Iranian Rhubarb Khoresh Recipes

KHORESH RIVAS (SAVORY RHUBARB AND BEAN STEW)

Steps:

• Bring a few tablespoons of water to a boil in a small pot. Let the boiling water stand for 2 minutes to allow the temperature to drop slightly while you grind the saffron. Using a mortar and pestle (or a small bowl and the handle of a wooden spoon), grind a pinch of sugar with the saffron to a fine powder (you should have about ¼ teaspoon total). Add 2 tablespoons of the hot water, gently stir, cover and let steep until ready to use.
• In a large pan, heat ¼ cup of olive oil over medium. Add the parsley and cook, stirring frequently, until fragrant and slightly darkened, about 8 minutes. Drizzle in more oil if the pan seems too dry. Add the mint and cook, stirring frequently, until fragrant, about 5 minutes. Keep in mind that mint burns very quickly. Remove from the heat and set aside until ready to use. (You'll reuse this pan.)
• In a large, deep sauté pan with a lid, or a Dutch oven, heat ¼ cup of the olive oil over medium-high. Add the onion and cook, stirring frequently, until golden brown, about 10 minutes. Sprinkle with a little salt, and reduce the heat to medium. Add the turmeric, stir and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the beans, season well with salt and pepper, and cook, gently stirring without breaking the beans, until the flavors have mingled, about 5 minutes. Taste a bean and make sure it's salted to your liking. The turmeric might feel overpowering at this point, but it will mellow as the stew simmers.
• To the beans, add the parsley and mint mixture (keeping the pan handy), 2 cups water and half of the saffron water, and season with salt. Gently stir and bring to a rapid simmer. Partly cover, reduce the heat to low and simmer, occasionally stirring, for 30 minutes, until the flavors have mingled and the oil rises.
• Add the rest of the saffron water, the lemon juice and 1 tablespoon sugar. Stir and simmer, partly covered, for 15 minutes. Taste as the stew simmers and season as needed. Add more water to the stew if necessary to make it juicier, or remove the lid to reduce the liquid. There should be plenty of liquid to spoon over rice, but it shouldn't be soupy. The stew can be made 1 day in advance up to this point.
• Meanwhile, wipe clean the reserved pan from the herbs. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil to the pan and heat over medium. Add the rhubarb and cook until the color deepens on each side, about 2 minutes per side. You're not fully cooking the rhubarb here; it should maintain its shape and still have a slight bite to it, as it will finish cooking in the stew.
• Gently place the rhubarb pieces in the stew, increase the heat to medium-low and cook, partly covered, until the rhubarb is tender and releases its tangy flavor, about 10 minutes. Don't stir the rhubarb; you want it to maintain its shape and not turn mushy. Taste the stew as it simmers; add more lemon juice for extra acidity, if needed, and more sugar for balance, if you like. Serve over rice.

KHORESH RIVAS (PERSIAN RHUBARB STEW WITH MEAT)

Steps:

• Chop up the rhubarb into 2.5cm (1") long stalks.
• Dice the meat into bite size pieces if not done so already.
• Chop the onions, not too finely.
• Chop up the parsley and mint, these don't have to be done finely, as they'll be cooked down.
• Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a medium saucepan on medium heat. Fry the onions for 3 minutes until they soften.
• Add the turmeric, stir, then add the meat. Increase the heat to high and stir to mix.
• Add 1 Tbsp of the sugar, stir, then fry the meat for 2 minutes on this high heat.
• Add the water or stock, stir, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat down to its lowest setting, cover and simmer for 1 hour, until the meat is done, but not falling apart, as we still have another 30 minutes or so of cooking time. Depending on your meat cut, this may be at the 90 minute mark, as some cuts will take longer to cook. It does also depend on how large your meat pieces are.
• At the end of 1 hour, tip in the chopped parsley and mint and cover once again and leave to simmer for 15 minutes.
• At the end of the 15 minutes, heat the 3rd Tbsp of oil in large frying pan on high heat and sauté the rhubarb for 1 minute, shaking the pan and flipping the rhubarb.
• Then, tip this rhubarb into the stew, cover, and leave to cook for 10 minutes, still on low heat. You can cook it until the rhubarb has all broken down, or stop before that stage. What I do, is fish out about 6-8 pieces, and leave the rest to fall apart in the stew, adding to the texture. Then I add the pieces back and serve.
• Taste the stew before turning the heat off. Add the second Tbsp of sugar if you would like it less sour, even more if you prefer it the tartness tampered down. That's it, serve with rice.

