Abgoosht is a one-pot Persian wonder, that gives you a two course meal to enjoy. Incredibly delicious, and made with common staples: meat, beans, potatoes and tomatoes. Try it the ceremonial way with friends and family or keep it simple.
Rinse dried chickpeas and navy beans. Add 4 cups water and soak overnight. Drain the beans and discard water before cooking.
In a dutch oven or large cooking pot, add meat, beans, onions, garlic, turmeric, salt, black pepper and water. Raise the heat and bring to a boil. Lower the heat, cover and let it simmer for 100 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Add potatoes, tomatoes, tomato paste, advieh, dried limes or lime juice and continue to simmer until the meat, beans and potatoes are fork tender, about 45 minutes. Add saffron water in the last 10 minutes. Adjust seasonings per taste. Use water as needed.
Pick out the limes and press juices through a sieve, making sure not to let the bitter seeds get into the soup. Add this lime juice gradually, as per your taste.
Tip: To enjoy it the non-traditional way, serve it as a soup with bread. Or serve it the traditional way as follows.
Using a slotted spoon, remove the meat, potatoes and beans from the pot and transfer to a large bowl. Debone the meat using a fork. Remove any marrow from the bones and add to the bowl. Discard the bones.
With a wooden masher, pound the meat, potatoes and beans into a lumpy mixture, known as ‘goosht koobideh’ (mashed meat). Adjust the consistency and taste; adding broth, salt, pepper and lime juice. To mash this in a food processor, use only the pulse function and keep consistency lumpy.
Heat up the broth and mashed meat and transfer to serving bowls and serve with warm flat breads such as sangak or lavash, pickles (torshi), salad shirazi, sabzi khordan (fresh herbs, radishes) and doogh.
Traditionally the broth is served first. Ladle the warm broth into a bowl. Flatbread is torn into small pieces, added to the broth to soak up a bit, before enjoying.
Next, the goosht koobideh (mashed meat) can be made as sandwiches or wraps with flat breads, topping with fresh herbs, pickles, sliced radish and such.
Notes
Canned Beans: Use two 15-ounce cans and add them with potatoes and tomatoes. Lower the amount of water used.
Dried Limes: Also known as limu-omani. You can remove the bitter seeds and grind it into lime powder. Pierce the limes in couple places. Add to soup gradually as per taste.
Advieh: Use the one for khoresh or soup. Substitute with a mild middle-eastern or eastern Mediterranean mixed spice blend.
Instant pot: Braise the meat with spices and sauté the onions for adding a depth of flavor.
Make Ahead: Soak the beans, chop the vegetables and season meat with spices earlier.
Storage and Leftovers: Refrigerate for 4 to 5 days. To freeze, store meat/potato/beans or mashed mixture and broth in different containers for up to 2 months. Reheat in microwave or on stove top, adding water as needed.
For more information on ingredients, variations and serving suggestions, scroll up the page to the blog post.