Dishes to Eat When You Are in Iran

Iranian food culture is an attractive and interesting part of Iran cultural relations. In Iran, food is highly respected and the table, that is, the place on which food is served, is sacred. In the food culture of Iranians, it is generally believed that food is God’s blessing. Therefore, disrespecting food is equivalent to disrespecting the Creator. In addition, the table, as a place where family members gather three times a day and interact with each other, is considered very valuable in Iranian food culture. Eating alone is a form of disrespect to family members and a sign of poor communication.

Iranians are good cooks. Their food variety is high and they use the most valuable and healthiest food to cook traditional dish. In the school of traditional Iranian medicine, which is considered a part of the food culture of the people, all edibles are divided into 4 categories according to their nature: wet, dry, hot and cold. On this basis, Iranians believe that they should observe balance in consuming various foods. Otherwise, the body and soul will suffer from illness.

It is interesting to know that there are more than three thousand types of local food in this country, each of which has its own recipe. The most important Iranian dishes that most people are familiar with are: Kebab, Abgousht, Ash and all kinds of steamed rice.

Rice is meant to be cooked with oil in a special way and a variety of spices, beans and vegetables are mixed together and finally a delicious Iranian food is prepared. Polow or Polo is white rice that is called “demi” if we do not drain it. Rice is eaten with a combination of beans and meat. Among the Iranian dishes that are consumed with stew, we can mention Fesenjan stew, eggplant stew, celery stew, vegetable stew, and artichoke. These are the most famous and delicious foods of Iran.

In this article Persiana Travel and Tourism Agency gives you useful information about dishes of our country. Here it is some of the most popular and famous foods of Iran:

Khoreshte Gheimeh

One of the most original Iranian foods is Gheimeh stew. There is no doubt every Iranian has eaten or cooked this dish several times. By examining the history of gheimeh stew and some information and knowledge about this delicious and traditional Iranian food, we can find out that this food is cooked in different ways in different regions of Iran. In other words, it has become a kind of local and prominent food in different regions of our country.

Since the taste of gheimeh stew is suitable for most people’s taste and it has a simpler recipe than many other formal dishes. Since the distant past this stew has become one of the special foods in Iran and even other countries.

Khoreshte Gheimeh or Gheimeh Stew is a split pea stew. The ingredients are raw split pea, chopped onion, mutton or veal, tomato paste, Omani lemon, brewed saffron, sliced ​​potatoes, salt, pepper and turmeric.

Khoreshte Ghormeh Sabzi

Khorshte Ghormeh Sabzi, is a national dish of Iran and has world fame. This food is popular among all the people of this land and is a food that has a place on all Iranian tables. This food cooked in every city and country. It seems that the popular vegetable Ghormeh Sabzi stew can be considered as a symbol of empathy and unity and national unity of Iran. It is a national food which has always been on the tables of all of Iranians.

Ghormeh is cooked from fresh animal meat with animal fat and plenty of coarse salt. It is very fatty and energetic.

People living in different geographical areas use different combinations of vegetables to cook this stew. This selection of various vegetables has caused the Ghormeh Sabzi stew to have different tastes and flavors in different geographical areas.

It is a stew prepared with mixture of fried fresh herbs, beans, lamb or beef. What gives this stew such a unique taste is black lime or Persian lime. It is a must to eat this food when you travel to Tehran.

Lobia Polo

Lobia Polo is a famous and popular Iranian food that is prepared with green beans, rice, minced meat, spices and tomato paste. It is prepared with some saffron as well, which is a seasoning of Iranian foods.

Green beans belong to the group of vegetables and are important because of their high fiber. Green beans are among the vegetables that produce few calories in the body. When mixed with rice (provided that you use a little fat), it can be counted as a low-calorie food.

The ingredients of this food may be different in different region, but the presence of green beans is mandatory. Contrary to the idea that food is difficult to prepare, it is one of those simplest. It is useful for days when you don’t have enough time to make a dish for yourself.

Kalam Polo Shirazi

Kalam Polo or Cabbage Polo is a popular and delicious food that is cooked in different ways throughout Iran. But its origin is belonged to the city of Shiraz. This delicious dish is a combination of cabbage, rice, vegetables and various spices. The unique combination of vegetables in this dish has no resemblance to other Polos with vegetables. The presence of this vegetables makes the taste of the food more pleasant and delicious.

