Recipe Persian Herb, Bean and Wheat Stew (Ash-e-Sholeh-Ghalamkar)

SatNavSaysStraightOn

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This is one of those dishes that is not only flexible with the quantities for the ingredients, mixing and matching with whatever you've got available but looks like an awfully complicated recipe and the truth is ,it isn't . It's actually quite simple and is just a question of timing of you're using dried beans and pulse rather than tinned. You can be quite liberal in the interpretation of ingredients switching out with whatever you've got available. You can if you want use tinned beans and pulses but it isn't the same .

There's a relatively long list of ingredients so I've broken it down into sections to make it less fearful, rather than putting it in the order to be used.

It's a really nutritious soup/stew where the flavour comes from the herbs where fresh is undoubtedly the best. It's really worthwhile going all out with this recipe .

The first lot of ingredients are the soak overnight brigade. There's a reasonable number and some can be combined ,though I prefer to keep all separate initially . A note of the herb savory. If you can find it please do because this stew is full of beans and pulses and if you're diet isn't used to them you'll end up with a lot of wind. Savory counteracts this effect and is in its own right a really nice herb. I am lucky enough to grow it in my garden. It's a bit like thyme in its nature only the leaves are slightly larger.

(Serves 6-8 and can be frozen !)

Ingredients
Soaked overnight
200g freekah (dried green wheat)
100g dried red beans (kidney or boreletti)
100g dried chickpeas
100g dried white beans (except butter beans which won't hold together)

Other beans/pulses (don't need soaking)
100g mung beans
100g green, brown or puy lentils
100g brown rice (medium grain is best)

Vegetables
3 large onions, chopped and divided 2:1
1 leek, sliced

Herbs and Spices
1 tsp tumeric
1-2 tsp ground cumin
1 large bunch parsley , chopped
1 bunch coriander, chopped
1 bunch/packet dill, chopped
1 bunch/handful basil, chopped
1 bunch/packet tarragon, chopped
1 bunch/handful savory, chopped (use 1tbsp dried of you can't get fresh)
1 bunch/handful mint, chopped
Salt and pepper as needed

Additional
1-2 tbsp olive oil
1-2 litres vegetable stock
Soya yoghurt (optional to serve )
Small pinch of saffron strands steeped in hot water (optional)

Method
  1. Rinse the soaked wheat and getting it boiling for around 40 minutes. It's just like rice and if needed you can sub rice for it. So cook it until it is smugly crunchy but gives way to give a softer center . Once cooked, drain keeping any stock.
  2. Rinse the red beans, bring them to the boil and cook for 10 minutes , drain . They get further cooking later on .
  3. Heat the oil in a large stew pot (big enough for everything to go into). Add 2 of the onions and the leeks. Once they start to soften, add the tumeric and cumin . Stir and cook for a couple of minutes longer.
  4. Now add the drained red beans, chickpeas and white beans and roughly 2 litres of vegetable stock (veg stock and cooking liquid from wheat). Bring to the boil and simmer for around 30 minutes.
  5. Now add the mung beans, lentils and brown rice (if it requires a longer cooking time ) and simmer for another 15 minutes .
  6. Finally add (any quick cooking rice, canned beans or chickpeas together with) all of the fresh and dried herbs (except for the mint) and simmer for another 20 minutes. Top up the stock as needed, it should always cover all of the beans/pulses and rice. Season to taste and leave to stand. Reheat before serving .
  7. Finally in another pan before serving , heat a touch more olive oil and fry the other chopped onion until it starts to brown, then add the fresh mint and fry until it's wilted and starting to brown but not actually burnt. Add on top of the stew once served.
  8. If using, the yogurt and liquid strained from steeping the saffron can be added as a topping just before serving .
Adapted from Vegistan by Sally Butcher
 
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Right ,this isn't the best photo , the camera on my tablet just wouldn't focus properly.

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A better photo from tonight's portion.

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I just don't have your patience satnav.

Looks great though

Russ
It really doesn't take much because most of the time in getting on with something else. But it's why hubby works and I don't anymore.
 
It really doesn't take much because most of the time in getting on with something else.
I can see that now: soak the beans, then finish the recipe the following day. As you said, it's flexible in terms of ingredients (I can easily see using things I already have in my pantry for most of the ingredients). The herbs really do seem to be exploding with flavor, too. Very nice.
 
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