Food & Drink

The cuisine of Iran is diverse, with each province featuring dishes, culinary traditions and styles distinct to their regions. The main Persian cuisines are combinations of rice with meat, chicken or fish and plenty of garlic, onion, vegetables, nuts and herbs. Iranian food is not spicy, but herbs are used a lot, as is fruit such as plums, pomegranates, quince, prunes, apricots and raisins.

Breads

• Nan-e barbari: thick and oval-shaped.
• Nan-e ghandi: a thin, soft and round sweet bread, eaten during breakfast or with tea.
• Nan-e gisu: a sweet Armenian bread, eaten in the morning or with tea later in the day.
• Nan-e lavash: thin, crispy and round or oval.
• Nan-e sangak: stone-baked triangle-shaped bread.
• Nan-e shirmal: similar to barbari, but made with milk and sugar instead of water. It is eaten during breakfast or with tea.
• Nan-e taftoon: thin, soft and round

Breakfast (Sobhaneh or Nashtayi)

The basic traditional Iranian breakfast consists of a variety of flat breads, butter, Tabrizi white cheese (paneer), feta cheese, whipped heavy cream (sarshir, often sweetened), and a variety of fruit jams and spreads.

Other popular traditional breakfasts include haleem (wheatmeal served plain or more commonly with shredded lamb or turkey) and asheh mohshalah (thick soup). These are typically regional specialities, and many cities and towns all across Iran feature their own distinct versions of these dishes. Both asheh mohshalah and haleem are typically prepared the night before, to be served the next morning, although haleem is usually only served at certain times of the year (haleem specialty restaurants are only open during those times), except in southern parts of Iran, where the dish is always present.

Lunch (Naahaar) and Dinner (Shaam)

Traditional Persian cooking is a well-balanced mixture of herbs, meat, beans, dairy products and vegetables. Most Iranian dishes are usually eaten with rice, a variety of flat breads, and some type of meat (usually poultry, beef, lamb or fish).

Iranian cuisine has many rice based dishes, including:

• chelo khoresh (rice topped with vegetables and meat in a nut sauce)
• polo sabzi (pilau rice with fresh herbs)
• adas polo (rice, lentils and meat)

Other popular dishes are koftegush (meatloaf) and badinjan (mutton and aubergine stew).

There are certain accompaniments (mokhalafat) that are essential to every Iranian meal at lunch and dinner, regardless of the region. These include, first and foremost, a plate of fresh herbs, called sabzi (basil, coriander, cilantro, fenugreek, tarragon, Persian watercress or shaahi), a variety of flat breads (sangak, lavash, barbari and so on), cheese (called panir, a Persian variant of feta), sliced and peeled cucumbers, sliced tomatoes and onions, yogurt, and lemon juice. Persian pickles (khiyarshur) and relishes (torshi) are also considered essential in most regions.

Desserts

There are many dessert dishes in Iran, such as bastani-e zafarani (Persian ice cream), which is flavoured with saffron, rosewater, and chunks of heavy cream. There are also many types of sweets. The sweets can be divided into two categories: 'Shirini Tar' (lit. wet sweets) and 'Shirini Khoshk' (lit. dry sweets). The first category consists of French-inspired pastries with heavy whipped cream, glazed fruit toppings, tarts, custard-filled éclairs and a variety of cakes. Some have an Iranian twist such as the addition of pistachio, saffron and walnuts.

The second category consists of more traditional sweets:

• Shirini Berenji (a type of rice biscuit)
• Shirini Nokhodchi (clover shaped, chickpea biscuits)
• Kouloucheh (a large biscuit usually with a walnut or fig filling)
• Shirini Kishmishi (raisin and saffron cookies)
• Shirini Yazdi (muffins or cupcakes from the city of Yazd)

Three other popular desserts in Iran are Zulbia, Bamieh and Gush-e Fil. Bamiehs are oval-shaped dough pieces, deep fried and then covered with a syrup. Zulbia is also deep-fried dough, but it is poured into the oil so that it forms a twirl. It is then covered with the same syrup. Gush-e Fil (lit. Elephant ears) are also deep-fried dough, fried in the shape of flat elephant ears and then covered with sugar powder.

Drinks

The traditional drink accompanying Iranian dishes is known as doogh, which is a combination of yoghurt, water (or soda) and dried mint. Other drinks include havij bastani, which is carrot juice made into an ice cream float and garnished with cinnamon, nutmeg or other spices.

There are also drinks that aren't served with meals, such as sheer moz (banana milk shake), aab talebi (cantelope juice), aab anaar (pomegranate juice) and aab hendevaneh (watermelon juice). These drinks are commonly made in stands or kiosks in streets and on hiking trails on summer days.

Tea (chai) is the drink of choice on nearly every occasion, and is usually served with dried fruit, pastries or sweets.

Alcohol is strictly forbidden.