11 recipes
An ancient, refined cuisine of saffron rice, herb- and fruit-laden stews, pomegranate and walnuts that gracefully balances sweet and sour.
Read its storyFluffy, saffron-scented Persian steamed rice with tahdig, the golden, crispy crust from the bottom of the pot that everyone fights over.
Iran's most beloved and fragrant stew, in which slow-fried herbs simmer for hours with lamb, kidney beans and dried limes.
A Persian feast dish of tender chicken in a dark, sweet-and-sour sauce made from finely ground walnuts slowly simmered with pomegranate molasses.
A Persian herb frittata, deep green inside and studded with walnuts and barberries, made from piles of parsley, cilantro and dill bound with egg and baked.
Persian chicken kebabs marinated in saffron, lemon, onion and yogurt, then grilled or broiled until golden and juicy.
A thick, hearty Persian soup of chickpeas, beans, lentils, heaps of herbs and noodles, topped with kashk, fried onions and mint oil.
A warm Persian dip of soft, mashed eggplant finished with tangy kashk, deeply fried onions, garlic and sizzling mint oil.
Fluffy steamed basmati layered with green lentils and cinnamon, crowned with buttery raisins, dates and fried onions, with a crisp tahdig crust.
A glowing yellow Persian rice pudding scented with saffron and rosewater and decorated with cinnamon patterns, almonds and pistachios.
Charred, smoky eggplant cooked with plenty of garlic, tomatoes and softly scrambled eggs, a specialty of Iran's Caspian province of Gilan.
A classic Persian stew of diced meat slowly cooked with yellow split peas, tomato and dried limes, topped with crisp matchstick potatoes.
Persian cuisine is one of the oldest and most influential culinary traditions in the world. From the days of the Persian empires, royal banquets were renowned for their richness and refinement. The Persian idea of balancing "warming" and "cooling" foods (garm and sard) still guides how dishes are paired in home kitchens today. Ingredients such as pomegranate, walnuts, saffron and rosewater have been used here for thousands of years.
Sitting on the Silk Road, Iran was both a marketplace and a source of inspiration. Persian traditions of rice, kebabs and sweet-and-sour stews influenced Arab, Indian (especially Mughal court) and Central Asian cooking, while Persia also absorbed much from its neighbours. The Ottoman and Persian court kitchens nourished each other for centuries: pilaf, kebabs, sherbets and halva form a common language between the two. The kinship between the Turkish word "pilav" and the Persian "polow" is a lovely example of that closeness. Under the Safavids (16th to 18th centuries) the court kitchen reached a high point, particularly in the art of cooking rice.
In the north, the Caspian provinces of Gilan and Mazandaran are known for greens, rice, fish and sour flavours. Tabriz and the Azerbaijan region are famous for their large meatballs and for dishes closely tied to Turkic cooking. Along the Persian Gulf in the south you find spicy fish and prawn dishes with Indian and Arab influences, while Isfahan and Yazd in central Iran are celebrated for their sweets and classic, court-style dishes.
Rice is at the heart of Persian cooking, and cooking it is an art. "Chelow" rice is parboiled and then steamed, forming "tahdig", a golden, crunchy crust at the bottom of the pot that is the most fought-over part of the meal. Stews (khoresh) reach a sweet-sour balance with plenty of fresh herbs, dried limes, pomegranate molasses and fruits such as quince or plums. Saffron, turmeric, rose petals and dried limes are the main seasonings. If you cannot find dried limes (limoo amani), a little lemon zest and juice gives a similar sourness.
Saffron chelow with tahdig is the ideal first step: it teaches you to parboil and steam rice and to achieve that crisp golden crust. Then discover how a khoresh works with fesenjan, chicken simmered in walnuts and pomegranate molasses, and the herb-packed kidney bean stew ghormeh sabzi. For something lighter, kuku sabzi, a baked frittata bursting with herbs, is easy and delicious.