April 29, 2009

Iranian Baghali Polou with Borani-Ye Esfenaj, Moong-Coconut milk Soup, MW Almond Rabri

Did I ask for Sunny days? :D I asked and I got them!! Man! It's so hot here, had a headache running around the town doing chores but my plants are growing fast and furious, it's a joy to watch. All the herbs and Curry leaf plant are on the deck and loving the heat. One drawback of hot and sunny days is you don't feel like standing in front of hot stove now and cook which was a comfort in Winter but have to do at least 3 meals a day anyway! Tushar had his Guitar concert last night, his last concert in middle school, enjoyed that too! :)


You must be wondering why am I so busy these days that I am even missing few posts to comment because of lack of time! Well..I will tell you next Wednesday! :)

I made some slightly familiar sounding Iranian dishes last week, loved the taste of the rice and cooling Spinach salad, mainly influenced by the book "Rosewater and Soda bread" by Marsha Mehran, which is second book. I loved her first book "Pomegranate Soup", so read her second one too curious to know what happened to 3 Iranian sisters who escaped form Iran to Ireland. Moong gravy was yummy and dessert with bread slice made it so easy to thicken faster in the MW. Enjoy the feast!

Iranian Baghali Polou with Borani-Ye Esfenaj, spicy Moong and coconut milk gravy and Almond Rabri for dessert on a platter:
Baghali Polou/Polow/Polo and Borani recipes are mostly adapted from a Iranian cookbook by Najmieh K. Batmanglij with my slight changes, who is also the author of "Silk Road Cooking-A vegetarian Journey". Fava beans are added to this rice dish usually but I didn't find those. I replaced it with green and white baby Lima beans. Moong dish is from Lisa's kitchen and Rabri of course is an easy traditional Indian dessert, I made it easier using Microwave and improvised the recipe too. Enjoy making them, always good to try new tastes! :)

Moong and coconut milk soup from "Lisa's Kitchen":
I know most Indians love green Moong and make various tasty dishes with it for rice dishes or Parathas on the side. I chose this recipe from Lisa's kitchen for "T and T"event which looked so delcious, added 1/4 cup thick coconut milk and some Yogurt but mostly followed the rest of the recipe as same as the original. Soup or bhaji as we say is delicious and spicy. It tasted great with the less spicy Dill and Lima beans rice and very nutritious too and also tastes good with Pooris. Here is the original recipe for Moong soup from Lisa's Kitchen.

Iranian Baghali Polou/Dill, Lima beans (could also use Fava beans) and saffron rice:
Here is a very simple and very flavorful with Polou/Pulao Iranian style. With added Dill and Lima beans (Fava beans) and hardly any strong spices, it makes a wonderful accompaniment for any spicy dal or meat gravies along with a salad. You can also add Gosht/Lamb into it to make a non-veg Polou. Usually, all the the ingrdients are added to a dish, covered and cooked in enough water just like Biryani/Pulao to serve.
But I cooked rice separately and then mixed with seasoned Dill and Lima beans which retains the brilliant color of Dill and beans and they don't get too mushy. I reserved some rice and mixed with saffron and salt to serve on top of Dill rice to make this dish attractive as they do in the restaurants. You can mix all this up with Saffron milk and cook for convenience.

You Need:
2 cups Basmati or long grain rice, 1 tsp butter, salt, Pepper, Pinch of Saffron soaked in 1 tbsp hot milk. 1 Cup frozen Lima beans covered and cooked in the Microwave for 5 mins with 1 tbsp water.
Season:
1 tbsp butter, 1 small onion, finely chopped, 2 garlic, minced, 1/4 red chilli flakes, 2 cups chopped Dill leaves, cooked Lima beans, salt and pepper.
Here is how I made it:
1. Cook 2 cups Basmati or long grain rice with 3 1/2 cups of water or cook as usual you do for yourself with 1 tsp butter and 1/4 tsp salt added. When cooked, take out 1 cup of rice, add a pinch of saffron mixed with 1 tbsp of warm milk and mix well. Let it cool.
2. Heat 1 tbsp butter, saute 1 small onion finely chopped, 2 garlic chopped fine, 1/4 tsp red Chilli flakes for a minute. Add cups of fresh Dill leaves with a pinch of salt, saute.
3. Add cooked Lima beans and enough pepper to taste.
4. Add this to cooked white rice and mix well, adjust the salt and pepper. To serve, spoon the Dill rice first and then top with Saffron rice or you can mix both these and serve with spicy gravy and cool Spinach-Yogurt salad.

