Khoresh Aloo Esfenaj

Dark, well-cooked spinach and soft prunes give this stew a sweet-sour depth, balanced with lemon juice.

TIME BREAKDOWN
Prep: 30 min
Cook: 2h 20m
Total: 2 hours 50 minutes
Vegetarian
❌
Nuts
❌
Serves
6 people
Difficulty
Medium

Ingredients

  • 600g lamb shoulder, trimmed and cut into 3cm cubes
  • 2 onions, finely chopped
  • 4 tbsp sunflower oil, divided
  • 1 tsp ground turmeric
  • 500g fresh spinach, washed and roughly chopped
  • 150g soft stoned prunes
  • 2 tbsp lemon juice
  • 1-2 tbsp caster sugar, to taste
  • ¼ tsp saffron threads, ground and steeped in 2 tbsp hot water
  • 1 tsp salt
  • ½ tsp black pepper

Method

  1. Heat 2 tbsp oil in a large pot and fry the onions for 12 minutes until golden. Stir in the turmeric, add the lamb and brown for 8-10 minutes.

  2. Add 700ml hot water, the salt and pepper, cover and simmer gently for 1 hour 15 minutes until the lamb is nearly tender.

  3. Heat the remaining 2 tbsp oil in a large pan and cook the spinach in batches for 8-10 minutes, stirring, until it is dark and the moisture has cooked away.

  4. Add the spinach and prunes to the lamb and simmer for 25 minutes until the sauce is thick and the lamb is tender.

  5. Stir in the lemon juice, sugar and saffron water. Taste and adjust for a balanced sweet-sour flavour. Serve with chelo.