Kosher Cuisine Show #5 – Persia and Purim

This is the original script for the show. Some of the non-essential text may have been edited out of the final version that aired on Community Radio due to time constraints. In this edition, some of the Hebrew language has been retyped below in non-patriarchal terms. The original broadcasts of these radio shows were in 2015 and 2016. Some bits have been removed from this audio edition so the file fits within Bandcamps size limits – however, they are included below. Thanks for listening!

First Segment

Hava Nagila Music Intro [35 seconds then fade…]

Hello, everyone! This is Leah Kiser and you’re listening to Kosher Cuisine. This is a show about food safety, international kosher recipes and amazing music from areas around the world. This week we’re going to look at Persia – modern day Iran – and the holiday of Purim.

Jews have lived in Persia since the first Diaspora in the 4th century BCE, when the King of Babylon carried off the survivors of his invasion of Israel. Not long afterward, his son lost the kingdom to the invading Medes and Persians, and many Jews stayed since the Persians were much more civilized. Jews also settled in the area along the silk road and the spice caravans – many because wealthy merchants. Their luck changed again when the Shia sect of Islam ascended to power at the beginning of the 16th century of the common era. They were excluded from court and marginalized, and eventually were forced to convert to Islam or flee. Many continued to practice Judaism in secret. Queen Esther, of the Purim story, has her tomb in Isfahan and woman, especially, make pilgrimages there. In 1925 under the Shah, the Jews condition improved considerably, but once the Shah was deposed, things got bad again and many fled. In 1979 there were over 100,000 Jews living in Iran. Today [2015] the Jewish community in Iran has dropped to less than 9000 stubborn holdouts.

But the food is still really good.

For our first dish today, we’ll do a simple Persian Salad. This dish is parve, so it can be served with either a meat or a dairy meal. Be sure and wash your vegetables in a dedicated food prep sink or in a plastic tub dedicated to washing fruits and vegetables. And, as always, be sure and use a clean parve knife and cutting board. This recipe serves four.

You will need:
4 tomatoes
1 smallish onion, mild or sweet
½ long cucumber or one short one
1 heart of romaine lettuce

Cut the tomatoes into small cubes, removing the seeds as you go along.
Then cut the cucumber into small cubes, about the same size.
Mince or finely chop the onion, then
Chop or tear the lettuce into bite size pieces.

Once you’re done with all that chopping, mix the vegetables together in a salad bowl.

To make the dressing you will need to measure out:
2 tablespoons of olive oil
The juice of one lemon
1 garlic clove, peeled and crushed or minced finely
A pinch of salt and a pinch of ground black pepper

Whisk together all the ingredients except the pepper, but wait to dress the vegetables until the very last minute, when you’re ready to serve. The last step is to sprinkle the black pepper on the top of the salad.

To go with our salad, here are a couple of aubergine dishes you might like. They are meat dishes, so be sure and use cutting boards, pots, pans and utensils that are dedicated for using with meat. Rinse off your meat in a food prep sink or a plastic tub dedicated to meat. Remember, it is not really sanitary to wash your food in the same sink where you have dirty dishes.

So, the first recipe is eggplant and beef. You will need:
2 medium or 3 small eggplants
2 onions, peeled
2 medium to large tomatoes
1 green bell pepper
2 garlic cloves, crushed or diced finely
And 1 lb of ground beef, preferably organic grass fed beef.

You will need to measure out:
2 Tablespoons of Vegetable Oil
2 Tablespoons of Tomato Paste
1 teaspoon of Paprika
1 tablespoon or curry seasoning
½ teaspoon of ground Chili Pepper
1 teaspoon of Oregano
½ teaspoon of salt
½ teaspoon of ground black pepper

1 cup of filtered water – remember, if your house is older you need to filter your water to remove lead. And there are other chemicals in there as well that can affect both your health and the taste of your food.