Iranian Borani-Ye Esfenaj/Spinach, onion and Yogurt salad:

A popular Spinach and Yogurt salad from Iran, this is served with Baghali Polou on the side. Borani is salad and Esfenaj means Spinach. Very simple and quick salad to make, tastes great with any knid of Indian Pulavs too.

You Need:
1 cup thick plain Yogurt, salt and pepper to taste, 1/4 tsp Cumin pd (my addition),
For seasoning:
1 tsp oil, 1/3 cup well packed chopped Spinach, fresh or frozen (sqeeze it dry and chop finely), 4 tbsp finely chopped onion, 1 plump Garlic, finely chopped.
To make the salad:
1. Beat Yogurt, salt, Pepper, and Cumin powder well and keep aside.
2. Heat oil, add onion and garlic, saute for 1 minute until soft. Add the chopped Spinach, pinch of salt and stir fry for 2 mins. Take off the heat and cool this down.
3. Add cooled Spinach to Yogurt. Mix well and serve.

Moong and Coconut milk Bhaji:
Same as the above Moong recipe but I made it thicker than the soup consistency and added 3 tbsp thick plain Yogurt at the end of cooking to give it a little tang instead of adding lemon juice and simmered it down on low heat until the sauce is thick. Other than that, I followed the same recipe as it is at Lisa's Kitchen.

Microwaved Almond Rabri:
Rabri or Rabdi, traditionally is a thick concentrated milk with sugar, Cardamom and nuts added. I made an unusual and non-traditional Rabri in the Microwave with fat free Evaporated milk, Almonds, lot less sugar (you can add as much as you want) and a surprise ingredient!! Enjoy.

You need:
1 1/2 cup or 12oz canned Fat-free Evaporated Milk, 1/2 cup Almond, skinless and chopped, 1/4 cup sugar, 1 slice crustless bread (I added a slice of Cinnamon and Raisin bread, didn't add Cardamom pd in this Rabri), 1/2 tsp ghee, few strands of saffron and 1/2 tsp Cardamom powder.
To make it:
1. Grind Almonds, sugar and bread slice with 1/2 cup of Evaporated milk until smooth, add rest of the milk and process until mixed.
2. Add this to a deep tall microwavable bowl or glass bowl along with ghee and Saffron, heat for 5 mins making sure it's not spilling over. Stir and heat again for 2 more minutes.
3. It thicken faster because of the Almonds and bread, so be careful not to cook it for too long. Add Cardamom pd and mix well.
4. Exactly how mins to cook depends on your Microwave. Just MW until you get the thick sauce of Rabri. Adjust sugar as well to your taste.
Serve Rabri garnished with Almonds or Pistachios if you like. You can serve this warm or chilled.

Logos, Hosts and events, my thanks to all of you guest hosts and hosts, enjoy! :)

Iranian Baghali Polou, goes to Smitha's "Colors of Taste-Flavored Rice(World)" event.
Almond Rabri, goes to Mythreyee who is guest hosting "MEC-Nuts", an event stated by Srivalli.
Moong in coconut milk soup, chosen from "Lisa's Kitchen", goes to Aparna who is guest hosting "T and T-Lisa's Kitchen", an event initiated by Zlamushka.
Borani-Ye Esfenaj, goes to Mahimaa's "15 minute cooking" event.

******************************************************************************************************
My own tried and tasted recipes from other blogs. Thanks to all of you for posting these delicious dishes, loved them! :)

Vangya cha Rassa, from Anjali.

Spicy Carrot Chutney, from Arch.

Varutharacha Sambhar, from Divya Kudua.

Peanut Chutney, from Sowjanya.


