Tehran’s Grand Bazaar is one of the oldest shopping malls in the world, and easily one of the largest. Spread out over 20 square kilometres, the Grand Bazaar’s winding maze of corridors, alleyways, stairwells and hidden passages run for over 10 kilometres in length. Everything, and I mean everything you could possibly want to buy can be found here.
International sanctions against Iran were lifted this week, but there are still many restrictions on trade between Iran and the United States. A number of Iranian products will be allowed in though, including caviar, carpets and saffron.
The kulfi looks pretty served as four individual desserts, but also looks quite impressive as one large dessert when served at the table. You will need 4 x 200ml individual moulds or an 800 ml mould for this recipe.
These are really delicious and one of India’s favourite little desserts. They are traditionally made with reduced milk but as that takes a lot of time and effort, many of us make them with dried milk powder instead. They are easy to make and the only two tricks to getting them right is a soft dough and frying them over a very low heat so they cook all the way to the centre. They are very moreish! Serve as they are or warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
A gently sweetened rice and potato bake perfumed with saffron, though it’s fried really, not baked, until crisp and golden. Use a mandoline to slice the potatoes as they need to be exactly the same thickness for even cooking. The saffron sugar syrup will continue to develop flavour and colour over a period of seven days so begin this step up to a week in advance.
This simple yet addictive deep-fried Persian dessert works equally well with any kind of sugar syrup. I use saffron, but you could try rosewater, orange blossom or your own blend of flavours. The saffron syrup will continue to develop flavour and colour over a period of seven days, so begin this step up to a week in advance.
Some versions of this insanely easy-to-make Iranian classic feature yoghurt and ground, dried chilli in the marinade, so add these if you like. Don’t skimp on the marinating time – it tenderises the chicken and infuses it with an unforgettably tangy, aromatic flavour.
