Persian rice (Chelo)

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups long-grain rice (preferably basmati or jasmine) Water Salt ¼ stick of butter Russet potato, thinly sliced
Directions:
1- Clean the rice with warm water and let it sit in a bowl of water for 1 to 2
hours; add two table spoons of salt into the water.
2- Pour water into a large saucepan and wait until it boils. Add rice and boil for 10 minutes. After boiling, drain the rice in a colander and rinse a little under warm water.
3- In a 2 to 3 quart nonstick saucepan, melt a ¼ stick of butter. You can put some sliced potatoes at the bottom of the pan and then pour the rice over the potatoes making a mountain like shape.
4- Then poke some holes with the end of the spoon in the rice. Let rice cook at medium temperature until steam comes out of the holes. Once steam rises lower the temperature to moderately low.
5- In a small bowl mix, some butter and three table spoons of water and pour on the rice. Cover pan with a kitchen towel wrapped around the pan’s lid. Cook the rice over moderately low heat until tender and a crust forms on bottom, 30 to 35 minutes.
Note: The white rice we made was garnished with saffron (dissolved in warm water), slivered pistachios and almonds drizzled with above saffron mixture), and barberries.