. Cover with water and the original three tablespoons salt, then soak for one to two hours. Drain before cooking.
Bring a large pot of water to a boil, add the soaked rice and cook until the grains are tender on the outside but still slightly firm at the center. Drain promptly.
Fold three small bowls of chopped herbs through the drained rice. Add a little oil to the base of a clean pot, spoon in the herb rice, make several steam holes, and drizzle up to half a cup oil over the surface. Cover and steam over low heat until the grains are tender and separate.
Prepare the saffron rice garnish
Take a small bowl of the cooked rice and mix it gently with bloomed saffron. If you are starting with dry threads, bloom them first using this guide to brewing Iranian saffron.
Keep the golden rice separate until serving so it remains bright against the green herb rice.
Arrange the Kuku rice for serving
Spoon the herb rice onto a wide platter. Arrange the vegetable roulette and kuku portions around it, then place the saffron rice in the center.
This rice kuku arrangement is designed for a shared platter, with a little saffron rice, herb rice and sliced roulade in each serving. Serve while the rice and surrounding kuku are warm. The sliced roulette may be cool or gently rewarmed, but avoid prolonged reheating, which can make the thin egg layers rubbery and obscure the spiral.
How to keep the roulade neat
- Chop the herbs finely: long pieces pull through the cut surface and make the roll harder to slice.
- Drain the tuna: excess liquid weakens the center of the roulade.
- Set, but do not brown, the first layers: flexible egg and kuku layers roll with fewer cracks.
- Chill before cutting: one to two hours in the refrigerator helps the spiral hold together.
- Use a sharp knife: wipe the blade between cuts to keep the layers distinct.