Movies I watched:

Frost/Nixon!
YAY! I was waiting to get my hands on this movie for a week now, I got it y'day at last! :)

You will love this movie if you are into politics, know about Watergate and 37th president Richard Nixon scandal, only president who resigned from "office" in his second term in the history of USA. It's amazing how a president can be so blatant, in denial, arrogant (drunk too sometimes but doesn't remember what he said next day!) and shameless, NEVER really apologized to people for his involvement at all when he resigned but reluctantly admits guilt only when cornered by David Frost at the end of this interview after rambling about everything else for hrs and hrs, even blaming others for all that too! Well... reminds me of another "somebody" we all know who didn't resign from the office or apologized for his mistakes!!:P

Nixon gets paid $600000 in 1977 for this now widely watched interview, which made British journalist David Frost a household name, who is also the only journalist who has interviewed many leaders of the World including Shah of Iran. It makes you angry when Nixon says to David Frost "when the President does it, it's not illegal!" regarding the cover up etc.,
in this interview.

Very well acted by Frank Langella and Michael Sheen in the lead roles, Kevin Bacon is great as usual. Fascinating movie to watch, I can imagine how stressful it must have been to both Frost and Nixon to get thru' this one at that time! You also feel sorry for Nixon when he says to Frost when they meet privately, "I am just not suited to be liked, I don't have that kind of charm. Do you know how fortunate you are?". Ex President Richard Nixon died in 1994.

Bride Wars
One of those Chick flicks which I usually don't like to watch but watched this one for kookie Kate Hudson and my new fave actress Anne Hathaway. It's very funny and entertaining movie!
Two "best friends" who dream about their "perfect weddings" since they were little girls, grow up, fall in love and get engaged. When they hire a wedding planner for their "perfect" weddings, she accidentally books the same date for both weddings! Best friends then get competitive "best enemies", even try to destroy eachother's wedding plans, not willing to give up on anything which is hilarious to watch. Now it's war, girly style!! After all that drama, what happens in the end is for you to watch, I don't want to spoil the fun!! :D

Have a great weekend, see you all later! :)

126 comments:

EC said...

I guess you would have tried almost all kinds of cuisines..Iranian being the latest from the time I started visiting your blog..Your spreads are always one which would make a person hungry even if there is not a bit of place in the tummy after some heavy food..

A journey called Life said...

WOW!!!!

sra said...

That dill-y, beany polou looks beautiful, and I would love to taste the esfenaj borani. Guess I'd like the American sunny days rather than the Indian sunny days we're having now, tho' I'm not a cold person at all!

Priya Suresh said...

Never tried out anything in Iranian cuisine, infact now am really want to give a try after seeing ur delicious platter...everything looks delicious..Almond Rabri looks gorgeous while moong coconutmilk soup looks prefect..Again an outstanding delicious visual treats which makes me hungry!

Deepthi Shankar said...

wow the rabri looks amazing, its a delicious platter from you yet again.. the soup looks like something I wanna try

Vishali said...

Love all of them Asha! The way u arranged the Baghali Polou is so nice. Waiting for wt u will tell next Wednesday :).

For us it was hot for one week in some 80's and now its back to 60's
;).

Gita Jaishankar said...

Divine dishes dear :) I have to make this combo this weekend...they look so tempting! Very flavorful rice...mmm with dil :)

Finla said...

Wow I have never heard about that iranian dish, you do lot of special cusines.
All of them looks so yumm, why do i always salvate in your place.
Wish we had such good weather, here it is sunny but not so sunny as in your place.

Parita said...

Amazing dishes...love the almond rabri..fantastic pics..makes me drool...oh i was planning to watch bride wars this weekend, and after your review its a must watch :)

FH said...

Thanks girls, I enjoyed the Iranian dishes, very flavorful! :)

sra, more the heat, I think it's dry weather and Pollen which are giving me headache. it's nice to feel hot Sun in the face after so long.

F, Europe probably get this kind of heat only in July, so long wait still!:)
Tushar had his last Guitar concert last night, so still little sleepy but it was so good.

Uj said...

Rice with only Dill and beans is totally new to me.. I have never tasted Iranian food.. Rabri looks very yummy and in microwave it must have been a easier to make... your blog is a treat for eyes.. :)

AnuSriram said...

Wow!! All the dishes looks lovely! Moong-coconut milk soup looks fabulous! Will try it! Almond rabri looks delicious and sounds very easy using a microwave! Iranian platter is very new to me.... Interesting recipes..
Btw, thanks for giving me the link for butternut squash recipes.. will try them and let u know! Have a gr8 weekend!

Pavani said...

