Joon: Persian cooking made simple

115 Pages·30.699 MB·English

by  Batmanglij, Najmieh

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Much of Iran’s cuisine is essentially vegetarian.
In Joon, master chef Najmieh Batmanglij distills one of
Although kababs are popular restaurant fare, they
the world’s oldest and most influential cuisines to capture
represent only a small sampling of the dishes Iranians
its unique flavors in recipes adapted to suit our busy lives.
eat at home. Persian cooking, with its emphasis on
Najmieh’s fans have been making meals from her Food of
fresh, natural ingredients corresponds with the trend
Life for more than 30 years. For Joon she has simplified
in eating that’s spreading across America. “Join the
75 of her favorite dishes and shows how, with the right
delicious revolution!” as Alice Waters says; “Eat simply,
ingredients and a few basic tools and techniques, authentic
eat together, eat seasonally, shop at farmers markets.”
Persian food can easily be prepared at home.
k
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The recipes in this book—each accompanied by
Joon means “life” in Persian. It can be used in multiple ways,
a photograph of the finished dish—come straight
from a term of endearment akin to “darling” after someone’s
from Najmieh’s kitchen and include not only the
name to showing great enthusiasm: “I love it!” The
classics of Persian cooking, but also some soon-to-be
expression nush-e joon, literally “food of life,” is similar to
favorites, such as quinoa or kale cooked Persian-style.
the French “bon appétit,” a wish that a meal will be enjoyed.
You’ll discover delicious side dishes, from cooling,
yogurt-based salads and tasty dips and spreads, to
Iran and Persia refer to the same place. These days we use more sustaining platters of grains, beans and fresh
“Iran” to refer to the country and “Persia” or “Persian” for the herbs; tasty “kukus”—frittata-style omelets filled with
culture, from Persian carpets, and Persian cats to, Persian vegetables and herbs; spice-infused fish; mouth-
cooking. Persian, also called farsi, is the language of Iran. watering meatballs and kababs served on flat breads
with tangy sauces; every kind of rice—including the
incomparable polow topped with various sweet and
Iran is situated at the center of the ancient network of trading
sour braises; not to mention, delightfully aromatic
routes—known today as the Silk Road—that connected
cakes and cookies to round off meals or enjoy as a
China in the east to Italy in the west. The royal kitchens of
snack in between.
two ancient Persian empires, a thousand years apart, were
famous for their cooking, which both influenced and was
influenced by the cuisine of countries along the Silk Road.
So, jump in and explore. You will find inspiration
Later, in the ninth century, it was the Arabs of the Abbasid
as well as practical guidance: a great age-old
court in Baghdad who spread Persian culture and cooking
cuisine presented for today’s world.
more widely in Europe and North Africa.
J O O N
P E R S I A N C O O K I N G
M A D E S I M P L E
NAJMIEH BATMANGLIJ
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MAGE PUBLISHERS
Copyright © 2015 Najmieh Batmanglij For my sons Zal and Rostam,
All photos, copyright © 2015 Mage Publishers. and for their generation.
Photos were styled by Najmieh and shot by Mohammad Batmanglij,
except as noted for the pages below:
Nader Souri: 13, 16, 17, 22, 23, 30, 31, 33
Afshin Bakhtiari: 6, 24, 26, 87, 94, 124, 134
Amir Naderi: 29
Maryam Zandi: 28
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced
or retransmitted in any manner whatsoever,
except in the form of a review, without the
written permission of the publisher.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Available in detail from the Library of Congress
ebook ISBN
978-1-933823-83-6
first print edition ISBN
978-1-933823-72-0
Visit Mage online at www.mage.com
202 342 1642 • [email protected]
C O N T E N T S
iNtrOductiON . . . . . . . . . . 9 sOup . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85 fish . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125 celery + mushroom khoresh . . . 172
the esseNtial persiaN paNtry . . . . 11 noodle + chickpea soup . . . . . . 86 fish with verjuice + pomegranate . 126 potato + split pea khoresh . . . . 175
prepariNg tO cOOk . . . . . . . . 39
small dishes tO mix + match . . . . 41 pomegranate soup . . . . . . . . 89 fresh herb + barberry baked fish . . 129 caspian fava + egg khoresh . . . . 176
yogurt + cucumber salad . . . . . 42 barley + leek soup . . . . . . . . 90 sumac grilled fish . . . . . . . 130 pomegranate + walnut khoresh . . 178
yogurt + spinach borani . . . . . . 45 ginger + turmeric chicken soup . . . 92 seared fish in tamarind + fenugreek sauce 132 fava + dill polow . . . . . . . 180
fava bean salad . . . . . . . . . 46 eggs + kukus . . . . . . . . . . 95 rOasts + kababs . . . . . . . 135 caramelized barberry + carrot polow 183
yogurt + persian shallot dip . . . . 49 eggs . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96 pomegranate-infused leg of lamb . . 136 lentil + date polow . . . . . . . 185
