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Mushroom croquetas

Croquetas are the pride of Spanish home cooking and tapas bars alike: a thick, silky béchamel full of flavour, chilled, rolled in egg and breadcrumbs and fried until crisp. Every family has its own; ham and chicken are classic, but croquetas de setas, made with wild or chestnut mushrooms, are found all over the country and are especially loved in the mushroom-picking regions of Castile and Catalonia. A good croqueta is creamy, almost liquid, inside, with a thin shell. Make a big batch: they freeze beautifully raw. Chef's tip: cook the flour in the butter and oil for a full 2 minutes and then beat the milk in slowly over a low heat for 10–15 minutes; this long cooking takes away the raw taste of flour and gives the creamy centre that makes Spanish croquetas special.

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Limerick ham with cider glaze

Limerick was once famous across Europe for its hams, cured in the city's bacon factories, and a glazed ham is still the centrepiece of the Irish Christmas table next to the turkey. This is a gammon joint, which is pork: simmered gently in cider with an onion and spices, then studded with cloves and glazed in a hot oven until sticky and dark. Serve hot with mash and parsley sauce, or cold for St Stephen's Day sandwiches. The cider contains alcohol, which mostly cooks off; for an alcohol-free version use cloudy apple juice. Chef's tip: score the fat in a neat diamond pattern only through the fat, not the meat, so the glaze grips without the meat drying.

200 min

Irish Meat

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Irish white pudding patties

White pudding is the pale partner to black pudding on the Irish breakfast plate, made in butchers' shops from West Cork to Sligo with pork, pork fat, oatmeal, onion and a secret blend of spices. Making it at home in casings is fiddly, so this version shapes the same mix into patties to fry for the full Irish or a breakfast roll. Chef's tip: toast the oats in a dry pan first; it gives the nutty flavour that good shop-bought white pudding has.

35 min

Irish Breakfast & Brunch

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Estamboli polo

In Tehran flats, estamboli polo is the weeknight rice that turns up when the fridge holds little more than tomatoes and potatoes, and children ask for it by name. Basmati is par-boiled, then layered back into the pot with a turmeric-and-tomato sauce and cubes of fried potato, and steamed under a cloth-wrapped lid until each grain is separate and orange-tinged. The bottom turns into a golden, crunchy tahdig that everyone fights over. Serve it with mast-o khiar, a plate of fresh herbs and torshi. A common mistake is stirring the tomato sauce through boiling rice, which makes it sticky; layer it instead and let the steam do the work. Chef's tip: lay thin potato slices on the base of the pot for the tahdig; they crisp evenly and lift out in one piece.

75 min

Persian Rice & Grains

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Kuku sibzamini

Kuku sibzamini is what Tehran schoolchildren unwrap at lunchtime: little golden patties of grated potato, egg and onion, eaten cold or warm, folded into lavash or sangak with herbs, tomato and a few slices of khiar shoor. They also turn up at picnics in the parks on Friday mornings, because they travel well and taste good at any temperature. Grated raw onion and turmeric give the flavour; a spoon of flour holds them together. The common mistake is leaving the grated potato wet, so the patties spit, soak up oil and fall apart. Chef's tip: squeeze the potato and onion hard in a tea towel; the drier the mix, the crisper the edges.

40 min

Persian Snacks & Starters

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Mast-o musir

Every kebab house in Tehran puts a little bowl of mast-o musir on the table beside the chelow, and at home it sits next to Friday lunch the same way. Musir is a wild mountain shallot from the Zagros, sold dried in slices; once soaked it is mild, garlicky and faintly sweet, and it gives thick yogurt a sharp bite. The one mistake to avoid is skipping the long soak, which leaves the shallots tough and bitter. If you cannot find musir, see the swap in the steps. Chef's tip: make it a few hours ahead; the shallot flavour deepens as it sits in the fridge.

