Mar 18

Samanoo is one of the seven items that is typically placed on the Sofreh Haftseen for Norouz. However, it can be made and eaten at any time. The sweetness is all natural and comes from the wheat, but some choose to add more sugar.

Ingredients:
250 grams of unpelted wheat –the same that is used to grow sabzeh
1000 grams of wheat flour — I used whole wheat
sugar (optional) –for those who want a sweeter Samanoo

In other words you use four times more wheat flour compared to your wheat.

Video Recipe:

Directions:
Making it takes a couple of days.

Day 1
Wash the unpelted wheat and soak in a bowl with cold water.

Day 2
Empty out the water in the bowl and add cold water once again.

Day 3
Wet a paper towel and place it on the bottom of a dish (a dish you plan to have the sabzeh grow in). Use a strainer to empty the wheat and rinse the wheat. After you rinse the what add it to the dish with the wet paper towel on the bottom. Soak cotton cloths (or paper towels) and place on top of the wheat. Place this dish in a warm area. Note: you will notice that roots are beginning to appear.

Day 4 - Day 6
Wet the cotton cloths at least twice a day until the wheat roots/sprouts have grown. When you begin to see some of the sprouts turning green thats when you know the wheat is ready to be used for the making of Samanoo.

Note: it may be that you will need to grow your wheat a bit longer. Its important to keep an eye on the spouts and decide when they are ready.

Day 7
On this day my wheat was ready to be used for making Samanoo. To begin you will break off amounts of the wheat (sprouts and roots included) and put it in a blender, add water, and puree/liquefy the wheat. Keep breaking off bits of the wheat and add to the blender with additional amounts of water. By the time all the wheat is blended the concentration will look like oatmeal or Halim.

Empty the contents of the blender into a fine mesh strainer (the strainer should be placed over a bowl). Slowly turn the blended wheat around so that the liquid can seep through. Note: you dont want to push anything through the strainer besides the liquid. Then transfer the blended wheat into a cotton cloth. You will wrap up the sides of the cloth and begin squeezing any remaining liquid milk out into the bowl.

Then empty the contents of the cloth back into the blender, add more water, and liquefy/puree a bit more. Then repeat the steps of using the strainer and then the cloth. You want to continue this process until the milky color is no longer visible. For the amount of wheat mentioned above (250 grams), I repeated the steps about six times.

Then in a large pot add your wheat flour. Gradually begin pouring the liquid onto the flour and mix. You want to add enough of the liquid so that the flour has no lumps and is smooth.

Turn the burner heat on to a medium temperature. Constantly stir the mixture. Since I used whole wheat the color darkened quicker. However, whole wheat does have a texture due to the Saboos (bran). Also, the sweetness usually comes from the unpelted wheat, but if you prefer your Samanoo to be very sweet you should add some sugar.

You need to continue stirring until the water is completely evaporated. Once the water is evaporated the mixture will look something like Halva. You want to fry it for a couple of minutes (no need to add any oil since the wheat has natural oils). Then begin adding hot water gradually and stirring again so no lumps exist.

You can place the lid onto the pot in a way which stream can still escape. You no longer need to continuously stir, instead you can stir every 10-15 minutes. Again you want to allow the water to evaporate and the Samanoo to thicken.

Once the it is close to being ready you can even place a cloth or towel onto the lid and cover the pot for an additional 30 minutes to gather additional moisture.

This process takes awhile, and for the amount of wheat and wheat flour I used it took approximately 5 hours from the time I began cooking the mixture for the Samanoo to prepare. After its ready you can pour it into a dish and allow it to cool before serving.

Samanoo

Samanoo

It helps to have some extra people around to stir :)

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Mar 16

This dish is practically the same as Zeresk Polo ba Morgh (Barberry Rice with Chicken). When I first decided to make it I kept asking myself what is different about this dish compared to Zereshk Polo…but then I realized the main difference is that the chicken is steamed with the rice in Morgh Polo. Though some do this when making Zereshk Polo, its more common to prepare the chicken separately when cooking Zereshk Polo. In other words chicken is the garnish to Zereshk Polo.

