CHELOU - CRANCHY PERSIAN RICE

INGREDIENTS:
1 Pound ling-grain rice 3 tbsp salt 6 tbsp vegetable oil ¼ cup hot water	½ teaspoon turmeric 2 potatoes, peeled and sliced about ¼" thick
DIRECTIONS:
Fill a 4-quart saucepan with water and bring to a boil. Add the rice and salt. Boil, uncovered, for 7-10 minutes over high heat. Stir the water occasionally, being careful not to break the rice grains. Taste the rice to see that it is done. Remove immediately and drain in lukewarm water to remove excess starch. Heat a heavy-bottomed saucepan with 4 tbsp cooking oil mixed with almost ¼ cup hot water. Add the turmeric. Then place the potatoes on the bottom of the saucepan. pour the rice into the pan; cover with a cloth and a lid. Let simmer over a low flame for about 10 minutes. Mound up the rice in the center of the pan and make a deep hole in the center of the mound. (This hole allow the rice to steam.) Sprinkle about 2 more tbsp of oil with the remaining hot water all around the rice. Cover and simmer for about 20 more minutes. When ready to serve, uncover the pan and stir the rice gently with a spatula to make it fluffy. Turn the rice out onto a warm serving dish in a mound. Then remove the crust and potatoes from the bottom of the pan and serve separately, or heap the potatoes on the rice on the serving platter.