Ingredients for Persian Dizi
(Serves 6)
- 750 grams lamb shank/shoulder of lamb on the bone [Don’t remove the fat from the meat; the meat used should be fatty.]
- 100 grams chickpeas – Rinse and soak them for 24 hours
- 100 grams navy beans – Rinse and soak them for 24 hours
- Six small potatoes
- Six small tomatoes – chop them into pieces
- Two large onions which should be peeled and sliced.
- Two heaped tablespoons tomato paste
- Oil
- Water
- Salt, ground black pepper and turmeric to taste
Cooking Steps for Iranian Dizi
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- Fry the onions in a frying pan with ground black pepper and a liberal amount of turmeric until they turn golden brown.
- Add in tomato pieces and fry them lightly for a few minutes. Put the chickpeas and navy beans in the pot and sauté them.
- Cut the meat into bite-size pieces, add them to other ingredients in the pot and fry them until browned on all sides. [You can use a pressure cooker to let the dish cook by the pressure of hot steam over a low heat. To have a tasty final dish, you need to give the dish enough time to be cooked gently.]
- Tomato paste should be fried with the mixture until it turns deep red; stir it frequently to prevent it from burning.
- Pour 10 to 12 cups of water into the pot and bring it to a boil. Then, turn down the heat to let it simmer. The pot should be tightly covered, so if you don’t use a pressure cooker, opt for a pot with a close-fitting lid.
- Wash the potatoes well, but do not peel them [the skin prevents them from falling apart in the pot; they should be peeled later before being mashed]. By the time the meat and the grains are tender and cooked, add salt – toward the end of cooking to stop meat from toughening and prolonging the cooking time – and the potatoes to the pot.
- When the potatoes are cooked, drain the broth and pour them into serving bowls. If you want to mash the solid part before serving, do not forget to remove the bones.
Bon Appétit!