Restaurant style Polou looks lovely. Very nice presentation. Bread is definitely a surprise ingredient in rabri, looks colorful and yummy.
Need your advise on my container garden: we're going on vacation (to Sweden.. I'm super excited abt it)for 10days and do you think my plants will survive without water, I don't have any helpful neighbors to water them. Any tips Asha.. Thanks a lot.

chef and her kitchen said...

Ashakka, i was eagerly waiting today for your post to find new surprises on ur blog...and as usual u surprised with a different cuisine...other than khari i never tasted anything of iranian food...Almond rabri looks very tempting and even the soup..infact everything is looking delicious...

VIDYA VENKY said...

wonderful platter...makes me crave for it....out of world as usual

Sakshi said...

u got me again..today I thought if I sit with a platter of Idli and Sambar and read your post things will be in control..but na after a couple of Idlis am hungry as ever after seeing your platter. I am eager to try out the spinach yoghurt tonight itself. The soup looks so refreshing and yeah healthy too for moong lovers like us. Wow MW rabri..now that's a whole new way for this dessert.

Nixon...well what to say about him..an exact replica of some of the highly corrupt shameless politicians back home..
I like Anne Hathaway too and this movie sounds like fun by the way u have described it.
It was 90 F here and I almost got grilled while hiking and was wondering all the while how I escaped from the Delhi summers unscathed.
Have a great week ahead and hey did I read right..you have a curry plant on your deck?? wow..i have got some herbs and tomatoes as am a first time gardener and hoping that these guys are doing well in my hands

FH said...

hanks girls, enjoy the new dishes!:)

Pavani, just soak all the pots night before you leave thoroughly until the water comes out of the bottom and make sure they are all in a shady area rather than exposed to direct sunlight. We leave them like this too under the deck for about 8 days twice a year when we go for vacation too. Some will be dry and most will be alright. Water them again as soon as you return. If you feel that herbs are delciate to survive, you could water them and keep them inside the house as well, it will warm without the blazing Sun.
Sweden sounds so good, I haven't been there yet. He will in Hawaii at the end of June! Enjoy without worrying about anything! :)

Sakshi, I do have one curry leaf plant. It was inside the house all Winter and now it's out and doing well. It needs lot of heat!
I will make a post about my veggie patch etc in July or August.I have 2 posts already from 2007 and 2008.Good luck with your gardening! :)

Purnima said...

Asha! Yay..mw rabdi n salad are on the top of my list! Wow..honestly that Irani Polou has been plated so well! Can have a scoop frm here! Finally Tushar has made it to FH space with some praise from you! (Succeeding Trisha postwise!:D) Loved the collage of tried dishes as well! The moong-coconut milk combo is truly something to crave for!Wd soak moong tonight for this!

Vikis Kitchen said...

Iranian pulou looks tempting. Love the spread . Its just us who hated winter and now screaming on hot sun:) I too can't bear it, that too while cooking:)

Pooja said...

wow another feast asha..Lovely post..All the dishes are yummy..

Lisa Turner said...

What a lovely array of dishes. I am glad you got a chance to try my soup.

FH said...

LOL!! Purni, Tushar is all boy,very hyper and more interested in other things than the usual!! Although he has a brilliant mind and doesn't have to work hard as Trisha in studies, he is not as motivated as Trisha to achieve. Hopefully, he gets very serious in high school. He does very well in school but we tend to ignore the younger child! ;D
Hope he doesn't red this, I will be in trouble!:P

Lisa, Moong soup was delicious, thank you so much for the recipe!:)

My Space My Thoughts! said...

I religiously wait for your new posting every Wednesday!! love the way you present every dish and little stories attached :)

UjjU said...

Almond rabri is looking so good. Neevu yava deshada recipe innu try maadilla antha heli. You are a super cook! You should open a meal service at home in NC! :)

Anjali Koli said...

Hey Asha! Pass on my kudos to Tushar for the concert. My nephew Sujal has a tabla concert and he is also performing along with a dance troupe at his college in Rajkot. Have told him to send me the videos since I won't be attending. Will share on the blog once I get. Do you have a video of Tushar's concert?

You surprised me with the Vangyacha rassa. It is always exciting to see your recipe tried and tasted:). Thanks

indosungod said...

