ASH RESHTEH : The Persian Delight

Ash Reshteh is a thick vegetable and noodle soup which is traditionally prepared to welcome the Persian New Year. This is a traditional soup dish  generally served in winter.  It is one of the most popular foods in Iran. having an iranian background this remained a worthy addition on our dinning table. It is a dish which remind me of Iranian people, and their grandmothers’ heavenly cookery! Ash Reshte is a mixture of chickpeas, beans, noodles and plenty of herbs and it takes a while to get prepared. People normally serve it along with fried onion and mint.
Lets see how we will make this.

Ingredients

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• ·         ½ cup kidney beans
• ·         ½ cup chickpeas
• ·         ½ cup navy beans
• ·         1 cup chopped parsley
• ·         1 cup chopped spinach
• ·         1 cup chopped coriander
• ·         1 cup chopped dill
• ·         500gram linguine (or Persian reshteh noodles if you can get them)
• ·         2 large onions
• ·         2 tablespoons flour
• ·         3 tablespoons vegetable oil
• ·         2 tablespoons chopped mint, fresh or dry
• ·         1 cup Kashk (Whey) or sour cream
• ·         1 tablespoons Turmeric, salt and black pepper each

Instructions

1. Put the kidney beans, navy beans and chickpeas in a large pot, add water and let cook until tender and set aside
2. Boil 6 cups of water in a large pot and add parsley, spinach, dill and coriander to it. Let cook for 20 minutes.
3. Break up the noodles into strands of a couple of inches in length and add to the mixture and let simmer until they are cooked. Then add the flour to it.
4. Slice the onions and saute them in a pan with vegetable oil until the color turns golden.
5. 
   
6. Add salt, turmeric, pepper and mint to onions. stir and add it to the pot with noodles and vegetables.
7. Add cooked legumes (kidney beans, navy beans and chickpeas) to the pot. Place the lid on and let it cook for 30 minutes over low heat.
8. Place Ash Reshteh in a large serving bowl and top with sauteed onion and whey.