OK, first, slice the eggplant, one onion, and the tomatoes into 1 inch thick slices. Seed the bell pepper and slice it the same thickness.

Heat a skillet, then fry the eggplants with olive oil. Sprinkle the salt and oregano over the eggplants while frying. This is one of the reasons you should always measure out your seasonings – if you hold the shaker over the steaming pan, you will contaminate your seasonings with the hot steam, which has grease and food particles in it. Then bacteria can grow in your spice containers. So don’t hold the original containers over hot food.

Meanwhile, grate the other onion into a bowl by hand or with a food processor. Mash in the garlic, then add the ground beef, the curry seasoning, the salt, and the pepper. Mix everything thoroughly.

Make 4 inch patties out of the beef mixture. Alternately, you can just sauté the ingredients together to make a crumble. Honestly, this works better than the patties. Add a little bit of olive oil to the pan if things stick at first.

For the sauce, combine the tomato paste, the paprika, and a cup of water. Stir until all the ingredients are well mixed. Now, cover the surface of a large pot or dutch oven with half the tomato paste sauce. Lay half the fried eggplant slices next. Then, cover the eggplant layer with the beef crumble, or the patties – whichever you made. The next layer will be the onions, bell pepper, and the sliced tomatoes. Then, put the remaining eggplant slices on top, and cover with the other half of the tomato paste sauce.

Cover the pot with a lid and simmer for 30 minutes over medium heat, about 4 out of 10. Serve warm. This will serve four people, or six if there are other dishes. Many people make rice to go underneath.

If you’re feeling a bit more adventurous, you might try lamb and eggplant casserole. This recipe serves six.

For this recipe you will need:
3 small to medium eggplants, peeled and sliced into ½ pieces
1 large peeled and chopped onion
4 large tomatoes, sliced about ½ inch thick or so
And 1 lb of ground lamb

Measure out:
3 tablespoons of olive oil, plus about ½ cup more for frying
1 teaspoon of cinnamon
1 teaspoon of turmeric
1 teaspoon of salt, plus more to sprinkle on the eggplant
2 tablespoons of tomato paste
And 1 teaspoon of sugar, preferably organic evaporated cane.

To begin, sprinkle salt on the eggplant pieces on all sides. Let them sit in a colander in a shallow layer for about 20 minutes to drain. Squeeze or press out the excess moisture into a towel, rinse off the salt, and pat dry.

In a hot skillet, brown the lamb in 3 tablespoons of olive oil, then sprinkle with the cinnamon. Add the onion and continue cooking until the onion is soft. Finally, add the turmeric and the teaspoon of salt, reduce the heat to low (about 2 out of 10) for about 15 minutes more, stirring occasionally.

Next, use the half cup of oil to brown the eggplant pieces. When they are soft, remove them with a slotted spoon and set them aside to drain on a towel. Brown the tomato slices in the same skillet and set them aside.

Now, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a large Dutch oven or oven-proof pot, place half the eggplant as the bottom layer. Cover the eggplant with the sautéed lamb, then put the tomato slices on top of the meat. Finally, add the remaining eggplant.

In a small bowl, combine the tomato paste and the sugar. Drizzle this over the top of the casserole, then cover with a lid or foil and bake about 20 minutes. Serve hot.

The music you will hear next is from a CD called “Persian Classical Melodies 5” which I got from Amazon [back in 2015 - I no longer shop there]. Unfortunately, whoever made this disk put the music on it as one big long track. It’s over an hour long, so just playing it wasn’t an option. Therefore, I have clipped a few pieces out of the only track, track one, and will play them for you one at a time.

[Track 1 – Part 1 Persian Classical Melodies 5 ]


Second Segment

Welcome back to Kosher Cuisine! For our next recipe, we will do a simple veggie recipe with a kick – sautéed parsnips. These are parve so they can be served with a meat meal or a dairy meal.

