When learning to cook regional dishes, I like to go straight to the source. I want to observe the way it’s done by people who grew up cooking and eating the food. I’ll travel pretty much anywhere to learn the secret of an authentic regional dish. Luckily, when I wanted to learn Persian cooking, I didn’t have to travel– instead, our friend Farah came to me. 🙂
Farah was born in Iran. She immigrated to Israel with her family when she was 5 years old. Her father worked as a cook in many different places, eventually landing as the head chef in a Tel Aviv hospital kitchen. Farah followed in her father’s footsteps, opening a small Persian cafe in Jaffa for other Iranian immigrants. She later moved to the United States with her family and cooked professionally for many years.
Farah cooks in my kitchen while I take notes.
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Farah is a terrific cook, and she’s generous with her talent. I asked her to give me a crash course in Persian cooking. When she asked what dishes I’d like to learn, I told her I really wanted the secret to making Persian rice with tah-deeg. So, she taught me how to make Persian rice with dill and lima beans… and Persian rice with raisins and carrots… and garlic roast chicken… and cucumber salad… and kooba, fried bulgur wheat pies stuffed with ground lamb and pine nuts. In addition to all this, my husband’s sister brought along two delicious eggplant recipes.
Needless to say, by the end of the night we were beyond stuffed! I think I waddled to bed. But the calorie splurge was worth it. Such a delicious meal!
Did I mention the Persian Lamb Stew? No? Well, it was my favorite dish of the night. I love it when a simple recipe is so full of flavor. Even if you’re not a big fan of lamb, you might want to reconsider and try this stew. The spiced meat is ultra tender, it flakes with a fork and melts in your mouth. The basmati rice soaks up the yummy sauce, a perfect accompaniment to the stew. As a bonus, this dish is gluten free. It also contains a hefty dose of turmeric, a spice that has strong anti-inflammatory and anti-aging properties. What a treat!
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Persian Lamb Stew
8 servings
20 minutes
3 hours
Meat
Description
Recipe for a simple Persian Lamb Stew with meat, turmeric, and chili pepper flakes. Slowly cooked, tender stew over basmati rice. Kosher, meat.
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp turmeric
- 2 tsp black pepper
- 1 tsp salt (if salt sensitive, you may want to use less and salt to taste at the end of cooking)
- 1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
- 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 2 medium onions, minced
- 3 lbs lamb meat cut into chunks for stewing (leg meat works well, it cooks up very tender)
- 3 tbsp tomato paste
- 1/4 cup fresh parsley or cilantro, chopped
- 4 cups steamed basmati rice for serving
Instructions
In a small dish, mix together turmeric, black pepper, salt, and crushed red pepper seasoning.
In a large pot, heat olive oil over medium high till hot (not smoking). Saute for 10 minutes until onion softens and starts to turn golden brown.
Add the lamb stew meat to the pot. You can use bone-in lamb meat, boneless meat, or a combination of the two. Brown the meat for a few minutes on each side. Drain the fat that collects at the bottom of the pot.
Sprinkle the seasonings evenly across the top of the browned meat.
Cover the meat with 4 cups of water. Bring mixture to a slow boil, then reduce heat to medium low. Simmer on medium low heat for two hours.
Use a large shallow spoon to skim the fat from the surface of the cooking liquid every 30 minutes.
After 2 hours, add tomato paste to the pot and stir slowly until paste dissolves into the broth.
Simmer for another 20 minutes uncovered, stirring occasionally, until the meat is nice and tender and the sauce has thickened. Taste and adjust seasoning, adding more salt and.or spice, if desired.
Garnish the stew with fresh parsley or cilantro. Serve lamb and sauce over freshly steamed basmati rice.
This recipe is absolutely delicious — and so easy to make. I served it over farro and sprinkled pomegranate seeds on the first day, the second day I served it with yogurt and pickled onions. I also used lamb neck – which I browned and cooked whole, then after it cooled I pulled the meat off and added back in. I am excited to try other recipes of yours – this was my first. Many thanks!!!
Hi Tori, I’d like to make this for good friends who are coming over for a casual night of dinner and a board game or two. What would you suggest to go with? Looks great, and amazing reviews!!
I often serve this with saffron rice and a salad. Two suggested recipes below. 🙂
https://toriavey.com/toris-kitchen/saffron-rice/
https://toriavey.com/toris-kitchen/rainbow-israeli-salad/
Making this right now for tonight’s dinner. We bought a lamb two years in a row and have stew meat left over that we never used. Can’t wait to try it!
hi my name is orly,i l’d like to tell you i’ve been doing your stew for a long time:],and I always wanted to tell you that it brilliant everybody enjoyed it….including my grandson [2] .the only thing i changed was less black pepper .and less chillies crushes thank you
So glad you like it Orly! 🙂
I did try the Persian Lamb recipe, and it was delicious. I used fresh organic tomatoes instead of tomato paste. Everyone enjoyed the sauce. I also used less red pepper. For next time, wonder if adding raisins sparingly would be a good idea?
