Recipes Wanted !
Guirdu, Nazooki, Cada and Keleechi
That's right! I love the authentic the good old Assyrian food, Guirdu, Cada, Keleechi and Nazooki, and there is no store here in Atlanta for these Assyrian goodies. Send me the recipes by clicking here: "Contact us" and qualify for the prize. I will send the "Atuta package" to the best recipe, and I will print it on this site with your name on it—with your permission.
Baseemi raba :)
Baseemi raba :)
Making hot tea
by: Abraham Giliana
Making hot tea
note: This recipe was taken from "Chai-é-Jahan" company, the Iranian tea producer.
Timing: It takes 20-30 minutes to make a good tea.
What we need:
a Kettle (chai-danکتری) for boiling water
a tea pot (chai-pasقوری) for brewing the tea
2 tea spoons tea leaves (commonly called: Black Tea) or 2 tea bag packets
How to:
1. Fill up the kettle with clean tap water (preferably filtered water) and boil it.
2. Place two (2) bags of tea packets or two tea spoons of regular black tea inside the tea pot and add a cup of water to the tea pot to start brewing (دم کشیدن) the tea. Take the lid of the kettle and place the tea pot on top of the kettle to heat up the tea pot.
3. Once the water in the kettle is boiled, fill up the tea pot with hot boiling water. The hot water in the tea pot will speed up the process of brewing. With a clean spoon or fork, stir the water in the tea pot a few times to speed up the brew.
4. If necessary, refill the kettle with tap (or filtered) water, and wait until the water comes to a boil again.
Note: It is not recommended to drink tea before the water is boiled. Also, never boil the tea pot containing tea leaves or tea bag packets; boiling the tea will cause the tea change the taste and release toxins.
5. When the water in the kettle is boiled again, the tea is ready to be served. Take the tea pot off the kettle and place the lid on kettle. Depending on taste of the person, pour a couple of ounces of brewed tea from the tea pot in the cup, and fill the cup with hot water. Serve with sugar cube (qandقند) or sugar as you desire. The strength and color of the tea can be changed by adding more hot water or brewed tea. 6-8 servings.
Timing: It takes 20-30 minutes to make a good tea.
What we need:
a Kettle (chai-danکتری) for boiling water
a tea pot (chai-pasقوری) for brewing the tea
2 tea spoons tea leaves (commonly called: Black Tea) or 2 tea bag packets
How to:
1. Fill up the kettle with clean tap water (preferably filtered water) and boil it.
2. Place two (2) bags of tea packets or two tea spoons of regular black tea inside the tea pot and add a cup of water to the tea pot to start brewing (دم کشیدن) the tea. Take the lid of the kettle and place the tea pot on top of the kettle to heat up the tea pot.
3. Once the water in the kettle is boiled, fill up the tea pot with hot boiling water. The hot water in the tea pot will speed up the process of brewing. With a clean spoon or fork, stir the water in the tea pot a few times to speed up the brew.
4. If necessary, refill the kettle with tap (or filtered) water, and wait until the water comes to a boil again.
Note: It is not recommended to drink tea before the water is boiled. Also, never boil the tea pot containing tea leaves or tea bag packets; boiling the tea will cause the tea change the taste and release toxins.
5. When the water in the kettle is boiled again, the tea is ready to be served. Take the tea pot off the kettle and place the lid on kettle. Depending on taste of the person, pour a couple of ounces of brewed tea from the tea pot in the cup, and fill the cup with hot water. Serve with sugar cube (qandقند) or sugar as you desire. The strength and color of the tea can be changed by adding more hot water or brewed tea. 6-8 servings.
Plain white Rice
by: Abraham Giliana
Rice is the essential dish in Iran. I suggest using "Basmati" rice which is harvested in India. The special aroma and taste of Basmati rice is unlike any other. And when cooked the right way, it won't stick together. Preparing it can be tricky if you are not careful. Most likely, it can be over cooked and/or become mushy, which it looses its flavor and aroma as well.
There are two basic ways to cook the rice; steaming or straining it. The trick to it is timing. Here, I will show you my favorite way, steaming the rice which is more difficult, but it is the best way. I recommend using a two-pound bag of Basmati rice.
Note: I have tried the "Jasmine" rice, which is not too bad. It is better than the "A Kheeta !" or Chinese rice and the price is a little lower than the Basmati's. The way of cooking is the same.
