Notes about Recipes in this book

• Rich pomegranate and walnut stew with chicken (Khoresht fesenjan)

  • tges on March 14, 2026

    Been cooking this since 2012 and it is definitely the best version of fesenjoon so far. Easy, tasty, but dedicate the time to really let the ingredients do their work. My favorite khoresht, but very rich. Best paired with plain white rice, no butter or saffron included. Making with chicken breasts make it easy, and I do prefer the breast and even prefer it over the traditional duck. And I love that this recipe uses pomegranate juice along with the pomegranate molasses. It does end up like the recipe using molasses but just feels healthier with the inclusion of juice.

• Chicken stew (Khorakeh morgh)

  • tges on April 07, 2026

    It is as Bundy professes; a very easy and reliable recipe that works as a base recipe for lots of chicken dishes. Great recipe for the midweek and excellent with zereshk polo.

• Slow-cooked lentil soup sprinkled with hogweed powder (Adassi)

  • tges on April 07, 2026

    This is probably the closest recipe I see that is available everywhere in Iran for breakfast. I love the idea of a lentil soup being part of my breakfast and this one is very nutritious and tasty.

• Jewish-Iranian soup with chicken and roasted chickpea dumplings (Gondi)

  • tges on April 07, 2026

    Great take on chicken soup but I made matzo balls instead of the chicken meatballs as I love matzo balls.

• Fresh crunchy cucumber, tomato and onion salad sprinkled with mint (Salad e Shirazi)

  • KarinaFrancis on March 28, 2020

    Not really something you need a recipe for but it’s a perfect accompaniment to any meat/rice dish

  • Stephenn31 on March 22, 2025

    Nice crisp salad. I added extra mint which was great.

• Barley potage (Asheh jo)

  • tges on February 25, 2024

    The final outcome was quite surprising; a classy take on a chicken soup. I loved the pearl barley here. Great flavour, nutritious, and I even followed Bundy's suggestion to make salad Olivier with the chicken that was used to flavour the broth.

• Yogurt and garlic marinated chicken in a saffron rice cake (Taachin)

  • tges on February 25, 2024

    I had major misgivings with Bundy's recipe after cross-referencing about a dozen other taachin recipes. Bundy's was chosen as her protein, on paper, described the tastiest; however, I noticed the amount of basmati rice was considerably a lot more than other recipes. That was the first problem, and the next was the very strange suggestion to line the bottom of the pot with untouched rice (no yogurt, egg, saffron marinade) because it prevents burning. Yes, it did not burn but it did not brown either and because it wasn't bound with any of the yogurt and egg mixture, it did not allow my cake to adhere. Upon coming out of the oven, it looked promising but it stuck and broke upon flipping. I never had any problem making tahdig and make that regularly so I am familiar with the process. I will not make this again despite loving the cookbook (it still is one of the best ones out there) as there are better tahchin recipes out there.

• Grandmother's yogurt cake (Cakeh mamani)

  • debkellie on January 04, 2018

    Basic sponge cake: nothing much to quibble over. Perhaps the final flavour rests on the quality of the yoghurt used.?

• Chicken salad with potatoes, eggs, gherkins and peas (Salad Olivier)

  • tges on April 07, 2026

    My favorite Persian salad-e Olivier recipe. So moreish, and I am prompted to making at least a couple of times a year by my cravings for it alone!