I tried this recipe using 1lb. Of lamb stew meat, cutting the recipe by 1/3.
I didn’t have tomato paste, so I used organic catsup (1 tablespoon).
I had fingerling potatoes that I roasted with a little olive oil and kosher salt (400 degrees for 25 minutes).
A salad and voila…
It was delicious! My husband said this should be a staple.
Thanks for a simple recipe that really works.
Glad you enjoyed it! 🙂
Hey! Sounds great- could you add spinach to this too?
I don’t see why not.
Hi! I’m going to make this tomorrow, but can I use chicken stock instead of water? Do you think It would ruin the flavor?
Chicken stock will work great, but be careful on the salt content– use low sodium if possible, and adjust the salt to taste. 🙂
I will try this dish today, will let you know how it turned out. Thanks for taking the time to do this……. I love food from around the world.
Enjoy Warren!
I have looked for a recipe like this for years. I used to make one very similar but I used lamb flank steak for the meat. I served it with toasted almonds sprinkled on top and finely chopped hard boiled egg. I somehow lost the recipe and then couldn’t remember the measurements of the spices. Thank you for sharing this, I will make it as soon as the summer heat turns to autumn.
I don’t like lamb. So, I was searching for something to use up the lamb other than the traditional ‘lamb stews’ and found this recipe. Well……. it was marvelous! In fact, I used up all the lamb I had in the freezer on this recipe and purchased more lamb just to keep making this dish. I love it; my husband loves it, and my four kids love it! I am making this for a huge family gathering this week. What a find! Thank you! ( I also love that it is gluten and dairy free!) I’d give it 10 stars if it was an option.
Added some yogurt and greens to this. I was surprised how good it was! My boyfriend loved it as well.
It is surprising how something so simple could turn out so tasty. 🙂
A smashing dish for almost no effort. I’ve made it several times now and will keep putting it on the menu. Thank you for this gem! (Note: because it’s spicy, I cut down on the black pepper and red pepper to make it easier for my kids to eat. Then I add more of those seasonings to my own bowl.)
Made it with meaty lamb neck bones. Very good. About using beef, veal or bison?
So I found this to be way too spicy for my liking, is there something I can do to tone it down? It tastes great, just too spicy!
Hi Alina! It shouldn’t be too spicy unless you are super spice sensitive. I recommend using only 1 teaspoon of black pepper and 1/2 tsp of chili flakes, to see if that fixes it for you. Those are the two sources of heat here. 🙂
I accidentally added the tomato paste before simmering for 2 hours. Will it turn out ok?
Yes no problem, it should be fine.
It’s not clear to me: Do I brown the lamb in the same pot with the onions, or remove the onions first? Don’t the onions burn if the lamb is browning with them? (Sorry, I couldn’t access all 41 comments, so not sure if someone already asked this.)
The meat is browned with the onions, the way Farah taught me. The onions shouldn’t burn if you stir often and keep a close eye on it. You can certainly brown the meat first if you prefer, then drain off the fat before browning the onions separately. Either method will work, this just avoids you having to brown these ingredients separately.
Can I create this without the tomato paste?
I don’t recommend making it without the tomato paste. There are so few ingredients here, eliminating one will throw off the balance of the flavor.
I made this last night and added baby spinach to it and a little fresh coriander. Really enjoyed this recipe and will definitely try it again but may add some dried prunes to it. Thank you. Even my husband enjoyed it.
Glad to hear you enjoyed it!
Made pretty much as written with minor adjustments. I used smoked paprika and a pinch of kashmiri red chili instead of the chili flakes (worried about the kids). Kids and husband asked for seconds and thirds. I am sure it will taste even better the next day, but I am tempted to add a splash or so of fish sauce for a bit more umami. Thanks for the recipe. It was ine that everyone enjoyed.
Just made this and it’s as described– simple to make, the sauce comes out perfectly, and the meat is melt in your mouth good — but (my opinion here) its missing a certain something – turmeric makes it look good for sure, but it isn’t a very flavorful spice and it seems like there should be something else — for me it was a bit bland.
Landed on this site today while searching for stewing lamb recipes and thought it sounded good. Made exactly as presented. Now I have to make it again tomorrow as it so absolutely delicious my husband and I can’t stop sneaking little bowls of the tender meat and thick, gorgeous sauce (it was to be served tomorrow).
Although the recipe makes plenty of sauce I may consider doubling the spices and water so we have even more to enjoy. Do you think it would work?
I am now going to look at your blog and other Persian recipes in particular. Thank you, Tori!
Hi Tricia! If doubling the spices and liquid you should also double the meat quantity, otherwise the flavor balance will be off. Part of the sauce’s flavor comes from the lamb fat. Glad you enjoyed it!
This is a wonderful dish! We used Aleppo pepper for the red pepper flakes and it was fine.
Aleppo pepper is mellower and more complex.
Next time I will add prunes.