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Khoresht-e Sib

Serve with plain rice steamed in the Persian manner (page 338) or the quick and easy boiled and steamed rice (page 339).

Recipe information

  • Yield

    serves 4-6

Ingredients

1 onion, finely chopped
4–5 tablespoons butter or vegetable oil
1 pound lamb or beef, cut into cubes
Salt and pepper
1 teaspoon cinnamon
4 tart cooking apples
Juice of 1 lemon, or more

Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Fry the onion in 2 tablespoons of the butter or oil in a large saucepan until soft and golden. Add the meat, and turn to brown it all over. Add salt, pepper, and cinnamon. Cover with about 2 1/2 cups of water. Bring to the boil, remove any scum, and simmer gently for 1 1/2 hours, or until the meat is very tender, adding water as needed to keep the meat moist.

    Step 2

    Peel and core the apples and cut into thick slices. Sauté gently in the remaining butter or oil in a large skillet until lightly colored all over. Add to the meat stew with the lemon juice. Cook for a further 5 minutes, or until tender. Do not allow the apples to disintegrate, unless you prefer to mash them to a puree with a fork.

    Step 3

    Serve with plain rice.

  2. Variation

    Step 4

    You can add 1/3 cup split peas to the stew 1/2 hour before the end of the cooking, and chicken can be used instead of meat.

Cover of Claudia Roden's The New Book of Middle Easter Food, featuring a blue filigree bowl filled with Meyer lemons and sprigs of mint.
Reprinted with permission from The New Book of Middle Eastern Food, copyright © 2000 by Claudia Roden, published by Knopf. Buy the full book on Amazon or Bookshop.
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