Serving: 6-8 servings
What we need:
a two pound bag of Basmati rice
1 cup salt
1 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup olive oil (optional)
1 stick butter (optional), at room temperature
a few tortillas, lavash or toasts
5 tspns lemon juice (optional)
a 5-quart or bigger pot
a 5-quart or bigger bowl
a strainer
a fork
How to prepare:
1. Fill up the 5-quart pot with tap water, add 1 cup vegetable oil (adding oil will prevent rice to stick). Place on the stove to boil.
2. While the water is getting hot on the stove, pour the rice inside the bowl, add cold water and with your hand gently mix the rice in water and get the cloudiness out—the cloudiness is the starch that will make the rice stick, if not cooked right. Rinse and strain the rice at least five times, until the water looses its cloudiness.
3. When the water containing the rice is clear, add 1 cup of salt to it and mix it with rice—gently. Don't worry about the salt being too much, it will be strained later! If time allows, it is the best to submerge the rice in salt water at least two hours ahead of time (not more than 8 hours), so that the rice will absorb the flavor of salt and get ready to cook more uniformly.
4. When the water in the pot comes to a boil, strain the rice as much as possible and pour it inside the pot of hot boiling water, gently mix it with wooden spoon. At this time, the rice is fragile and has lost some of that exess salt. The oil in the water will prevent the rice stick together. Heat the pot with medium temperature.
Important: The water level should be twice as the rice's level.
5. The water will start boiling. Stir it a couple of times gently. Feel the grains of the rice and check for it's tenderness, when it is half-cooked (still a little crunchy), turn the fire off. Strain the rice completely. At this stage, some more of the excess salt will be gone.
6. Cover the bottom of the pot with tortillas or lavash لواش, and pour the rice inside the pot, add olive oil, butter, lemon juice (optional) and stir with fork.
7. Cover the pot with a clean towel and put the lid on the towel.
8. Adjust the stove to the minimum heat, and let the rice cook for at least half an hour. Stir the rice a couple of times with fork. Be careful, don't touch the breading under the rice. Check the rice and see if it is cooked uniformly.
If cooked right, the bottom of the pot, which is the breading mixed with rice, oil and butter called 'Ishtid qoosurtaته دیگ' in Assyrian or 'tah-deeg' in Persian, should be the best tasting part of the meal.
There are two basic ways to cook the rice; steaming or straining it. The trick to it is timing. Here, I will show you my favorite way, steaming the rice which is more difficult, but it is the best way. I recommend using a two-pound bag of Basmati rice.
Note: I have tried the "Jasmine" rice, which is not too bad. It is better than the "A Kheeta !" or Chinese rice and the price is a little lower than the Basmati's. The way of cooking is the same.
Serving: 6-8 servings
What we need:
a two pound bag of Basmati rice
1 cup salt
1 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup olive oil (optional)
1 stick butter (optional), at room temperature
a few tortillas, lavash or toasts
5 tspns lemon juice (optional)
a 5-quart or bigger pot
a 5-quart or bigger bowl
a strainer
a fork
How to prepare:
1. Fill up the 5-quart pot with tap water, add 1 cup vegetable oil (adding oil will prevent rice to stick). Place on the stove to boil.
2. While the water is getting hot on the stove, pour the rice inside the bowl, add cold water and with your hand gently mix the rice in water and get the cloudiness out—the cloudiness is the starch that will make the rice stick, if not cooked right. Rinse and strain the rice at least five times, until the water looses its cloudiness.
3. When the water containing the rice is clear, add 1 cup of salt to it and mix it with rice—gently. Don't worry about the salt being too much, it will be strained later! If time allows, it is the best to submerge the rice in salt water at least two hours ahead of time (not more than 8 hours), so that the rice will absorb the flavor of salt and get ready to cook more uniformly.
4. When the water in the pot comes to a boil, strain the rice as much as possible and pour it inside the pot of hot boiling water, gently mix it with wooden spoon. At this time, the rice is fragile and has lost some of that exess salt. The oil in the water will prevent the rice stick together. Heat the pot with medium temperature.
Important: The water level should be twice as the rice's level.