Loved all the dishes Asha. I have been wanting to cook with Fava beans, tasted an Iranian rice dish with lamb and fava beans, like our Biryani in many ways. Rabri looks delicious. Will rent Frost/Nixon, have been wanting to see it. Kids want Marley and Me :(

Rachel said...

I can hardly pronounce the iranian dishes...looks wonderful to me...

kalpana said...

The first pic is so colorful! i am sure it tastes as heavenly as it is to look at.I love the way you presented the rice in layers :)

I gotta tell you..you are surely a hardworking cook! :)

Ashwini said...

Iranian cuisine, I would have never even thought about it..way to go..luv ur recipes..

Bhawna said...

Thanks for making me aware of iranian cuisine. Thanks for the movie reviews. Frost/nixon definately looks like worth watching.

Recipeswap said...

Asha the Rabri's so nice and thick.Yea its too hot to do anything....I'm just sitting around the whole day.

Mythreyee said...

Thank you for the entry Asha.

Pooja said...

Wow what a lovely spread. A feast indeed! I love Iranian dishes and posted two recently. Was in the search for more! I need to go no further :)

Mahimaa's kitchen said...

the salad sounds so simple and yet delicious. thx for sending it to me asha. and the rabdi, i am drooling over it!

FH said...

Anjali, I was going to tell you about it and then I forgot, too many things going on here these days. Rasas was wonderful,thank you.
Yes, we made a video but haven't downloaded yet from the camera, will link next week! Looking forward to your's too!:)

Indo, do you have this DVD boxes there?Look for the location in your city if they have it. They release new movies every Tuesday and it costs $1+tax per day. I don't go to Blockbuster anymore, too expensive!

http://www.redbox.com/home.aspx

Ramya Vijaykumar said...

mmm, love the creamy yogurty salads and the Almond Rabri color is amazing... The rice is simply delectable and perfectly served with soup...

ARUNA said...

very colorful gorgeous dishes Asha, Iranian cuisine....never even thought abt it!! Everything looks so yummm!!

lissie said...

Iranian pulao looks really tempting! spinach salad sounds interesting...and I love that rabri :)

Manju said...

after hearing so much about the two books on the Iranian sisters, i have now put a hold on those two in the library..now waiting to get hold of them!!!

i loved the pulav the best!! wow!! simply superb all of them!! :)

Cham said...

Hmm never tried any Iranian cuisine, the rice is so green and different from the routine, The almond rabri looks almost like halwa! Love the way u controlled the sweet level :)

Laavanya said...

The weather here has been unbearably hot too - it's like we skipped spring and headed right onto summer. Thanksfully we got some relief today with some showers. I feel the same way about cooking when it's so hot.
The spreads look great and it was nice to read your movie reviews too.

Unknown said...

We live in an area with a lot of Iranian population. So we find Iranian food a lot around the place. Lovely recipes. Love the addition of bread in the Rabri. Glad you are having a nice weather and your plants are doing great Ashakka!

FH said...

SC, first book is very interesting, second book is just okay but you get curious and read the second one! :D

Cham, I don't like sugary dessert at all, I would like to taste the Almond and milk rather than just loads of sugar!:)

Jamie said...

Asha, the colors in that polou are amazing! The Spinich Onion Raita looks so yummy too. Great post! Looking forward to seeing what you have been up to next week :)

Trupti said...

lovely dishes Asha. I never tried Iranian dishes but looks delicious.

Varsha Vipins said...

That Moong Bhaji is realy yum..have to try..Loved the rice dish also Akka..loved the way you have presented.:)
Ha..its hot here also..am taking a break after this week..:)..n cant wait to watch Bride wars..:)
Hugs

bee said...

let me guess. you and arvind went on a quick second honeymoon!!!

Pria@HC said...

U have made the pulav look like in restaurants.. Nice effect.. btw, im tempeted to try out the moong coconut milk soup... Hope ur are feeling better from the spring allergy attacks...

Meera said...

Beautiful as always. Enjoyed reading the reviews too. Bride wars seems to be a fun movie with friends turning enemies - frenemies!

FH said...

Thanks girls, loved the Polou and Borani, hope you try them! :)

LOL! Bee, what a guess!!
No, that comes at the end June, going to Hawaii! This time, lambi Judaaii! ;D

Meera, I heard that word frenemies on TV, good one. Who wants enemies when you have frenemies! :D

Unknown said...