15 min

Persian Chutneys & Dips

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Sabzi khordan

No Tehran dinner table is complete without sabzi khordan, literally 'herbs for eating': a basket or plate of whole sprigs of basil, mint, tarragon, chives and coriander with radishes, spring onions, walnuts and a block of white cheese. People tear off bread, add a little cheese and a walnut, then stuff in a few leaves, eating between mouthfuls of stew or rice. The mistake most people make is serving the herbs wet or limp; they should be crisp, dry and cold. Traditional Iranian white cheese is set with animal rennet, so choose a feta labelled vegetarian (microbial rennet) if that matters to you. Chef's tip: wash the herbs an hour ahead, spin them dry and chill them wrapped in a damp tea towel so they stay perky on the table.

15 min

Persian Salads

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Baghala ghatogh

In Rasht and the villages of Gilan, baghala ghatogh is cooked in late spring when the slender local broad beans called pach baghala are in the markets, and later in the year with frozen ones. The beans are simmered in their thin skins with a great deal of garlic and dill, then eggs are cracked on top and left to set softly, and the whole pan is eaten with plain kateh rice and a few pickled garlic cloves. It is humble, green and fragrant. A common mistake is stirring the eggs right in, which turns the stew grey; leave them whole so the yolks stay just runny. Chef's tip: cook the dill in butter or oil before the water goes in; it blooms and tastes far deeper than dill added at the end.

40 min

Persian Vegetarian

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Kateh

Along the Caspian coast in Gilan and Mazandaran, kateh is the daily rice: no par-boiling and draining as in Tehran's chelow, just rice, water, salt and butter cooked together until the water vanishes and the grains settle into a soft, slightly sticky cake with a golden crust underneath. Northern families eat it at almost every meal with fish, mirza ghasemi or baghala ghatogh, and children love the buttery bottom. The common mistake is lifting the lid and stirring once the water has been absorbed, which breaks the grains and stops the crust forming. Chef's tip: use a heavy non-stick pot and add the butter only after the water has boiled down; it seeps through and fries the base.

45 min

Persian Rice & Grains

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Torshe tareh

Torshe tareh is one of the dishes that marks Gilan's cooking as different from the rest of Iran: a dark, sour, garlicky stew of finely chopped greens, cooked down with rice flour and soured with bitter orange juice or dried sour plums, then finished with eggs. It is made in the Rasht area all year round and eaten with kateh rice, often alongside salted fish for those who eat it; this version is vegetarian with black-eyed beans for body. The common mistake is undercooking the herbs, which leaves the stew grassy instead of deep and savoury. Chef's tip: fry the chopped herbs until they turn almost black-green and stop smelling raw before any liquid goes in.

65 min

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Kal kabab

Kal kabab comes from the rice-growing plains around Rasht, where late-summer aubergines are charred straight on the embers and mashed with a green, sour mixture of herbs, walnuts, garlic and sour pomegranate paste. Unlike Tehran's creamy kashk-e bademjan it has no dairy and is eaten cool, as a starter or side with kateh and grilled food, scooped up with bread. Golpar, ground Persian hogweed seed, adds a resinous edge. A common mistake is pulling the aubergines off the flame too early: they must collapse completely and the skin must blacken all over, or the flesh is bitter and the dish lacks smoke. Chef's tip: pound the walnuts, garlic and herbs to a paste before adding the aubergine, so the sour green flavour runs through every bite.

45 min

Persian Chutneys & Dips

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Zeytoon parvardeh

Rudbar, in the olive valleys of southern Gilan, is famous for zeytoon parvardeh, 'nurtured olives': plump green olives tossed in a thick paste of ground walnuts, sour pomegranate molasses, garlic, fresh mint and golpar, then left to mellow for a day or two. Gilanis serve them as a starter or a side with rice and fish, and every visitor to the north brings jars home. The common mistake is using pitted olives in brine straight from the jar without rinsing, which makes the dressing salty and harsh. Chef's tip: rinse the olives and leave them to soak in fresh water for 30 minutes first; they drink up the marinade much better.

20 min

Persian Snacks & Starters

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Sir ghelyeh

In early spring, when the rice fields of Gilan are still wet and the markets of Rasht fill with bundles of green garlic, families make sir ghelyeh: young garlic stems and leaves fried slowly with herbs and turmeric, then set with eggs. It is a quick lunch with kateh rice, eaten with a pickle on the side, and it smells of the whole season. The common mistake is frying the green garlic on a high heat, which burns the edges and leaves it bitter instead of sweet. Out of season, use the swap in the ingredients. Chef's tip: a small splash of verjuice or lemon juice just before the eggs go in lifts the whole pan.