5. The water will start boiling. Stir it a couple of times gently. Feel the grains of the rice and check for it's tenderness, when it is half-cooked (still a little crunchy), turn the fire off. Strain the rice completely. At this stage, some more of the excess salt will be gone.
6. Cover the bottom of the pot with tortillas or lavash لواش, and pour the rice inside the pot, add olive oil, butter, lemon juice (optional) and stir with fork.
7. Cover the pot with a clean towel and put the lid on the towel.
8. Adjust the stove to the minimum heat, and let the rice cook for at least half an hour. Stir the rice a couple of times with fork. Be careful, don't touch the breading under the rice. Check the rice and see if it is cooked uniformly.
If cooked right, the bottom of the pot, which is the breading mixed with rice, oil and butter called 'Ishtid qoosurtaته دیگ' in Assyrian or 'tah-deeg' in Persian, should be the best tasting part of the meal.
Khorest-é-Bademjon (eggplant)
(Persian recipe)
by: Abraham Giliana
What we need:
2 lbs. beef, chopped in about 2"x2" cubes
2 large eggplants, slice in 1/2" thick circles, unpeeled
4 large tomatoes, slice in 3/8" thick cirles
1 small can tomato paste
1 jar Salsa sauce
1 cup lemon juice
1 cup olive oil or peanut oil
seasoning—salt, pepper, minced garlic as desired
How to prepare:
1. Place beef in pot, add 2-3 cups of water and start cooking in medium heat. Stir occasionly to avoid burning.
2. Clean the vegetables.
3. Season eggplants and spray them with lemon juice on both sides, lay them in non-stick fryer or pan, cover them leaving some opening for steam to escape. Place them in the preheated oven 350 F°. Cook for 1 hour or until cooked thoroughly.
4. Chop onions, simmer in oil until brown.
5. Add salsa sauce and simmer with onions for about 5 minutes.
6. Season the sauce with salt, pepper, garlic and lemon juice as desire.
7. When beef is done, drain excess water and save it for later use. Add tomato paste and some oil, simmer with medium heat until brown, mix with wooden spoon to submerge meat with tomato paste. Turn the heat off when meat is browned.
8. Simmer sliced tomatoes with salsa sauce for 15 minutes.
Now the beef, the sauce and the eggplants are ready.
Lay a layer of sauce with tomatoes in the pot, lay a layer of beef and a layer of eggplants, start the laying the layers all over again, a layer of sauce with tomatoes, a layer of beef and a layer of eggplants until all the ingredients are finished. Add a little beef broth stored from before. Heat the pot in low heat for 15 minutes, and the Khoresht-é-Bademjon is now ready. Pour it on rice, and serve. 4-6 servings.
2 lbs. beef, chopped in about 2"x2" cubes
2 large eggplants, slice in 1/2" thick circles, unpeeled
4 large tomatoes, slice in 3/8" thick cirles
1 small can tomato paste
1 jar Salsa sauce
1 cup lemon juice
1 cup olive oil or peanut oil
seasoning—salt, pepper, minced garlic as desired
How to prepare:
1. Place beef in pot, add 2-3 cups of water and start cooking in medium heat. Stir occasionly to avoid burning.
2. Clean the vegetables.
3. Season eggplants and spray them with lemon juice on both sides, lay them in non-stick fryer or pan, cover them leaving some opening for steam to escape. Place them in the preheated oven 350 F°. Cook for 1 hour or until cooked thoroughly.
4. Chop onions, simmer in oil until brown.
5. Add salsa sauce and simmer with onions for about 5 minutes.
6. Season the sauce with salt, pepper, garlic and lemon juice as desire.
7. When beef is done, drain excess water and save it for later use. Add tomato paste and some oil, simmer with medium heat until brown, mix with wooden spoon to submerge meat with tomato paste. Turn the heat off when meat is browned.
8. Simmer sliced tomatoes with salsa sauce for 15 minutes.
Now the beef, the sauce and the eggplants are ready.
Lay a layer of sauce with tomatoes in the pot, lay a layer of beef and a layer of eggplants, start the laying the layers all over again, a layer of sauce with tomatoes, a layer of beef and a layer of eggplants until all the ingredients are finished. Add a little beef broth stored from before. Heat the pot in low heat for 15 minutes, and the Khoresht-é-Bademjon is now ready. Pour it on rice, and serve. 4-6 servings.