Iran Press/ Iran news: Annually on March 20 or 21, Iranian people celebrate the beginning of the Persian New Year, known as Nowruz. Just like other people around the world, people in Iran cook their own traditional foods, such as Sabzi Polo, to mark the arrival of spring and the beginning of their new year.
What follows is a brief look at Sabzi Polo Ba Mahi and the recipe and instructions for cooking it:
Nowruz’s National Dish:
Ingredients needed for preparing a dish adequate for up to six people:
Five cups of rice
2,750 grams of herbs including chives, parsley, coriander, dill and garlic
Two big fish
One cup of flour or bread crumbs
One big onion
Half a cup of lemon juice
Turmeric, salt and pepper
Oil as much as needed
A spoonful of tamarind (optional)
Instructions:
Pour some oil into a stock pot and cover it with a sheet of Lavash bread – a soft, thin unleavened flatbread made in a tandoor – or slices of potato. Then, pour the drained rice into the stock pot, on the bread or potato slices. Mix the herbs you have earlier chopped with the rice and add the garlic cloves to the mixture.
Pour a little bit more oil in the stock pot and let the ingredients be heated together for a while until they are all cooked completely. Of course, you are required to save some of the chopped parsley and coriander for frying the fish.
After cleaning the fish, mince them into equal slices and marinate them for about half an hour in a mixture of lemon juice, onion slices, salt and pepper. Prior to frying the fish slices, cover them with a mixture of flour, turmeric, salt and pepper and then put them in a frying pan containing hot oil. After frying the fishes, they can be served in any desired dish along with the cooked rice and chopped herbs.
If you want our advice, we recommend that you can improve the flavour of the fish by pouring some sour sauce on it.Instructions for preparing the sauce:
Solve the tamarind in a glass of water and then sift the solution.
Chop the onion finely in a separate dish. You can use a grater for this purpose. Fry the finely chopped onion along with garlic cloves, a little bit of turmeric and pepper. Then, add the parsley and coriander, you had earlier saved for the sauce, to the mixture and let it be heated for a while. Now, it is time to add the tamarind solution to the mixture.
Let the sauce be heated until it starts boiling and to gradually become thicker. Put the fried fish slices in a frying pan and place the pan on the gas stove. Now, you can put the sauce on the fish slices. Raise the lid of the pan and let the fish slices and sauce boil together for a few minutes or less, until the sauce’s water is evaporated and its flavour is imparted to the fish slices. After about 10 minutes, your fish is ready to be served.
207
Read more:
Khoresh Karafs (Persian Celery Stew With Lamb)
Dolma (Stuffed Grape Leaves)