KHORESH-E GHORMEH SABZI (PERSIAN HERB, BEAN AND LAMB STEW)

Steps:

• In a medium bowl, season the meat with turmeric, 2 teaspoons salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Set aside.
• Rinse the beans and place in a medium bowl with 1 cup water and a generous pinch of salt. Set aside to soak for 30 minutes.
• In the meantime, place a large Dutch oven or similar pot over medium-high heat. Add 3 tablespoons oil. When it shimmers, add meat and cook, turning regularly so that it browns evenly on all sides, about 15 minutes. Once the meat has browned, move it to the edges of the pot and add the onion to the center of the pot, along with a generous pinch of salt. Cook, stirring regularly, until the onion begins to soften and turn brown, 8 to 10 minutes.
• Drain the beans and add to the pot, stirring to combine everything and coat the beans with oil. Add 4 cups water, increase heat to high and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover pot and simmer for 2 hours.
• In the meantime, prepare the herbs: Wash parsley and cilantro, then use a salad spinner to dry very well. Remove and discard the tough stems. Chop the leaves and tender stems very, very finely, or feel free to use a food processor to get these herbs as finely chopped as possible. The more finely chopped the herbs, the more green and unctuous the ghormeh sabzi will be.
• Separately chop the chives and entire bunch of scallions (including the green tops) as finely as possible by hand. These, too, must be very finely chopped - nearly minced - but they will turn to mush in a food processor and thus should be chopped by hand.
• Set a large frying pan over medium heat. When the pan is hot, add the remaining 1/4 cup oil and the scallion-chive mixture. Allow to wilt, stirring constantly, for about 2 minutes, then add remaining chopped herbs and fenugreek leaves, crushing the fenugreek leaves between your fingers as you add them. Cook, stirring continuously, until the herbs are wilted and very dark green - but not burned - and they give off a bright green oil when pressed with a spoon, 18 to 20 minutes. This step is crucial to the flavor and color of the stew. You'll know the herbs are ready when they feel dry and emit a strong, savory aroma.
• When the meat has cooked for 2 hours, add the cooked herb mixture, Omani limes and 1/2 cup water. Season with salt and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover pot, and simmer for another hour. Check on the limes occasionally to make sure they are submerged in the stew but not falling apart. Gently push them into the stew if they're still floating after 20 minutes.
• As the stew nears the 3-hour mark, remove the lid and check the meat; it should be very tender. If the ghormeh sabzi seems a little watery, leave it uncovered for the last 20 minutes of cooking and allow to reduce into a thick stew. Taste and adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper. If the stew needs a little acidity, juice a lime into the stew through a sieve by pressing down on it with a spoon (avoid letting the seeds through the sieve, as they can be bitter). Set aside. Taste the stew and continue adding more lime juice until the stew is sufficiently tangy. Stir in the saffron. The stew should be a very deep, dark shade of green and quite thick when done. Return dried limes into the stew to serve.
• Serve hot with Persian rice and mast-o khiar.

KHORESH KARAFS (PERSIAN CELERY STEW WITH LAMB)

Steps:

• Trim or break off thicker parts of the parsley stems and pull mint sprigs and larger leaves from their stems. Discard stems or reserve for another use. Pluck a small handful of leaves and tender sprigs from parsley and mint and set aside for garnish. Chop remaining herbs.
• In a large Dutch oven or pot, heat 1/4 cup oil over medium-high. Season lamb with turmeric, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Add lamb, onion and garlic, and cook, stirring occasionally, until onions start to caramelize and lamb is evenly browned, about 10 minutes. Add 2 cups water, cover and simmer over medium-low heat for 20 minutes.
• While the lamb simmers, cook the celery: In a skillet, heat the remaining 1/4 cup oil with the butter over medium-high. Once butter foams, add celery, season with salt and pepper and cook, stirring frequently, for 3 minutes. Add chopped parsley and mint, and cook, stirring occasionally, until celery just starts to caramelize, about 8 minutes.
• Add celery and herbs to the Dutch oven, along with lemon juice, lime juice and saffron. Cover, leaving lid slightly ajar, and simmer on low heat until lamb is tender, about 30 minutes.
• While stew cooks, make the fried shallots, if desired: Line a small plate with a paper towel. In a small bowl, sprinkle flour over sliced shallots and toss with a fork. Heat canola oil in a small saucepan or skillet over medium-high until it shimmers slightly, about 1 minute. Fry shallots in oil, flipping once or twice so they cook evenly, until golden brown and crisp, 1 to 2 minutes. Remove from oil with a fork, season with a pinch of salt and let drain on paper towel-lined plate until stew is ready.
• Taste stew. Broth should be tart, but balanced. Celery and lamb should be tender but hold their shape. Season to taste with additional salt and pepper. Garnish with reserved herbs and fried shallots. Serve with chelo (Persian-style steamed rice) or buttered, steamed white rice. Stew can be made up to 2 days in advance.

IRANIAN RHUBARB KHORESH

Steps:

• In a heavy pan, gently fry onions in a tbsp oil til brown and remove.
• Add more oil and brown lamb in small batches.
• Return onion and lamb to pan and add juice, spices stock and salt. Cover and simmer 1 hours.
• Fry herbs in 2 tbsp oil for several minutes to beyond wilting but not crisp. Add to pan, cover, simmer 15 minutes.
• Reduce the sauce to curry consistency ( may need to take out meat ), then add rhubarb and simmer another 10 minutes. Serve piping hot with rice and vegetables.