Aab Goosht E Lappeh Food

ABGOOSHT (PERSIAN LAMB AND CHICKPEA STEW)

Steps:

• The night before you plan to cook, season the lamb with turmeric, 1 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Cover and refrigerate. Place chickpeas and beans in a medium bowl; add 3 cups water and a generous pinch of salt. Refrigerate overnight.
• To cook: Set a large Dutch oven or soup pot over high heat. Add lamb, onions, tomato paste and 8 cups water. Drain chickpeas and beans and add to pot. Bring to a boil, stir to dissolve tomato paste, and cover pot partially with a lid. Reduce heat and simmer stew for 2 hours.
• Peel potatoes and cut into 1-inch pieces. Add potatoes and Omani limes to pot and continue simmering until potatoes and meat are both completely tender, about 1 hour. Taste and adjust the seasoning of the broth with salt and pepper.
• Remove limes from pot, and one by one, juice them into the soup through a sieve by pressing down on them with a spoon. (Avoid letting the seeds through the sieve, as they can be bitter.) Taste the broth after juicing each lime and add just enough so that the broth is tangy and bright.
• Use the sieve to remove the meat, potatoes and beans from the pot and transfer them to a large bowl. Use a fork to pull the meat off the bones. If any of the bones have marrow, use a skewer to remove it and add to the bowl. Use a potato masher to mash meat, beans and potatoes into a soft, uniform paste - this is called goosht kubideh, literally "mashed meat." If the mixture appears dry, add a few spoonfuls of broth and continue to mash until unctuous and smooth. Taste the paste and adjust the seasoning with salt, pepper and Omani lime juice, as needed.
• To serve, bring broth and goosht kubideh to the table, along with bowls of liteh pickles, salad-e Shirazi, warmed sangak bread, fresh herbs and, if you like, doogh. All of the sides serve as palate cleansers to balance the richness of the dish.
• Traditionally, the broth is eaten first with sangak bread, which can hold up to the broth without disintegrating. Typically, the bread is torn into bite-size pieces and added to broth to soak for a couple of minutes before digging in. This process is called tilit.
• Serve the goosht kubideh separately after everyone has had a bowl of broth. Traditionally the meat paste is made into small sandwiches with fresh herbs, and eaten with alternate bites of salad-e Shirazi and liteh pickle. Leftover goosht kubideh makes for a great sandwich or baby food, and freezes well for up to 2 weeks.

AAB-GOOSHT-E LAPPEH

Steps:

• Peel and thinly slice onions. Fry in oil until slightly golden.
• Wash split peas and fry slightly with onions.
• Cut meat into small pieces, add to onions and split peas, and fry over medium heat until colour changes.
• Add salt, black pepper, and turmeric.
• Follow with six glasses of hot water and cook over low heat for about 30 minutes.
• The pot should be covered with a tight lid so that little steam escapes during cooking.
• Add crushed dried limes or lime juice.
• Wash and peel potatoes and add in as well.
• Cook over low heat with the pot again tightly covered for another 30 minutes. If necessary, add more hot water during cooking.
• When cooked, pour the juice into another container.
• With the back of a fork or spoon, fully crush the ingredients and mix well.
• Serve both the ingredients and the juice separately with Iranian, middle-eastern, or pita bread.
• Rice is not served with aab-goosht.
• When eating, cut bread into small pieces and briefly soak in the juice or form morsels by wrapping a small piece of bread around some of the food.