For this dish you will need about 2 pounds of parsnips. Parsnips look like pale or white carrots, but have a peppery taste instead of a sweet carroty flavor. Wash, pat dry, and peel the parsnips and cut them into any sort of shape you like – round like carrots, long ovals on the bias, or even French fry-like strips. Remember to use a clean parve cutting board and knife. Cross contamination is THE leading cause of food poisoning in home kitchens.

If you have a deep fryer, now is the time to fire it up. Make sure it is not close to the edge of the counter, or anywhere near small children. If you don’t have one, that’s ok. Put some peanut oil or other high heat tolerant oil into a deep skillet. You will want the oil to be about 370 degrees. If you’re using a skillet, you can take a small piece of the peelings and drop it into the oil to see if it is ready. If it’s not, the bit you dropped in will just sink to the bottom and will not sizzle.

While your oil is heating, dredge the parsnips in flour. If you’re gluten free, you can substitute cornstarch or potato starch – sort of like in oriental stir-fry recipes. Either way, shake off the excess flour, and cook the parsnips in the oil until they are golden brown – about 3 minutes. Don’t crowd the fryer or they will stick together and won’t get crispy.

When they’re ready, remove them with a slotted spoon, drain them on a towel, and salt them immediately. Serve once all the batches are cooked. If you need to, you can keep them warm in the oven, but they may lose some of their crispness if they sit too long.

Also, if you’re not sure parsnips are your thing, you can fry potatoes with them. They’re great with potatoes. We even make latkes this way at Chanukkah.

To go with your parsnips, you might try this Persian Chicken dish. This recipe serves four.

You will need:
1 large onion, peeled and grated
1 cup of finely chopped walnuts
And 4 pieces of chicken, either leg quarters or breasts. I prefer the legs, but that’s just me.

So, measure out in little bowls, or cups, or plastic condiment containers your seasonings, just like you see on TV cooking shows:

2 tablespoons of olive oil
1 cup of filtered water
5 tablespoons of pomegranate puree, or substitute POM juice if you can’t find any puree.
1 tablespoon of tomato paste
2 tablespoons of lemon juice
1 tablespoon of sugar, preferably organic cane sugar

3-4 saffron strands dissolved in 1 tablespoon hot water, or substitute ½ teaspoon of ground turmeric. Saffron is quite expensive.

Also, a pinch of salt and a pinch of black pepper.

OK, heat 1 of the tablespoons of olive oil in a skillet, and sauté the chick pieces until they are golden brown on each side. Add half the grated onion and fry until slightly softened. Finally, add the water and the salt and pepper. Cover the pan, reduce the heat to about 2 out of 10, and simmer for about 15 minutes. The idea is to thoroughly cook the chicken. The interior of chicken should never be pink when you eat it. Underdone chicken is very likely to transmit bad bacteria and cause food poisoning.

So while the chicken is cooking, heat the rest of the olive oil in another skillet, and fry the rest of the onion for 2-3 minutes, until soft. Add the chopped walnuts and fry for another 2-3 minutes over very low heat, stirring frequently so that the walnuts don’t burn. Now, stir in the pomegranate puree or juice, the tomato paste, the lemon juice, the sugar, and the dissolved saffron or turmeric. Simmer over low heat for an additional 5 minutes.

Now, pour the walnut mixture over the chicken, making sure all the chicken pieces are well coated. Cover and simmer on low heat 30-35 minutes, until the meat is tender and the oil from the walnuts has risen to the surface.

Serve hot. This dish can be served over romaine lettuce leaves or over rice to fill up a plate, or with vegetable dishes. Remember, chicken is considered meat so don’t serve any dairy products!

If you aren’t in the mood for chicken, how about some nice green vegetable stew with beef? This is called Qormeh Sabzi and it’s not like any vegetable beef soup you’ve ever had out of a can, I promise. This recipe serves 4-6 people.

You will need:
2 medium onions, peeled and chopped

6 cups of finely chopped fresh parsley. Yes, six cups. You did hear that right.