Iranian cuisine! very new. Thru your blog I am coming to know so many different cuisines. Everthing on the plate looks yummy..

Nandinis food said...

Polou looks scrumptious! Love the color and the dish of moong 'n' coconut! Almond Rabri is yummm...slurp!

Soma said...

That rice is so good Asha. we were in the persian restaurant, & my dd ordered grilled shrimp. they were served with the dill & saffron rice. i usually do not like dill too much, but this was really good.

Priya Sriram said...

What a colourful and eye-catching pictures Asha! I love the baghali polou, it looks soooo colorful and wonderful...
I would love to grow plants too.. But can't do it here! :( Please share some of your plants' picture Asha!! :)

FH said...

Priya, I will post pics of veggie in few weeks. I am waiting for them to grow a little bigger, they all have just sprouted! :)

Nandini Vishwanath said...

I want that almond rabri. NOW.

Uma said...

Wow, wow! If I want to explore world cuisine I better visit your blog first Asha! What a spread as always! Love all the dishes, especially almond rabri. :)

Srivalli said...

Asha, I am speechless!..:)..how do you end up cooking do beautifully..the spread looks simply too delish...

amna said...

The polou looks lovely. The dill gives it a lovely look :)

Raaga said...

Everything looks delish. I can't bear to cook Ashakka... one week it was hailstorm and the next day we started having 40+ weather. It is now close to 44C and I don't feel like eating or cooking.

Can I come over and stay with you till the summer's over? :)

Vibaas said...

you really know how to pick the best of every cuisine. everything looks very yum.

i like Hathaway too :) but i'm jealous because i have a long list of books and movies to catch up to. i need to wait till my toddler grows out of the i want my mommy for everything phase and my husband thinks that will be when he turns 18 :D

Deepa Hari said...

Lovely spread Asha....i have never tried Iranian cuisine...pics r tempting...loved all the dishes...Nice treat.

Jaya M said...

Asha,
great food and that Iranian rice looks exotic and flavorful :)..
hugs and smiles

Sreelu said...

Asha,

I have got to try these recipes, mouth watering.

Meeta K. Wolff said...

you can send some of that sun here! love this irania feast asha! just fantastic. kudos to all the effort you put into this!

notyet100 said...

yummy platter as always,..specially loved almond rabri

Gattina Cheung said...

Asha, how clever you are to use cinnamom bread! I can imagine that rabri would be tasty and thick! You should write a cookbook, I am fervantly waiting!
another thing, thanks millions for giving me tips on making masala tea, it turns out GREAT! I have been drinking it everyday :D
*big hug*

Lavanya Raj said...

Asha..This is the Lovely Platter, I really drool on Almond Rabri! Spinach Raita is another eye-catcher..

Savi-Ruchi said...

Never tried Iranian cuisine.., lucky me to find this site. I'm eagarly waiting to prepare the rice & raitha. Thanks a lot for the recipe Ashakka :)

Sanghi said...

Hey Asha, what a yummy spread dear..! Lovely delights..!

gtyuk said...

what a colorful and delicious feast, have never tried Iranian food, the yoghurt and spinach combination must be scrumptious :)

Subhie Arun said...

woww grt dishes...neva tried any kind of tis dish...u inspire me ..iranian food..neva thot of...thx 4 sharing...anyway.....wat veggies do u grow..i have start some of myself..

Archana said...

Lovely that you tried Iranian cuisine...The polou looks so nice and the salad seems wonderful for summer. The almond rabri looks totally yum...Should tell ma u made the carrot chutney - she will eb thrilled :)

Chutneytales said...

I very impressed..love all the dishes you have posted ..The Iranian Baghali polou is new to me..sounds interesting! i haven't noticed moong-coconut soup at her blog..It looks great..Nice entries,Asha..
The heat is too much in India too..Dunno what we gonna do in May-June :(

Nandini Vishwanath said...

Hehe, we also buy milk, Asha. Just the other stuff!

FH said...

Arch, tell your mom it was wonderful and thank her for me. Chutney was sweet and spicy, perfect for Peasarttu I made with it!:)

Madhu, be cool there girl, sounds dangerously hot!

N, YOU CHEATER!!!;D

Sandhya said...

MW rabri! I have got to try that!!
The pulao looks very attractive with green dill in it.
I have never had Iranina food, thanks for bringing it closer!