The cabbage that is used in Kalam Polo Shirazi is lunar cabbage, which is also called rock cabbage or cauliflower. We suggest that you don’t leave Shiraz without eating its famous cabbage polo.

Kofteh Tabrizi

Another famous dish of Iran is Tabriz meatballs or Kofteh Tabrizi. It is the most original and oldest food of this city. The most delicious meatball among all meatballs that can be cooked. But the good taste is not easily obtained. Cooking this food is not so easy, and it has its own technique.

To cook the meatballs, you need minced meat, cobs and vegetables as well as plums, blackberries, walnuts and onions. In the past, meat was pounded in a mortar, but now, despite the abundance of minced meat, few people use the mortar. Minced meat, onions, aromatic vegetables, rice and pounded cobs are the basic ingredients of this unique dish.

In the heart of this dumpling, they put plums, walnuts, onion, barberry and usually a hard-boiled egg. They make a delicious sauce from water, saffron and tomato paste and put the meatballs in it. This meatball has a pure and unique taste on its own, but you can enjoy it with vegetables, yogurt and pickles.

Dolmeh

Another traditional dish of Iran that can be found in everyone’s home is Dolmeh or Dolma. You must also agree that trying Tabriz dolma from an authentic Tabrizi is completely different from the dolma you make at home.
It is true that Dolmeh was registered in the list of intangible cultural heritage of UNESCO under the name of Azerbaijan, but we can consider it among the traditional dishes of this city.

Dolmeh is a difficult food that requires a lot of effort to cook, especially when wrapping the scallops, you must be careful and delicate. The ingredients are minced meat, rice and special vegetables and spices are used to cook Dolma.
Minced meat, hot onion, cod liver oil, rice and aromatic vegetables should be roasted. Leaves are boiled for one minute in water and salt. Each one is filled with a spoonful of rice sauce and the leaf is wrapped into a bite.

Shishlik

This food is a type of kebab that is made from six pieces of meat that are traditionally and usually from sheep. Shishlik means skewered kebab, and now many people mistakenly think that Shishlik means 6-piece kebab.

The cooking method of this kebab is slightly different from other kebabs and it has its own cooking method. Although this kebab comes from Central Europe, Western Europe, Caucasus and Central Asia, it has its fans in Iran. Today this food has become one of the most popular dishes of Mashhad and even in different cities of the country. Shishlik has different and especial cooking method in Iran in comparison with all other parts of the world.

In fact, Shishlik kebab is cooked in different cities, in the form of pieces of meat. But in Mashhad, which has the most famous type of Shishlik, the meat is pulled on a skewer along with the ribs and grilled on charcoal. Shishlik skewers may be completely made of meat or fat pieces or mixed with pieces of meat and fat. It also cooked with vegetables such as pepper, onion and tomato.

Ashe Reshteh

Another famous food of Iran is Ashe Reshteh. Ashe Reshteh is a kind of Persian vegan noodle soup. This is one of the main dishes of nowrouz. Ash reshteh’s flavor is defined by two uniquely persian ingredients: reshteh(thin noodles) and kashk(a dairy product that made from cooked yogurt). Different herbs and some legumes such as chick peas, black eye beans are used as well. It is topped with fried onion, mixture of dried mint with oil and kashk.

Abgousht

This food also Called Dizi is one of the national dishes of Iran and one of the most famous Iranian dishes. Abgousht is cooked in different regions of this country with different methods and ingredients and has different names. However, the main recipe for cooking Abgousht and Dizi is based on ingredients such as meat, peas, tomatoes, and various seasonings and spices.

Kashke Bademjan

Eggplant and walnut dip or Kashke Bademjan is one of those well-known dishes that hardly anyone can say that they don’t like this food. But Zanjan Kashke Bademjan is different from other eggplant curds you have ever eaten. This delicious Zanjani food is prepared as follows: First, fried eggplants are mashed together with curd. After that, minced meat, garlic and onion, all of which have been fried before, are poured over the eggplants to cover the surface. In order to complete the flavor of this dish and decorate it, some hot mint and walnuts are used. Eggplant curd is one of Zanjan foods that has high nutritional value. It is an important and useful source of nutrition.