1 bunch of leeks, or substitute 3 bunches of scallions – finely chopped

1 cup of canned kidney beans, drained – using the whole can is fine. There is no need to waste any beans.

2 -4 whole dried limes, which can be found in ethnic grocery stores around town, or substitute 2 tablespoons of lime juice

And 1 pound of beef, cut into 1 inch cubes

Measure out:
4 tablespoons of vegetable oil
¼ teaspoon of ground black pepper
¼ teaspoon of turmeric
1 and ½ cups of filtered water
2 tablespoons of dried fenugreek
1 teaspoon of salt

Heat 3 of the tablespoons of olive oil in a dutch oven or deep pot and brown the onions for about 5 minutes. Add the beef and brown the cubes on all sides, about 5 minutes or so. Add the pepper and the turmeric and sauté for a minute or two more. Finally, add the water and simmer on low heat, about 2 out of 10, for about an hour, stirring occasionally and adding more water if needed to keep things from burning on the bottom.

Meanwhile, sauté the parsley, the leeks or scallions, and the fenugreek in the remaining tablespoon of olive oil until the greens are wilted, maybe 5 or 10 minutes – then remove from the heat.

When the meat is almost done, add the vegetables and the dried limes (or lime juice). Cover and simmer for an additional hour, or until the meat is so tender you can cut it with a fork. If you are using dried limes, poke them several times with a fork so the flavor can get out and into the stew. About 10 minutes before the stew is done, add the kidney beans and the salt.

Like the chicken dish, this can be served over rice, or can be served plain. And while you’re waiting for those wonderful flavors to meld together, here is another clip from the Persian Classical Melodies CD.

[Track 1 Part 2 – Persian Classical Melodies 5]


Third Segment

Welcome back to Kosher Cuisine! We’ve been hitting the meat a little hard today, so let’s lighten up a bit. First, a quick cucumber salad called mast-o-khiar. This recipe serves 4 to 6 people.

You will need:
2-3 small cucumbers, diced. Some people peel them first.
½ cup of golden raisins, or regular raisins are fine, too.
3 cups of plain yogurt
2 scallions, chopped
2-3 garlic cloves, crushed or minced
2-3 tablespoons of chopped walnuts
1 tablespoon of fresh dill, chopped
1 tablespoon of fresh mint, chopped
A dash of salt and a pinch of black ground pepper.

Mix everything together into a bowl, then cover and refrigerate until time to serve. That was easy. Now, let’s talk about some egg dishes. Here in the West, when we think of eggs we think of breakfast, and lots of people make these next dishes for breakfast here. But that’s not how they’re served traditionally. Egg dishes are a real meal in the Middle East.

The first one is called Shou-shou’s fresh herb Kuku – it’s basically an omelet. This recipe serves six.

You will need:
6 large eggs
3 cups finely chopped fresh parsley
2 cups of chopped scallions
½ cup chopped fresh dill
½ cup chopped fresh cilantro
½ cup of chopped walnuts
½ cup of dried cranberries

1 medium potato, already cooked, then grated or mashed. You can use a leftover baked potato, boil a potato, or as a last resort, microwave one.

Also, you will need ½ cup of olive oil.

Measure out:
2 tablespoons of flour or potato starch
A pinch of salt and a pinch of black ground pepper.

OK, whisk the eggs, the flour or potato starch, the salt & pepper together. Then stir in the parsley, scallions, dill, cilantro, walnuts, cranberries, and the cooked mashed potato.

Now, pour ¼ cup of oil into an 8 or 9 inch baking dish or pie pan, and place it in the over for about 12 minutes to get the pan hot. Pour in the egg mixture and bake in the hot pan, uncovered, for about 30 minutes.

Remove the dish from the oven and carefully pour the remaining ¼ of oil over the kuku. Return the dish to the oven and continue baking for another 20-30 minutes until the top is golden brown. Remove from the oven and serve warm.

