Sholeh Zard is a popular, easy-to-make, vegan-friendly Persian dessert. It’s a saffron and rosewater rice pudding, traditionally garnished with cinnamon, almonds, pistachios, and edible roses.
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Why You’ll Love Sholeh Zard
- Sholeh Zard is a Persian saffron and rosewater rice pudding.
- Sholeh means a pudding-like texture and Zard means yellow in Persian. The dessert gets its color from saffron, the most expensive spice in the world, and a staple of Persian cooking.
- Sholeh Zard is a very popular and easy Iranian dessert. It is also very easy to make vegan using plant-based butter. My favorite plant-based butters are Earth Balance and Miyokos Creamery.
Ingredients/Equipment Notes
To make this delicious vegan Sholeh Zard, you will need the following ingredients (full measurements are in the recipe card below):
- Basmati Rice
- Wash the Basmati Rice and soak overnight
- water
- salt
- sugar
- plant-based butter (I recommend Miyokos)
- Rosewater – you can get this at Middle Eastern or Indian stores, Whole Foods, and even on Amazon
- ground saffron
- slivered almonds
- cinnamon
- edible rose petals, pistachios and/or almonds for garnish. You can get edible rose petals on Amazon.
You will also need the following equipment:
- mortar and pestal is helpful to grind the saffron threads for this recipe. I have this one from Amazon.
How to Make the Best Sholeh Zard
- Wash the Basmati rice.
- Soak the Basmati rice in a bowl of water overnight. You want the rice to be very soft before you begin cooking it.
- In a large pot, add the 8 cups of water, the soaked rice, and salt. Bring to a boil.
- Lower the heat to medium, partially cover the pot, and cook for 60 minutes. Stir occasionally.
- After the 60 minutes, the rice should be soft and the mixture thicker.
- Prepare the saffron mixture (1/2 tsp ground saffron dissolved in 2 Tbsp hot water).
- Add the sugar, plant-based butter, saffron mixture, slivered almonds, and rosewater.
- Reduce the heat to low, cover the pot, and cook for another 30 minutes. Stir occasionally.
- The rice mixture should be thick and creamy. If it has excess liquid, continue to cook on low heat, uncovered. Note the rice mixture will also harden as it cools down.
- Place the rice mixture in serving bowls. Garnish as desired. Let cool before serving.
How to Serve Sholeh Zard
- Sholeh Zard is a common dessert for dinner parties (called Mehmooni in Persian) and can be beautifully garnished with cinnamon, almonds, pistachios, and edible roses.
- Sholeh Zard is delicious with a cup of Persian tea.
- See other Persian desserts on the blog below:
Recipe Tips
- An important step for making Sholeh Zard is washing the Basmati rice and soaking it overnight so it is very soft and begins to fall apart when you slow cook it.
Did you make this recipe? Take a picture and tag us on Instagram @plant_basedpersian or share it on Pinterest!
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Vegan Sholeh Zard
- Total Time: Overnight + 90 minutes
- Yield: 6 people 1x
- Diet: Vegan
Description
A Saffron, Rosewater Rice Pudding
Ingredients
- 1 cup Basmati Rice
- Wash the Basmati Rice and soak overnight
- 8 cups water
- 1/8 tsp salt
- 2 cups sugar (can adjust to your taste)
- 3 Tbsp plant-based butter (I recommend Miyokos)
- 4 Tbsp rosewater
- 1/2 tsp ground saffron dissolved in 2 Tbsp hot water
- 1/2 cup slivered almonds
Garnish
- cinnamon
- pistachios and/or almonds
- To remove the skin from the pistachios or almonds, soak in hot water for 30 minutes.
Instructions
- Wash the Basmati rice.
- Soak the Basmati rice in a bowl of water overnight. You want the rice to be very soft before you begin cooking it.
- In a large pot, add the 8 cups of water, the soaked rice, and salt. Bring to a boil.
- Lower the heat to medium, partially cover the pot, and cook for 60 minutes. Stir occasionally.
- After the 60 minutes, the rice should be soft and the mixture thicker.
- Prepare the saffron mixture (1/2 tsp ground saffron dissolved in 2 Tbsp hot water).
- Add the sugar, plant-based butter, saffron mixture, slivered almonds, and rosewater.
- Reduce the heat to low, cover the pot, and cook for another 30 minutes. Stir occasionally.
- The rice mixture should be thick and creamy. If it has excess liquid, continue to cook on low heat, uncovered. Note, the rice mixture will also harden as it cools down.
- Place the rice mixture in serving bowls. Garnish as desired. Let cool before serving.
Notes
An important step for making Sholeh Zard is washing the Basmati rice and soaking it overnight so it is very soft and begins to fall apart when you slow cook it.
- Prep Time: Overnight
- Cook Time: 90 minutes
- Category: Dessert
- Cuisine: Persian/Iranian
Keywords: Persian, Iranian, Dessert, Rosewater, Sholeh Zard, vegan, rice pudding, dairy-free, easy, recipe