#tahdig

Vegan Tahdig

Tahdig originates from Iran and Afghanistan. The fluffy basmati rice is cooked in a big pot with oil to make the bottom layer really nice and crrrispy!

Thursday night I cooked one of my favorite Persian dishes, khoresh gheymeh. This is one of the many dishes my grandmother would cook us back home every Monday night. A few years ago, I asked to watch her in the kitchen and learned how to make this dish. Cooking Persian food helps me connect with and honor my culture, which can be challenging at times as my father’s side of the family is not Persian. I made this meal with an American friend, and I loved sharing the Persian culture with him. I taught him how to prepare Persian rice by boiling it in excess salty water, straining and rinsing it, adding more salt to taste, and then putting it back into the pot with a layer of oil at the bottom. I have cooked Persian rice many times before, but this was the first time I was able to get perfect tahdig that flipped right out of the pot! The night was a success when he asked to get seconds and take the leftovers home. My experience did not really challenge my preconceptions as I’m familiar with the Persian cooking process, but I certainly thought twice about the hefty amount of oil required for the tahdig and French fries. The oil used in Persian cuisine is one of the only similarities it shares with American cuisine, where Persian dishes have a tart flavor that can be created by citrus or other tart fruits such as pomegranate and sour cherries. While not present in gheymeh, the use of herbs is also very prevalent.

هاله

Below is the recipe I used along with step by step pictures.

Here we have added the stew beef and diced onions to a pot with olive oil. I seasoned them and browned all sides of the beef without fully cooking it.

Next, I added the tomato sauce and previously boiled yellow split peas to the pot. The beef will finish cooking in the tomato sauce which will prevent it from becoming tough.

I seasoned with the salt, pepper, cinnamon, and turmeric (I am not fancy enough to have saffron). I also added one lime's worth of juice (way more than the recipe calls for, but this is personal preference) and dried lime powder (which can be purchased on Amazon)

Here I have dried limes which can also be purchased on Amazon. I am using the sharp inner part of my kitchen scissors to puncture holes in the skin to allow the sauce to soak in. Any tool that can puncture holes without shattering the entire lime will work.

This is completely optional, but I roasted some eggplant to add to the stew. I cut the eggplant into thin slices, brushed with olive oil, seasoned with salt and pepper, and put it into the air fryer at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for 20 minutes.

Here I am straining the white basmati rice I cooked until al-dente.

I have then lined the bottom of the pot with peanut oil and put the rice back inside with the heat on low and the lid on to steam the rice until completely cooked and the tahdig has formed.

Here are the final results from the cooking! I served with plain yogurt on the side.

I’ve been taking walks more frequently lately. This is part of a concerted effort to increase my activity level, an effort that’s made challenging thanks to the unpredictable nature of my disability (some days, my legs aren’t all that interested in what I have to say about my activity level). When I go on my walks, I take one or two pieces of citrus fruit with me. I peel the fruit as I walk, trying to get the peel off in a single piece; I eat one segment at a time, using my primitive brain’s love of encapsulated fructose to reinforce that exercise is good.

Every time I see another living creature, my instinct is to offer them a piece. In my thinking mind, I know that a human stranger will think I’m a weirdo if I try to hand them a clementine segment in passing. I also know, in that same thinking mind, that feeding wildlife is both dangerous to and bad for the animals. I need the intervention of that thinking mind, because regardless of what I might know, the instinct still rises up from some deep well that stretches down to the bedrock of my soul: these are your kindred and companions; share with them what nourishes you.

When we share food with each other, we make meaning from the sharing. Whether you’re feasting in triumph or lament or reflection or toil or rest or gratitude, you’ll have reasons to connect a meal to a moment. Ultimately, no matter the reason for a shared meal, the truth of the feast is that it exists to create connections. This is going to be true of 2023: no matter who you are or where you live, you’ll have cause to feast this year.

The Personal Canons Cookbook launched yesterday. January will include astonishingly beautiful recipes and essays from Meg Elison, Naseem Jamnia, and Kelsea Yu. You can find more details and subscribe to the series for free here:

🧅🌿🥩🍋🍚

SO excited! some of you may know, others might not… but I’m half Persian. My father was born in Iran and he moved here for college. My whole life I was exposed to Iranian culture. My house would frequently smell of Persian spices and aromas. I’d visit other Persian family friends. While my dad spoke to them in Farsi, I could never understand what they were saying, so I’d hang out and graze on the random assortments of nuts and Persian candies the families would put out on the tables for the guests. My dad would play a lot of Persian music videos at home and try to get me into the music.

“They’re singing your name in this one Layla!!”

“Haha okay dad”

We went to a lot of Persian new year parties in the spring (Nowruz). And whenever I was sick, my dad would always make me a big pot of “green soup”…. I’m not sure why he didn’t call it by it’s true name “Ghormeh Sabzi”… maybe he thought I wouldn’t be able to remember the name? lol

Anyway my dad passed away six years ago, and I miss him all the time. Whenever I get to eat or cook Persian food, it reminds me of him.

So today I made ghormeh sabzi, the national dish of Iran. This dish is very near and dear to my heart, and it dates back more than 5,000 years. How cool is that? 😭 Ghormeh Sabzi is salty and a bit tangy, and honestly has such a unique flavor. It’s made up of fried herbs, meat, beans, and spices. The key ingredients in it are fenugreek, which you cannot buy fresh anywhere in the United States, and Persian dried limes. I know it might look a little weird to people that haven’t had this dish, but it’s so flavorful and amazing. It takes hours to cook. (Also I added potatoes which isn’t super traditional, please no persian friends come at me about my sabzi 😂)

I also FINALLY successfully made my own Tahdig (crispy persian rice cake). My basmati rice turned out soooo good! I used butter and saffron for the crispy part. 😋 I feel like a true Persian now that I’ve finally made tahdig. lmao

Additionally I made Mast-o-Khiar, which is a delicious Persian cucumber yogurt dip.

I’m just super excited and proud of myself. Thanks for listening.