Kuku Sabzi (green herb frittata)

Kuku is a very popular and simple Iranian dish. Its common feature is the use of eggs mixed with a variety of vegetables such as green herbs (called "kuku sabzi"), potatoes ("kuku sibzamini"), cauliflower, string beans, etc.
The other common feature is that the mixture is always fried in oil in the form of flattened, usually round, servings (like patties). It is mainly a vegetarian dish (If any kind of meat is used in the ingredients, usually the name of the dish changes to "kotlet").

 Ingredients (serves 2-4)

• 4 eggs
• 1 cup finely chopped parsley
• 1 cup finely chopped coriander 
• half a cup finely chopped scallions (including the green part)
• half a cup finely chopped dill
• 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh fenugreek
• one third of a cup dried barberries
• 1 tablespoon chopped walnuts
• half a teaspoon salt
• frying oil

 

 Directions

1. Put the chopped green herbs, barberries, walnuts and salt in a bowl
2.  Add the eggs and mix well
3. Heat the oil in a nonstick pan (to check if the oil is heated up enough put a drop of the mixture in the oil; when it starts sizzling you can add the rest of the mixture to the pan)
4. Using the back of a spoon spread the mix in the pan evenly (it's best if the thickness of the spread is about 1.5 - 2 cm) 
5. Let it fry over high-medium heat for a minute or two 
6. Reduce the heat to low-medium (not too low) and put the lid on, wait for 4-5 mins
7. Remove the lid, divide the kuku into 4 or 8 parts using a flat wooden spoon or a spatula
8. Turn the pieces to fry the other sides as well
9. Garnish with fresh chopped radishes and tomatoes

Note: If served with bread, it is enough for 3-4 people. If served plain, it is enough for 2.

Sweet Lentil Rice

Rice and lentils (“adas polo”) is a common Iranian dish cooked in very different styles around Iran, from tasting sweet to not sweet at all, from being a perfect vegetarian dish to one served with meat. I always try different styles, and recently I developed this recipe and loved it. The amount of dates and raisins I used gives it a sweetish taste without overwhelming the dish with sweetness. Plus the cinnamon touch in the end gives it a very nice and divine aroma. Give it a try and let me know what you think!

Note: I tried to be as clear as I could while writing this recipe. I included all the small steps you need in making it. But I still recommend you read my recipe for making basic Iranian style rice (“polo”) before starting to make this lentil rice. The polo recipe gives you a more detailed idea of how to prepare the rice in this recipe too.

Ingredients (serves 4)

• Two thirds of a cup brown lentils
• 2 cups long grain basmati rice
• 1 medium sized chopped onion
• 2 medium sized diced carrots
• ½ cup raisins (rinsed)
• 6 dates (pit removed and chopped)
• 5 tablespoons chopped walnuts
• 1 teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon black pepper
• 1 teaspoon turmeric
• ½ teaspoon cinnamon powder
• 3 tablespoons oil

 

 Directions

1. Using a glass of water, boil the lentils till they are soft (not too soft though). Put the lentils aside.
2. Heat one tablespoon of oil in a pan and add the raisins and dates, stir over medium heat for 2 mins (be careful as raisins tend to burn quickly over heat), and remove from the pan.
3. Put the pan back on the stove, add the chopped onions, stir for 4-5 mins till they are translucent.
4. Add the carrots, walnuts, pepper, turmeric and a bit of salt, and stir for another 2-3 mins and remove the pan from heat.
5. Fill a nonstick pot with 6 cups of water, heat and bring to the boil. Add one teaspoon of salt and the rice.
6. Let it boil for 7-8 mins, stir a couple of times so the rice grains don’t stick together.
7. As soon as the rice is soft (not hard or mushy), drain it in a sieve.
8. Add the lentils to the rice in the sieve and mix.
9. Put the pot back on the heat, add 1 tablespoon of oil.
10. As soon as the oil becomes hot add the rice and other ingredients in this order: a layer of rice and lentils, a layer of carrots and onions, a layer of raisins and dates. Repeat the layering till all the ingredients are finished.
11. Use a spatula to shape the rice in the pot in the form of a cone.
12. Make a couple of holes in the rice with the end of your spatula.
13. Sprinkle cinnamon powder on the rice.
14. Put the lid on, it should cook over high heat for 3-4 mins until the pot gets all steamy inside.
15. Immediately turn the heat down to low.
16. Let the rice steam for 20-30 mins.
17. Serve with Shirazi salad (will soon update the blog with the recipe for this salad ;) ).

Basic Iranian Rice

Iranians call this plain rice dish "polo" or "chelo"; I'm sure many of you already know of the famous Iranian dish "chelo kabab". Voila!

Before you read the recipe think of how you make pasta: boiling the water, adding the salt and pasta, draining it in a sieve. Iranian “polo” is made just like that plus a few other steps.

Ingredients (Serves 3)

• 2 cups basmati rice
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon oil
• 6 cups water

 

Directions

1. Rinse the rice a couple of times (most Iranians also soak the rice for a few hours before cooking, but to be honest, I skip this step and my polo just turns out as good and truly Iranian!)
2. Fill a nonstick pot with 6 cups of water (the pot shouldn’t be too small or too big for the amount of rice you are using, for 2 cups of rice a pot with the diameter of about 20 cm should be fine).
3. Bring the water to the boil.
4. Add the salt and the rice, stir once or twice to make sure the grains don’t stick together.
5. Keep it boiling for 7-8 mins.
6. Just like how you test your pasta if it’s ready to be drained, pick one rice grain out of the pot and press it between your thumb and index finger. If it’s soft (neither hard nor mushy), it’s ready to be drained. This is a very important step because draining the rice too early will give you a not-well-cooked rice and too late will give you too mushy rice with the grains all fallen apart. Another indication of the rice being ready for draining is that it’s longer than it was before going into the pot.
7. Drain the rice in a sieve.
8. Put the pot back on the stove, add 1 tablespoon of oil and wait a couple of mins till the oil gets hot.
9. Add the rice back into the pot, shape it into a cone (imagine a hill or a sand dune!)
10. Use the end (handle) of your spatula to make a couple of holes into the rice. This ensures the rice is steamed evenly everywhere.
11. Put the lid on, and using a high heat wait for 3-4 mins till the pot gets all steamy inside.
12. Immediately turn the heat down to low and wait for 20-30 mins for your rice to be ready.