Cuisine

Chicken skewer on a rice cake. Photograph: ©Patrick Ringgenberg.

Less known than other oriental cuisines, Iranian cuisine is of remarkable quality. Restaurants hardly allow you to appreciate all the flavors, because their menu is most often limited to kebabs, or even a few Western dishes without much interest. It is in Iranian families that one can reallay discover the richness of a tasty and digestible cuisine, refined without sophistication, of a subtle simplicity and often requiring long preparations.

Cuisine

A buffet in a private house, Tehran. Photograph: ©Patrick Ringgenberg.

The kebab, a national institution. Photograph: ©Patrick Ringgenberg.

The staple food is rice, accompanied either by skewers (kebabs) of chicken, mutton or beef, or by stews (khoresh), of which there are several types widespread throughout the country (qormeh sabzi, fesenjan, qeimeh). Some dishes are specific to certain regions: tahchin (a chicken rice cake) from Isfahan, mirza qasemi (with eggplant) in northern Iran, khoresht khalal in Kermanshah, etc. Each region has its specialties, and the cuisines of the north (Gilan and Mazandaran provinces) and the south (Persian Gulf) have flavors that are not found anywhere else. The Caspian is known for caviar, but it is the Persian Gulf which is especially appreciated for its fish. Often thick soups, yogurts (simple, or with cucumbers, shallots, etc.) and salads (European style, or traditional Shiraz salad) generally accompany meals. Iran is hardly a cheese country (except in Azerbaijan), but fruits and dried fruits, which are abundant, are served and consumed on all occasions. Desserts (traditional pastries, Western-style cakes) are served as part of family meals, almost never in restaurants.

In recent years, especially in large cities (Tehran is at the forefront), restaurants have developed that reinvent Iranian cuisine in a gastronomic way, drawing inspiration for example from French cuisine, such as L’Atelier de Sepehr Sarlak in Tehran. However, don’t be fooled by appearances: often the best restaurants are small, possibly uninviting places, in provincial towns or traditional streets, while restaurants with smart decor sometimes serve ordinary cuisine. The Shamse & Abrisham team is gourmet and likes to choose the best restaurants: popular or sophisticated cuisine, in beautiful neighborhoods or hamlets, the only criterion is that it tastes good.

persian cooking

Yogurt and eggplant dish. Photograph: ©Patrick Ringgenberg.

Why not also introduce yourself to Iranian cuisine? Stay in Tehran, Shiraz or Isfahan, learn to cook in the morning, and wander in the afternoon? Tell us about it!

For an introduction to Iranian cuisine, here are some reading tips:

iranian cooking
saffron
persian cooking