eggplant, mint + walnut spread . . . 50 tomato, cumin + sweet pepper omelet 99 saffron lamb rib kababs . . . . . 139 green bean + tomato polow . . . 186
eggplant + pomegranate spread . . . 52 eggplant + egg spread . . . . . 100 lime + turmeric roast chicken . . . 141 sour cherry polow . . . . . . . 189
chickpea, sesame + kale spread . . . 54 summer squash kuku . . . . . . 102 chicken kabab . . . . . . . . . 143 bulgur dami with mung beans + dill . 190
butternut squash + kashk spread . . . 57 fresh herb kuku . . . . . . . . 104 oven fried chicken . . . . . . . 144 desserts + teas . . . . . . . . 193
cheese, walnut + herb spread . . . . 58
cauliflower kuku . . . . . . . 106 ground chicken kababs . . . . . 147 fruit + nut cupcakes . . . . . . 194
butternut + lentil porridge . . . . . 61
ground lamb kababs . . . . . . 148 cardamom rice cookies . . . . . 197
meatballs, pasta + pizza . . . . . 109
lentil salad . . . . . . . . . . . 62
caspian sweet + sour kababs . . . 150 pistachio cookies . . . . . . . 199
cucumber + pomegranate salad . . . 65 fava bean + dill meatballs . . . . 111
chickpea cookies . . . . . . . 200
tomato, cucumber, + mint salad . . . 66 pistachio + pomegranate meatballs . 112 pOlOw + khOresh . . . . . . . 153
baklava cake . . . . . . . . . 203
chickpea, cilantro + cumin salad . . . 69 chickpea meatballs / gondi . . . . 115 stove-top plain rice (kateh) . . . . 157
sesame brittle . . . . . . . . . 204
bulgur salad / tabbouleh . . . . . . 70 sweet + sour chickpea + lamb patties 117 rice-cooker plain rice . . . . . . 158
pomegranate granita . . . . . . 207
curly kale + persimmon salad . . . . 73 sweet + savory turnovers . . . . 118 saffron steamed rice (chelow) . . . 161
vinegar + mint sharbat . . . . . 208
sesame, nigella + cabbage slaw . . . 75 saffron, tomato, + persian basil pasta 120 saffron quinoa . . . . . . . . 163
najmieh’s tea . . . . . . . . . 211
carrot + sesame salad . . . . . . 77 walnut + pomegranate pizza . . . 123 yogurt khoresh . . . . . . . . 164
infusions . . . . . . . . . . 213
beet + walnut salad . . . . . . . 79 eggplant khoresh . . . . . . . 167
olivier chicken salad . . . . . . . 80 apple + cherry khoresh . . . . . 169 tOOls fOr a persiaN kitcheN . . . 215
eggplant + zucchini yatimcheh / ratatouille 83 fresh herb khoresh . . . . . . . 170 iNdex 219
• 6 • • 7 •
I N T R O D U C T I O N
I was inspired to write this book by my sons and their
friends, a generation eager to explore the pleasures
of cooking, as well as looking for guidance on how
to prepare healthy and delicious dishes in a way
that fits with their busy lives. With this in mind,
I have concentrated on two main things: to simplify
the cooking of my favorite Pe_rsian recipes—many
of them vegetarian, and now also “one pot” dishes;
and to reduce the cooking time. Many of the recipes
in this book will take an hour or less. Before
you start cooking, do read the introductory section
about essential ingredients for a basic Pers_ian pantry
(pages 10–37). I have tried to keep them simple. You’ll
find information about herbs and spices, and how to
use them for best results. Be sure to also read “Preparing
to Cook” on page 39, where I strongly recommend
that you use the organizing system known as mise en
place (from the French “put in place”) as it will really
help you in the kitchen. Like the 13th-century Persian
poet Rumi, I consider the kitchen a metaphor for life:
cooking at home not on_ly nourishes your body but also
helps you gain discipline and confidence in everything
else that you do. Use this book to cook together, to
eat together, to tell good stories to each other, and
to be creative. As Iranians say, Nush-e joon!—a
traditional Persian wish that a meal will be enjoyed.
_
• 9 •
• 8 •
THE ESSENTIAL PERSIAN PANTRY
Don’t be intimidated by the uniquely Persian elements
of the recipes in this book. Getting to know new
ingredients is fun and you can build up your Persian
pantry over time as you try different dishes. Every
ingredient you might need for Persian cooking is
available in the . . these days, if not from your local
u s
supermarket, then from a Middle Eastern or Iranian
store. Iranian markets are more common than you
may think—most major cities have them; they tend to
stock high-quality, fresh, seasonal ingredients, and are
usually less expensive. Use the Internet to find the one
nearest you or simply order what you need online.
These specialty ingredients are also just a click away
online, via websites such as Sadaf.com or Amazon.
In this section, I’ve listed some of the items used in my
recipes, including ones that you may not have in your
pantry. In the recipes themselves, an asterisk by
an ingredient or instruction for preparing something
(such as_ grinding/infusing saffron), indicates that you
can turn to this section for more details. I primarily
use olive oil in my recipes—even for cooking rice and
pastries—and fine-grain sea salt. Keep_ in mind that
coarse grains will salt less because there are fewer of
them in a given measure. On the other hand, ordinary
table salt such as Morton iodized salt tends to salt more.