Sum Raj said...

wow...ncie spread asusual..

saffronapron.blogspot.com said...

I've never tried Iranian cuisine. But seeing your array of dishes, I'd rather come to your house than roam the world to try out various cuisines:)
Of all the dishes in thsi post, I was most attracted to the coconut milk moon soup. Why? Because I'm a coconut addict :D.
WOuld love to try this out some day. Have bookmarked it. God knows when I'll find time with all my travelling going on this month.
I liked the dill rice too. Have seen this on very many blogs this week.
For Rabri, i have no comments.....not a fan if it.

Anonymous said...

What a colorful spread Asha..Polou looks amazing !But i creave for almond rabri..
Asha,great meaningful Job !!

Manasi said...

Superwoman!!! as usual awesome spread! I specially liked the baghali polou and the raita, on my list !

Vani said...

That rice looks delicious, Asha! The whole platter looks great!

Pavani said...

Thanks so much Asha. Will follow your advise. This is our first trip to Europe and we're very excited. Not sure what to expect in terms of food, but we are going to my Dh's brother's place, so we should be fine. Will post abt my trip once we come back. Have a wonderful weekend.

TBC said...

It was unbearably hot here too. Thankfully, it lasted just 2 days. It's now in the 50s/60s. Winter,my fav time of the year, is such a long way away!
The Iranian-style pulao looks very good!

Have a wonderful weekend, Asha. :D

Mona said...

Lima beans are not my favorite, but Rabdi! o Boy! Yum Yum!

KonkaniBlogger said...

Ooooh, lovely looking Polou, and that raitha looks great for summer. You added bread crumbs in the rabri? how innovative that is, must be adding a lovely texture!

Purnima said...

Asha, was here to take down the recipes of rabri, salad..just read ur comment. How true, I too feel the same..My elder one is daughter and puts efforts in her studies at such a tender age..younger one will not even take one percent effort, though has displayed his intelligence several times..n agreed younger ones are ignored, but never escaped chidding frm me! :D Hv a great weekend.

Tina said...

Delicious iranian food nd rice looks yummy nd colourful. great effort asha

Homecooked said...

Wow....those dishes look fantastic. The Iranian dishes look like something we would order from a restaurant :) Now I am eagerly waiting for next Wednesday to find out what you are upto ;) We just watched All the Presidents Men. Will ahve to wait for sometime now to watch Frost/Nixon...otherwise we'll get an overdose of politics :) Anne Hathaway is my fav too.

FH said...

Purni and Maya, just add one slice or 1 tbsp breadcrumbs to Rabri, otherwise it will become too thick. You can always more milk, if it thickens to thin it of course! :)

HC, nothing special but taking time off just for myself after a loong time. Details later! ;D

vandana rajesh said...

love the variety asha. Love ur posts it is really so unpredictable as to what u would come up with next time. So much variety and such varied cuisines. Simply superb!!

Bong Mom said...

Asha MW Rabri is a cool idea, yummy. Also the pualo with dill. Bought a bunch of dill, will explore aroma to see what dill stuff you have there

SJ said...

Rabri in MW, definitely not showing this post to J. He will sit on my head and not let go till I make this!

FH said...

Sandeepa, I am sure you will enjoy the new taste! :)

Haha!! SJ, it takes probably less than 5 mins to make this Rabri girl, make some for him, Sunday treat if he is being good! ;D

Sharmila said...

It is always a joy to go thru your posts .. such lovely looking idshes ... you do make up for posting only once a week. :-)

lubnakarim06 said...

Awesome......So many new recipes....Love to try them...Almond Rabri looks tempting and delsih....Brida wars sounds intresting....

Red Chillies said...

We have been pouring rain here for the past 20 days or so. Waiting for bright sunshine to come along.

I will wait until next wednesday about your secret :-)
Lovely spread as usual, the MW Almond Rabri looks easy and cool!

Aparna said...

Your Iranian dishes are totally new to me and thanks for joining in on T&T.
If you want to see hot, you should definitely head to India. Its so hot here, that my plants are wilting!! Can't wait to have the monsoons here. :)

Chitra said...

wooowwwwwwwwww,wat else to say?:)

Shreya said...

Incredible!:-)

Sig said...

hey, hey what is the surprise,I will have to come back next wednesday to check it out :D

Purnima said...