Our next egg dish is an herby and aromatic Persion version of a spinach omelet, called Tav Sponaw. This recipe serves 4-6 people.

You will need:
1 pound of spinach leaves, washed and thick stems removed. Or, you can use an equivalent amount of pre-washed bagged spinach from the grocery store.

4 tablespoons of olive oil or light vegetable oil
4 eggs
One bunch of scallions, chopped
4 tablespoons of chopped fresh cilantro
A few sprigs of mint leaves, chopped (say, about 1/8 cup)
A few sprigs of dill, chopped, maybe one tablespoon or so

And measure out:
½ teaspoon of nutmeg
A pinch of salt and a pinch of ground black pepper.

If you’re not using pre-bagged spinach, wash the spinach in a food prep sink or a plastic tub dedicated to fruits and vegetables, then remove any tough stems. Drain well, then squeeze out any excess water. Put the leaves in a large pan with 2 tablespoons of oil. Cover and let them steam until they flop into a soft mass. It just takes a few minutes. When the spinach has cooled, press into a colander to again remove as much water as possible. Finally, slice the leaves into thin strips with a sharp parve knife.

In a bowl, lightly whisk the eggs. Add the spinach, the scallions, the cilantro, the mint, dill, salt and pepper, and the nutmeg and mix well. Now, heat the rest of the oil in an oven-proof skillet. Pour in the spinach mixture and cook on low heat, about 2 out of 10, with a lid for about 15 minutes, or until the bottom has set. Next, take the skillet and put it in the oven under the broiler to cook the top. When the eggs have set all the way through, turn the skillet over onto a platter to serve the omelet. You can serve it warm or chill it to serve cool later. Either way, serve with a generous dollop of yogurt on top. Sour cream will also work.

Now, no discussion of egg dishes would be complete without mentioning shakshouka. Shakshouka has become practically the national dish of Israel, but it has its roots in a Persian dish called Beid bi Banadoura, which is a very basic version without the peppers.

To make shakshouka, you will need:
2 onions, peeled and chopped
2 green or red bell peppers, seeded and chopped
1 hot fresh chili pepper, seeded and thinly sliced
4 tomatoes, peeled and diced
3 tablespoons of vegetable oil
4 eggs
A pinch of salt and a pinch of black pepper.

To peel tomatoes, simply bring a small pot of water to a boil. Cut an X shape in the bottom of your tomatoes, then drop them into the boiling water for about 30 seconds. Fish them out with a slotted spoon and plop them into a bowl of cool water. You should then be able to peel off the skins without difficulty.

Next, fry the onions in the oil until they are golden. Add the peppers and sauté until they are soft, then add the diced tomatoes and simmer for about 10 minutes.

Now, you are going to basically poach the eggs in this tomato mixture. Make four little indentions equidistant apart in the skillet, then crack an egg into each hole. Don’t scramble it up, just let it sit there for about 3-4 minutes until the eggs are cooked. If you like your yolks hard, wait a couple of minutes longer.

Alternately, you can use leftover boiled eggs in this recipe. Just let the eggs simmer in the sauce several minutes so they absorb the flavor.

Either way, serve warm with flatbread and you have an awesome breakfast, or lunch, or dinner. Bon Appétit!

While you’re waiting, here is another clip from the Persian Classical Melodies CD.

[Track 1 – Part 3 Persian Classical Melodies 5]


Fourth Segment

Purim, the holiday associated with Persia, is celebrated in the month of Adar on the 14th, which usually occurs in February or March on the Western calendar. You have probably heard the Bible story – bad old king of Persia Ahasuerus… [gesundheit] …(generally considered to be the historical figure of Xerces). He decided to replace his annoying wife Vashti with a cute young virgin, and Hadassah, called Esther in Persian, was selected.