10 joon • 11 •
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ADVIEH (PERSIAN SPICE MIX)
2 tablespoons dried rose petals
2 3-inch cinnamon sticks, crushed (to help grinding process)
2 tablespoons cardamom
2 tablespoons cumin
1 tablespoon ground golpar (Persian hogweed; whole seeds are hard to find)
In Persian, “advieh” refers both to spice in general and to a spice mix that
Iranians either make themselves or buy ready-made. Families tend to create
their own combinations. This one is mine; it makes just over V cup (30 g).
Place all the spices together in a bowl, then transfer to a spice grinder or
mortar and pestle, and grind to a powder. Store in an airtight glass container
in a cool place to preserve freshness.
BARBERRIES (ZERESHK)
See pages 14–15.
BEANS, SOAKING, PEELING, + COOKING
Dried beans and legumes, such as fava, garbanzo (chickpea), and kidney,
need to be soaked before cooking. The longer they are soaked, the less they
need to be cooked. I prefer to soak my beans overnight. Place the dried beans
in a large container, cover with water 2 in (5 cm) above the beans and allow
to soak overnight. Rinse and drain.
SKINNING FRESH OR FROZEN FAVA BEANS: For fresh fava beans in the
pod, split the pods open and remove the beans. Using a sharp paring knife,
remove the little “hat” on top of each fava bean and squeeze the bean out of
its skin. Alternatively, you can remove the skins by blanching the fava beans
in the same way as for peeling tomatoes below. For frozen fava beans, soak
in warm water for 5 minutes and then peel by simply squeezing the beans
out of their skins.
CARDAMOM (HEL)
This widely available, tangy-tasting spice, a member of the ginger family,
is native to India; traveling via caravan routes, it became a favorite in Iran,
Greece, and Rome by classical times. Cardamom is sold whole in the form
of dried green, white, or black pods. I use the green pods because they are
unbleached. Within the pods are tiny, black, fragrant seeds. For recipes
specifying ground cardamom, grind the whole pods: skin and seeds. There
is no need to separate them.
12 joon the essential persian pantry 13
: :
BARBERRIES (ZERESHK)
Barberries are one of the specialties
of Persian cooking. When choosing
dried barberries, available from
Iranian markets, be sure to select
ones that are still red and not too
dark, as these may be old. Dried
barberries contain a lot of sand and
so need to be washed properly: First
remove the stems and pick over for
grains of sand and grit. Place the
barberries in a colander set in a large
bowl of water and leave to soak for
15 minutes. Lift the colander out of the
bowl, rinse thoroughly, and set aside.
:
to caramelize barberries
In a wide skillet, place 1 cup
(150 grams) washed barberries,
2 tablespoons grape molasses or sugar,
2 tablespoons oil, and 2 tablespoons
water, and stir-fry over medium heat
for 4 minutes, until caramelized (taking
care as barberries burn easily). You
can store the caramelized berries in an
airtight glass container in the fridge for
3 days or in the freezer for 3 weeks.
14 joon the essential persian pantry 15
: :
CUCUMBERS, PERSIAN
Persian cucumbers are increasingly available in the U.S. Safeway, Whole
Foods, and Trader Joe’s have them. Our local farmers’ market sells them
fresh off the vine. Iranian markets also stock them throughout the year. They
tend to be tastier and more delicate than the standard long cucumbers.
Iranians eat them, peeled and with a little salt, as a fruit, as well as in salads.
EGGPLANTS, SALTING
Long, thin Japanese or Chinese eggplants are not bitter and so don’t need
to be salted. The larger Italian variety, a darker purple in color, can be quite
bitter (I’ve found that the darker the eggplant the more bitter the skin) and
will need to be salted to remove any bitterness. Peel the eggplants, slice,
and soak in a large container of cold water with 2 tablespoons of salt for
20 minutes. Drain, rinse, and thoroughly blot dry.
PERSIAN HOGWEED (GOLPAR)
See pages 18–19.
GRAPE MOLASSES + VERJUICE
An excellent and tasty sweetener for any kitchen, grape molasses is essential
in Persian cooking. Indeed, I often replace sugar with grape molasses. At the
other end of the spectrum, made from unripe grapes, is the souring agent
verjuice, essential in certain Persian dishes for its distinctive flavor.
HERBS
Buy your herbs and vegetables fresh as you need them. If you have the space
in your garden, it’s wonderful to grow herbs and basic vegetables if you can.
I always grow my own Persian basil (also called anise basil, O. basilicum
‘Licorice’) from seed, available at Iranian markets. Plant them as early as
possible depending on your geographic region and they will supply you well
into October. There are, however, instances where the dried versions are
more aromatic: dried mint and fenugreek leaves, for example.
(herbs continued on page 20)
16 joon the essential persian pantry 17
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