Here is one way of making Kotlet…believe it or not there are a few types and different ways to make Kotlet.
Kotlet
Ingredients:
.5 lb ground beef– I used ground beef with only 10% fat
1 small onion
1 large potato
turmeric
salt/pepper
baking powder (optional)
bread crumbs
1 egg (optional)
Directions:
You can use a blender/food processor to chop up the onion and potato, or you can use a grater. Some people like to boil the potato then mash it up, and others use the grater or food processor. I have made Kotlet using both techniques. Here I used my blender and chopped up the onion and potato (I also hit the puree button to make sure it was mixed well). Afterward, you can pour the contents in the blender (or food processor) in a bowl with the ground beef and mash them together. Add turmeric, salt, pepper, and if you like baking powder, the egg, and bread crumbs. You can also choose to not put bread crumbs in the mix, but rather rounded balls of the mixture in the bread crumbs before flattening and frying.
Adding the baking powder and egg will keep the mixture together and allow it to puff up. I did add them, but noticed that my mixture wasn’t sticky enough, so I added my bread crumbs to the mixture. Usually when you boil the potato that is when you want to add the egg to the mixture.
After all the ingredients are mixed and mashed up you will take portions and form round balls out of them and flatten them out in your hand then place the patties (Kotlet) you have formed into a frying pan that has oil you have already heated. Fry each side until golden brown.
This is a aash (soup) one of my friends recently made for a gathering. It is from the Kurdish regions of Iran, and is basically a local Kurdish soup called Dokhawa.
Aash Dokhawa
The ingredients below are enough for a large pot.
Ingredients:
1 package parsley
2 packages cilantro
1 package dill (shevid), or half a cup dried dill (shevid khoshk)
.5 litre (16 oz) plain yogurt
1/2 cup rice
1/2 cup Barley (jo) –this should most likely be a pearl barley or other quick-cooking barley. I couldn’t find the exact meaning of balghooreh jo, but I assume its a more processed form of Barley (i.e, pearl Barley)
1 egg yolk
6-7 cups water
salt
Directions:
First whip the yogurt with the egg yolk so that chunks will not be formed when you mix it with the water. Add the egg yolk and yogurt you have whipped to the water and then add all three contents (egg yolk/yogurt/water mixture) to the pot you plan on using. Wash your greens (mentioned above) and chop them up only a little bit, do not chop them up too much cause they need to be fairly large. Add the greens, some salt, the rice, and the barley to the pot. Then allow the contents in the pot to come to a boil. After it boils bring the temperature down to a medium / medium-low and allow the contents to cook for 30-40 minutes.
A very yummy Persian potato salad! This dish is a good appetizer for a party, can be eaten as a snack with crackers, or can even be put into bread for a sandwich. The ingredients listed below make enough to last one person a couple of days, or even feed a group at a gathering. You can always increase the amount of ingredients used to make more, or decrease to make less.
Salade Olovieh
Ingredients:
2 skinless/boneless chicken breasts
1 small onion
turmeric
salt/ pepper
Mayo
4 - 5 medium to large potatoes- boiled
3 - 4 hard boiled eggs
green peas
pickles - chopped up
shredded carrots (optional)
Directions:
In a pot with water add the chicken breasts, slicked onion, salt, pepper, and turmeric to the chicken and cover the pot to allow it to cook for approximately 30 minutes on medium heat. Once cooked set it aside to cool. Once the chicken has cooled down you will shred it up and add to a large mixing bowl (you can use a knife to cut and shred the chicken up).
After the potatoes are boiled in a pot with water they will be ready for you to mash up. You can use a grater or just a masher to mash them up. Once the hard boiled eggs are ready you can also use the grater to shred it. Add these to the large mixing bowl as well. Then add the green peas, chopped pickles, and if desired shredded carrots. I typically don’t add shredded carrots to my Salade Olovieh. Also, I usually use dill pickles, unless I happen to have Persian pickles (from the Persian grocery store) which are much tastier!
Mix all the above ingredients together, add salt and pepper. Finally, add a desired amount of Mayonnaise and mix well. Some people like lots of mayo, while others like less … completely up to you. I add enough to get everything to stick together. Then when I pour the contents into a dish, I will cover a thin layer of mayo on top of the Olovieh.