While at court, her uncle Mordecai learns of a plot by a wicked descendent of Amalek by the name of Haman, who has tricked the King into allowing a plot to exterminate all the Jews in the kingdom. With advice from her uncle Mordecai, Esther arranges a banquet and denounces Haman. The King cannot rescind a command once it is given, but he does allow the Jewish people to defend themselves, and they succeed in defeating Haman’s forces. Haman himself ends up hanged on gallows he had built for Mordecai, and Esther goes on to be the Queen Mother of Darius, who later frees the Jews to return to the land of Israel and rebuild the Temple.

Orthodox Jews, especially women, observe a fast the day before Purim to commemorate the fast of Esther as she worked up her courage to approach the court, even though she had not been given permission to do so. We remember the line that Mordecai said to her: Think not that you shall escape by being in the king's house, more than all the other Jews. For if you hold your peace at this time, then shall deliverance arise for the Jews from another place; but you and your father's house shall be destroyed: and who knows? Perhap you have come to your place in the kingdom for such a time as this! Throughout history women have had to make hard choices in difficult times, and we hope if we are ever called upon to do so, we will choose wisely.

But Purim is basically the Jewish version of Halloween - celebrated by giving baskets of food and treats to friends and family and by dressing up in costumes. As part of the festivities the book of Esther is read aloud and every time the text mentions the name of Haman, the audience uses groggers and noisemakers to drown out the sound of his name as it is being read. This is to fulfill the commandment to “blot out the remembrance of Amalek.” Some communities burn an effigy of Haman.

Normally, the festivities include a “Purim Spiel,” a comic dramatization of the story or a satire on any topic with music and dance. There’s also a lot of drinking involved, but we won’t get into that.

The defining treat of Purim are little pastries called Hamantashen, sometimes referred to as Haman’s hats by the Ashkenaz or Haman’s ears by the Sephardi. I don’t think that the tri-corner hats were actually in vogue in ancient Persia – more like the 1700s Europe. But that’s ok. The pastries can be filled with the traditional poppy seeds – which are most certainly middle eastern, or with apricot or raspberry jam, candied prunes, or yes, even chocolate chips, or my favorite: nutella.

To make the pastry, you will need:
1 and ¾ cups of flour
A pinch of salt
2 tablespoons of sugar
2-3 drops of vanilla extract
5 ounces of unsalted butter
1 egg yolk
The zest of one orange
And 2-3 tablespoons of orange juice, if necessary.

In a bowl, mix the flour, the salt, the sugar, the orange zest and the vanilla. Cut the butter in pieces and using a fork, press it into the flour until it is entirely crumbled and incorporated. Mix in the egg yolk and press it all into a soft ball. Use a little orange juice if the dough is too dry and won’t bind together. Wrap the dough ball in plastic and refrigerate.

I have tried this with gluten free flour and with gluten free baking mix, and things did not go well. Perhaps a gluten free pie crust mix might work. My experiments fell apart. It’s probably best to stick with the traditional recipe unless you are a very experienced baker.

So when the dough is chilled, divide the ball into four pieces and roll out the first piece on a floured board. You want the dough to be about 1/8 thick. Use a glass or a pastry cutter to cut circle shapes out of the dough – about 3” or so is best. Take the scraps, roll into a ball, and continue until you have used all the dough in all four quarters of the whole original ball. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Now, take the circles and put a teaspoon of the filling of your choice, and then grab the circle in three equidistant places to lift the sides and pinch the dough together into a triangle shape with a small triangular hole in the center where you can see the filling. Arrange your triangles on a greased pan and bake about 15-20 minutes until they are golden brown. Let them cool completely on the pan – if you try and move them when they are warm, they will crumble to pieces. Once they are cool, carefully lift them with a spatula, and try not to eat them all at one sitting.

Next week we will have some more great international food and music and we’ll talk a bit more about food safety and kashrut.

This is Leah Kiser wishing you Sabbath peace, this week and every week. Shabbat Shalom. [Hava Nagila fade…]