Persian feast in my kitchen: Intro

I mentioned earlier my culinary explorations: my friend A. and I get together and explore a cuisine of our choice. So far we cooked Sichuanese, Moroccan and Persian, just before my old kitchen went out. Tonight, I’ll tell you about our Persian adventures because – guess what – we have some photos from that! We exchanged some food for Sam’s photographic excellence – a great move – and voila!

Iranian yoghurt salad – Photo by Samantha Twigg Johnson

 

A. is very passionate about Persian cooking, which is an understatement, to tell you the truth. It was his fine idea to cook this feast.

It was a serious undertaking, mind you. Sometimes I think you must be mad to do it, which I suspect we were/are. It took us a week to plan it (decide on the recipes, devise the plan of action, etc.), a day to shop for it, and a day and a half to cook it. But it was all well worth it!

Take a look at the menu:

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FIRST COURSES

Yoghurt Salad (V)

Feat & walnut salad with herbs (V)

Stuffed peppers, aubergines and tomatoes in a tangy tomato sauce (V) –

Herb Kuku – Iranian baked omelette (V)

Lamb fillet kebabs

 

MAINS

Saffron Rice (V)

Rice-stuffed roast chicken

Potato and lamb koresh (Iranian stew)

Duck in walnut and pomegranate sauce

 

DESSERT

Iranian almond and rosewater baklava served with vanilla ice-cream

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We also made advieh, a Persian spice mixture:

 

Advieh – Photo by Samantha Twigg Johnson

 

Persian or Iranian cuisine has been, and still is, among the greatest in the world. With their sophisticated tastes and techniques, Persian cooks have influenced Indian and Middle-Eastern cooking. I chose this yoghurt salad for introduction because it gives indication of what Persian food is like: the use of yoghurt, walnuts, fresh herbs, attention to details in presentation. But more about this next time.

Iranian yoghurt salad – Photos by Samantha Twigg Johnson

 

Now, before I leave for tonight, I want to share with your our bibliography:

 

A taste of Persia – by Najmieh Batmanglij

This is an excellent book, and we found most of our recipes were from it. Clearly presented, with pictures of all dishes, and a helpful list of ingredients at the end. Excellent introduction into Persian cooking.

 

New Food of Life: Ancient Persian and Modern Iranian Cooking and Ceremonies – by Najmieh Batmanglij

Interesting, and larger in scope than A taste of Persia, but I was slightly put off by the presentation of the recipes.

 

The legendary cuisine of Persia – by Margaret Shaida

This is a very informative, and beautifully written book on Persian cuisine. I bought it after our cooking session.

 

The Persian Kitchen: Home Cooking from the Middle East – by Neda Afrashi

Another lovely book on Persian food and customs.

 

This is to tickle your imagination until next time. I hope you enjoyed it, and I hope it has made you at least a little curious about Persian cooking.

 

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Here are the other posts from my Persian series:

Persian feast in my kitchen: the first courses

Persian feast in my kitchen: the mains

Persian baklava: the sweet end to our feast

 And check out:

Persian food blogs

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• Persian food blogs