A while back I received a comment on my blog from a reader asking about an Iranian potato recipe. She wrote that she had just come back from a trip to Iran and she enjoyed a wonderful potato dish in Shiraz. After cooking and eating Persian food for twenty years she had not come across this dish before and she knew that it wasn't a potato kookoo or cutlet. This potato dish was served at breakfast and lunch and a server told her that it was a local dish. After reading this comment I asked one of my Shirazi friends about the recipe and without any hesitation, she said it's dopiazeh aloo! Dopiazeh is a traditional dish from Shiraz and it can be made with cubed or ground lamb/beef, chicken, shrimp, potatoes and a copious amount of sliced onions. Aloo in Farsi/Persian means plum and it's also a term used in Shiraz to mean potatoes. Here's the link for my ground beef Dopiazeh (two onions).
Dopiazeh Aloo - Shirazi Style - دوپیازه آلو شیرازی
Ingredients:
Serves 2
1 pound small potatoes, boiled, peeled and cubed
2 large onions, sliced
1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder
1 tablespoon tomato paste (optional)
A pinch of dried fenugreek leaves
A pinch of red pepper
Salt and black pepper to taste
Vegetable oil or olive oil
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice (optional)
Method:
- Place potatoes in a pot, cover with cold water by a couple of inches. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat and cook uncovered on low for 15-20 minutes or until tender and not falling apart. Set aside to cool.
- Peel the potatoes and cut them into small cubes.
- Heat 3 tablespoons oil in a large frying pan. Add the onions and fry over medium-high heat until soft. Add turmeric powder, stir.
- Stir in the tomato paste and cook for 2-3 minutes.
- Add the cubed potatoes, salt, pepper, a pinch of fenugreek, red pepper, stir gently until well blended, cover and cook for 7-10 minutes until flavors come together. Add a little fresh lime juice and serve.
Serve with warm bread, pickles, salad shirazi and mast o khiar.
Enjoy!
I would make a meal out of the potato recipes. I eat plant-based.
ReplyDeleteDopiazeh dishes are also found in Pakistani/Indian cuisine. The ones I was taught to make (with minced meat or chicken) use equal amounts of sliced onions to the meat (hence 'do' i.e. 2 or twice), with one half of the onions used at the start of sautéing, and with the second half added halfway through. Makes for succulent texture and slightly caramelised sweetness.
ReplyDeleteThank you! This was my request. I can't wait to try it!
ReplyDeleteThis is not just a local dish from Shiraz;in Kerman they call it Pokhtopiazoo, in Tehran Sibzamni-to-roghan,etc. It's NOT supposed to have any type of meat in it because it was supposed to be an affordable dish for all.
ReplyDeleteThe original recipe is only fried onions and mashed potatoes, salt, pepper, turmeric, and optional dried peppermint all mixed well and served with bread.
Nevertheless, one can always try different ways with any recipe.