Morgh Polo

Morgh Polo

Either way, whichever name you decide to call the dishes the recipe is below :)

Ingredients:
500 grams Chicken –you can lesson the amount of chicken if you wish
1 small onion - finely chopped up
100 grams barberries (zereshk)
3-4 cups rice
1-2 teaspoon zireh (cumin)
1 teaspoon liquid saffron
oil
2-3 tablespoons sugar
salt/pepper
turmeric

Directions:

Rinse the rice and soak it (add salt to the water) for at least 1-2 hours prior to preparing the Morgh Polo.

Begin by preparing your chicken. Cut the chicken into smaller pieces. In a pan you want to fry the onions in oil until they begin turning a golden color. Once the onions are turning a golden color add the chicken pieces.  Fry the chicken and add salt, pepper, and turmeric. Add about 1 cup of water to the chicken and cover the pan with a lid and allow the chicken to cook for 30- 40 minutes on medium heat.

Once the chicken is prepared set the chicken pieces aside. If you want to keep a bit of the chicken stock to pour onto the rice you may do so at this time.

In a large pot bring water to a boil. When the water is boiling add the rice to the pot and allow it to cook until the water comes to a boil again (stove top should be on high temperature). Drain the rice and add a little water and oil to the pot and return it to the stove. Pour half the rice into the pot and then add the chicken pieces and cumin, and cover the chicken/cumin with the remaining rice. Should you like you can add a bit of the chicken stock to the rice at this time. Place a cloth or towel on the lid of the pot and cover the pot. Once the steam begins escaping from the pot you want to turn the temperature down to low and allow the Morgh Polo to cook at least an additional 40 minutes.

Clean the zereshk (barberries) and soak for a bit in water then rinse. Approximately 10- 15 minutes before serving the Morgh Polo you want to begin cooking the zereshk. In a pan pour a little bit of oil and add the rinsed zereshk to the pan. Fry the barberries a bit and add a desired amount of sugar to them. Add a little bit of saffron as well. Once the barberries are cooked set them aside and prepare the Morgh Polo.

In a serving platter you want to use a large spoon to place half the Morgh Polo on the platter. Then mix another half of the remaining Morgh Polo with most of the zereshk (leave a small amount of the zereshk). Pour the mixed zereshk and Morgh Polo over the rice in the serving platter. Finally, add a bit of liquid saffron to remaining amount of Morgh Polo and mix with the remaining zereshk. Add this to the top of the Morgh Polo in the serving platter (you can decorate it on top of the rice).

Serve with torshi, mast-o khiar, mast-o moosir, plain mast (yogurt), sabzi jat, or any other type of desired garnish.

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Mar 11

This is a tasty Beet (Choghondar e Laboo) soup that also has pomegranate. The roots of the beet are also used in making this soup hence why some people refer to this soup as Beetroot soup.

Soup e Laboo (Beet Soup)

Soup e Laboo (Beet Soup)


Ingredients (4-6 people):
1 bunch of beets (must have the leaves and roots too)
1 cup pomegranate juice (or squeeze juice from two pomegranates)
1 teaspoon pomegranate paste
1lb ground chicken or turkey
1 onion grated
salt and pepper
turmeric or saffron
2-3 cups water

Directions:
Chop up the beets into square pieces or thin slices. Chop up the roots and leaves as well. In a large pot add the water and the beets and beet-roots and allow the contents to cook or 20-30 minutes (burner set to medium heat and place lid on pot). Add the pomegranate juice and pomegranate paste and stir. Add some salt and pepper to the soup for flavor and cover the pot again. While the soup is simmering and cooking begin preparing the meatballs.

In a mixing bowl mix together the ground chicken or turkey, grated onion, salt, pepper, and turmeric (or saffron). Remove the lid from the pot with the soup and begin forming small round meatballs and adding to the soup. Allow the soup to cook for an additional 30 minutes before it is ready to serve.

Hope you enjoy! :)

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