Asha,
(as I type, its showing 100 comments..a century! :D) We both loved the salad, it went well with Meera's(EIF) Palak Pullao, and yes..you wont believe, my kids thought Rabdi to be some kind of spread, and insisted on eating chapatis with it! Can u beat it! My 4 yr old girl went wow with every bite n praise 'you hv made it so tasty!' and all the time I put in was negligible in making of this instant hit! :D THANK YOU SO VERY MUCH..you lovely bloggers are my recipe bible and how much of oxygen you are becoming for my day to day cooking goes unsaid!
HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND!

Seena said...

That Iranian rice really gets attention! :)

FH said...

Sig, nothing that special, just doing something I haven't had the time for years! :)

Purni, isn't that so easy to make. You know, it would go nicely with poori and chapatis too, never thought about it. You kids are so clever! Glad you made it, makes a great great breakfast too, right? Enjoy! :)

Thanks Seena, hope you try! :)

Shionge said...

Sending a friendly cheers to you Asha :D

Dewi said...

Asha, Iranian food is one of my favorite. My brother in law parents are Iranian, very often they'll make Iranian foor for us, and this rice is one them. Yours look so delicious.

Savi-Ruchi said...

Ashakka, I tried the Iranian Borani-Ye Esfenaj/Spinach, onion and Yogurt salad with Parantha yesterday, it was just awesome. Thanks a lot for this wonderful recipe :)

Lakshmi said...

You always amaze me with the variety of food you cook Ashakka. Every thing on the plate looks inviting! I am drooling now :D

FH said...

Good Monday morning Shi! :)

Thanks Elra, we enjoyed Iranian food so much, simple and very flavorful!:)

Thanks LG, had a busy weekend!:)

Sushma, glad you tired that salad! So yummy, no? :)

Pavithra Elangovan said...

wow nice platter....looking so good and mouthwatering dear...all the dishes are so good.Almond Rabri looks gorgeous.

Prema Sundar said...

Hi Asha,
I'm back after a long time.. was a bit busy because of my inlaw's visit.
As usual u rock!!!
The pulao looks so beautiful that I would not dare to eat it..

Keshi said...

I wanna eat at ur place some day Asha :)

That movie..Im gonna see it. Now that u hv tempted me!

Keshi.

prajusha said...

asha,
wow..iranian dish looks lovely and enw to me..thanks a ton for sharing these diff. types of cuisines.
almond rabri looks nice.

Miri said...

I love Anne Hathaway too!!

That persian spread looks mouthwatering!

FH said...

One day you will, Keshi! :)

Thanks Prajusha and Miri!:)

Usha said...

The platter looks fantastic and the rabdi and the moong soup look absolutely irressistable :-)

Yasmeen said...

Delectable food:).The polou raita combo is certainly the best.Hard to miss the Mughalai and Iranian\persian cuisines have similar flavors.
We have pleasant temps so far,hot temps drive me crazy.

Renuka said...

Wow..lovely dishes...

Rajee said...

How do you have energy to cook all those delicious and colorful food. I subscribe you and I didnt get ur latest posts.

So colorful and delicous eye-catching recipes.

FH said...

Thanks Usha, Yasmeen, Renuka and Rajee!:)

Rajee, just check in here on every Wednesday for new post. I only post once a week here, so you don't have to rely on reader or anything! :)

Lena Jayadev said...

i hav never thought abt of tryin an iranian cuisine...Its just wonderful..shall try it on suday..

FH said...

Thanks for trying Okra Smabhar too Lena, glad you liked it, my fave too! :)
Enjoy Iranian goodies.

Purnima said...

Asha, just here to say I made this 'moong soup' ie curry yest and we relished it..today I made the podi chutney wt curd n rai-c.l tadka..that too was different n we liked it! Tks for sharing!! Have a great time!

FH said...

Purni, I liked the "soup' too, made it thicker for chapatis. Taste of Raita really surprised me, it was like mixing Spinach stir fry into curds, was really good!
Thanks, I will enjoy!:)

zlamushka said...

hI aHSA,

Thanks a lot for participating in T&T April. I hope you had fun and will take up the challenge again this month :-)
mOONG looks fantastic :-)

FH said...

I will try Z, enjoy the event! :)