30 min

Persian Vegetarian

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Koloocheh Fuman

On the road from Rasht up to the hill village of Masuleh, the little town of Fuman is lined with bakeries selling koloocheh: thick round cookies, crisp outside and cake-like inside, filled with ground walnut, sugar and cardamom and stamped with a pattern on top. Travellers buy them by the box for tea, and they are a favourite gift at Nowruz. A common mistake is overworking the dough, which makes them tough rather than tender and crumbly. Chef's tip: chill the filled discs for 15 minutes before stamping and baking, so the pattern stays sharp and the walnut filling does not burst through.

65 min

Persian Baking

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Eshkeneh

Eshkeneh is the soup of the cold north-west, cooked in Tabriz kitchens on winter evenings when there is little in the house but onions, eggs and dried fenugreek. The onions are fried very slowly until sweet and brown, a spoon of flour and turmeric thickens the broth, and eggs are dropped in to poach at the end; a little sour from lemon or dried sour cherries balances it. Azerbaijani families crumble barbari or lavash into their bowls so the bread soaks up the broth. A common mistake is rushing the onions, which leaves the soup thin and harsh rather than mellow and golden. Chef's tip: add the dried fenugreek with the flour, not before, because it scorches quickly and turns bitter.

30 min

Persian Soups

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Kaleh joosh

Kaleh joosh is the fast, frugal soup of the Azerbaijani villages around Tabriz and of central Iran, cooked when the cupboard holds kashk, walnuts and onions. Kashk, the tangy fermented whey that gives so many Persian dishes their savoury depth, is simmered with deeply fried onions and ground walnuts, then crowned with sizzling dried mint and turmeric oil. It is eaten from a shared bowl, scooped up with torn bread rather than spoons, often on cold evenings. A common mistake is boiling the kashk hard, which can make it split and grainy; keep it at a gentle bubble. Chef's tip: taste your kashk before salting, as brands vary wildly in saltiness.

30 min

Persian Soups

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Lighvan-style brined cheese

The village of Lighvan, on the slopes of Mount Sahand south of Tabriz, gives its name to Iran's most loved breakfast cheese: a white, holey, tangy sheep's milk cheese matured in brine, traditionally in goatskins or tins in mountain caves. Across Azerbaijan province it is eaten every morning with warm bread, walnuts, fresh herbs and sweet tea. This home version uses pasteurised sheep's milk (or a mix with goat's milk) so it is safe to make in your kitchen. Village Lighvan is set with animal rennet; use a vegetarian (microbial) rennet to keep it vegetarian. The commonest mistake is cutting the curd before it gives a clean break, which loses yield and makes a crumbly cheese. Chef's tip: let the cheese firm in the fridge for a full week in the brine; it develops its classic tang and little holes as it matures.

1500 min

Persian Basics

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Ghorabieh Tabrizi

Every traveller to Tabriz is expected to bring back a box of ghorabieh from the bazaar confectioners: pale, domed almond cookies with a thin crackled shell and a soft, chewy middle, scented with vanilla and sometimes topped with a sliver of pistachio. They are a Nowruz favourite in Azerbaijan province and keep well, so families bake them a week ahead. A common mistake is baking them too hot, which browns the outside before the inside sets and leaves them hollow. Chef's tip: let the piped cookies sit for 20 minutes before baking so a skin forms; that skin gives the classic crackled top.

55 min

Persian Baking

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Baslogh

Baslogh is one of the soft confections that fill the sweet shops of Tabriz's covered bazaar, especially before Nowruz and at Ramadan: a pale, wobbly slab of starch cooked in rose-scented syrup, studded with walnuts, cut into squares and dusted so it does not stick. It is related to Turkish lokum but softer and less sweet, eaten with tea in the afternoon. A common mistake is stopping the cooking too early; undercooked baslogh never sets and weeps syrup. Chef's tip: cook until the paste turns translucent and pulls away from the pan in one mass, which takes longer than you expect.

60 min

Persian Desserts

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