Jul 14

Cookbook 188: Persiana Everyday

I bought Persiana Everyday by Sabrina Ghayour for Scott, for Christmas, after he flipped through a copy that was gifted to his parents by another family member. The recipes looked good, the inclusion of pork in a cookbook inspired by Persia seemed odd, but I’m not here to judge (well not that, I am totally here to judge the quality of the cookbook). I ended up cooking 5 recipes from this book over two different evenings. Two of those recipes did not involve photos, because I was hosting a fundraising dinner for the Asylum Seekers Resource Centre, so I’ll write up the recipes and you will have to use your imagination about the food.

Overall I was somewhat disappointed by the book. Of the 5 recipes I made, only one of them really worked in my opinion. One was an absolute disaster, and the other three were ok. I give this 2 out of 5 stars.

Za’atar, paprika & garlic chicken (serves 2 – 3)

Ingredients:

  • 6 large bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs (chicken chops)
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 heaped tbsp za’atar
  • 1 tbsp paprika
  • finely grated zest of 1 lemon
  • juice of 1/2 a lemon
  • sea salt flakes and freshly ground black pepper

Method:

  1. Preheat the oven to 180C. Line a roasting tin with baking paper.
  2. Put the chicken thighs into a mixing bowl, drizzle with olive oil and add the spices, lemon zest and juice and a generous amount of salt and pepper. Using your hands, mix until the thighs are well coated in the mixture on both sides.
  3. Places on the lined tine and roast for 1 hour until nicely browned and cooked through (check them after 45 minutes. Serve immediately.

Notes on this recipe:

  • By far the best recipe that I have made from this book. The chicken was delicious, the spice blend was perfect, and it was really easy to cook.

Fast and slow souk-spiced leg of lamb (serves 4 – 6)

[No photo for this one]

Ingredients:

  • 2kg (or more) leg of lamb (bone in)

For the marinade:

  • 150g Greek yoghurt
  • 2 heaped tbsp tomato puree (tomato paste)
  • 4 garlic cloves, crushed
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 tsp ground cumin
  • 1 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1 tsp paprika
  • 1 tsp ground tumeric
  • 1 tsp cayenne pepper
  • sea salt flakes

To serve:

  • toasted pita bread
  • thinly sliced spring onions
  • pomegranate seeds
  • pomegranate molasses
  • Greek yoghurt

Method:

  1. Preheat the oven to 180C. Line a large baking tin with baking paper
  2. Mix all the marinade ingredients together in a small bowl until evenly combined. Coat the lamb all over in the marinade and season generously with sea salt flakes. Places in the lined tin and roast for 1 1/2 hours.
  3. Remove from the oven, cover the lamb with a double layer of foil and roaste from a further 2 1/2 hours.
  4. Remove from the oven and leave the lamb to rest, still covered with the foil, for 20 – 30 minutes.
  5. Serve sliced in toasted pita bread with spring onions, pomegranate seeds and drizzled with pomegranate molasses and Greek yoghurt.

Notes on this recipe:

  • It tasted good but was so dry. If water had been added to the base of the tray, then the lamb would have been more moist.
  • Also cooking lamb for 4 hours is a LONG time, so no real surprise it dried out. I’d probably go for 30 minutes uncovered and then add some water and cover, then roast for a further 2 and a half hours.

Ash-e-Reshteh (serves 6 – 8)

[No photo of this one]

Ingredients:

  • olive oil
  • 2 large onions, finely chopped
  • 3 tbsp dried fenugreek leaves
  • 100g fresh coriander, chopped
  • 100g flat leaf parsley, chopped
  • 250g baby spinach leaves
  • 2 tbsp plain flour
  • 400g can chickpeas
  • 400g can green lentils
  • 400g can kidney beans
  • 400g can borlotti or cannellini beans
  • 100g spaghetti
  • sea salt flakes and freshly ground black pepper

To serve:

  • shop-bought crispy, fried onions
  • labneh or Greek yoghurt
  • 2 tbsp dried mint
  • 2 tbsp olive oil

Method:

  1. Heat a very large saucepan over a medium-high heat and, once hot, drizzle in some oil, add the onions and stir-fry until translucent and beginning to turn golden around the edges. Stir in the fenugreek and turmeric with the coriander and parsley and cook until the fresh herbs are completely wilted, without any browning (they need to lose their vibrant green colour and look like well-cooked spinach). Add the spinach leaves and a generous amount of salt and cook for 5 – 10 minutes until the spinach is well cooked and has reduced.
  2. Add the flour and stir thoroughly to avoid clumping, then add a very generous amount of salt and pepper and all the pulses and their brine. Pour in enough boiling water to cover the contents of the pan, reduce the heat and simmer for 45 minutes, stirring very carefully now and then (so as not to break down the pulses) and keeping an eye on the liquid volume to ensure that it doesn’t dry out or stick on the bottom. If it looks like the water is evaporating too quickly, reduce the heat or cover the pan with a lid to preserve the liquid, but bear in mind that you want it to be thick and hearty rather than watery.
  3. Check the seasoning and adjust accordingly, then add the spaghetti, stir gently and cook for 10 minutes. Stir again and cook for another 30 minutes.
  4. Meanwhile, place a small saucepan over medium heat, add the dried mint and olive oil and heat the mint for a few minutes without letting it burn. Remove the pan from the heat.
  5. To serve, sprinkle the crispy fried onions over, and add a spoonful of labneh or Greek yoghurt if you wish. FInally, drizzle the mint oil over the top. This needs no accompaniment.

Notes on this recipe:

  • It was a very thick soup/stew that tasted of green. People who like the taste of green thought it was great.

Broccoli with ginger, lime, garlic and tomato (serves 4)

Ingredients:

  • 1 tbsp vegetable or olive oil
  • 30g fresh root ginger, peeled and very finely grated
  • 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
  • 450g broccoli florets (if using a whole head of broccoli, thinly slice the stalk using a vegetable peeler and add to the florets)
  • 4 – 5 large tomatoes, chopped
  • 100ml boiling water
  • 2 tbsp caster or granulated sugar
  • finely grated zest and juice of 1 lime
  • sea salt flakes and freshly ground black pepper

Method:

  1. Place a large frying pan or saucepan over a medium-high heat. Drizzle in the oil, add the ginger and garlic and stir-fry for a minute.
  2. Wash the broccoli and add it to the pan without shaking off the excess water, then quickly stir to coat it in the garlic and ginger mixture before adding the tomatoes.
  3. Pour the boiling water into a jug, stir in the sugar until dissolved, then add the lime juice. Pour the mixture into the pan, stirring as you go. Season generously with salt and pepper, cover the pan with a lid and cook for 5 minutes.
  4. Stir again, replace the lid and cook for 2 – 3 minutes until the sauce has somewhat reduced and thickened and the broccoli is tender to the bite. Check and adjust the seasoning to taste, then stir in the lime zest and serve.

Notes on this recipe:

  • Holy crap this recipe is a mess.
  • Step 1 and 2 are fine. DEFINITELY DO NOT ADD WATER TO THIS RECIPE IN STEP 3. There is nothing to thicken this sauce, the tomatoes release a lot of liquid, and you end up with a soup that is sweetly sour. You would have to let it simmer (with the lid off) for about 10 – 15 minutes for the liquid to mostly evaporate. The sauce will not “reduce and thicken” with the lid on under any circumstances.
  • Such a mess, basically just ignore this recipe and make something else better.

Curried yellow split peas (serves 4 – 6)

Ingredients:

  • 1 tsp black mustard seeds
  • 1 tsp fennel seeds
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 large onion, finely chopped
  • 200g yellow split peas, soaked overnight, then drained
  • 50g butter
  • 2 tbsp curry powder (not further described)
  • 600ml water (between cold and room temperature)
  • 250g sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1cm cubes
  • 150g baby spinach leaves
  • sea salt flakes and freshly ground black pepper
  • crusty bread, such as a baguette, to serve

Method:

  1. Heat an empty saucepan over a medium-high heat, add the mustard and fennel seeds and toast for 1 minute, shaking the pan intermittently to prevent them from burning.
  2. Drizzle in the olive oil, add the onion and stir-fry until translucent and beginning to turn golden around the edges.
  3. Add the split peas, then the butter, curry powder and a generous amount of salt and pepper and stir-fry for 2 minutes.
  4. Pour in the water and stir once more. Reduce the heat, cover the pan with a lid and simmer gently for 30 – 35 minutes, stirring occasionally.
  5. Stir in the sweet potato cubes (add more water if the pan is getting dry), then cook, uncovered, for a further 20 – 25 minutes until the sweet potato is cooked through.
  6. Remove pan from the heat, stir in spinach. Replace the lid and leave to stand for 5 minutes, then give everything a final stir before serving with crusty bread.

Notes on this recipe:

  • I am blank on this recipe. I have a vague recollection of cooking it, but nothing of the taste. I’m guessing it was fine because it doesn’t stand out in my memory at all.