A Lovely Week for a Persian Dinner

MATTHEW0 COMMENTSFROM THE LUNCH BOX, REVOLUTION

Mar 05

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Legs of Lamb and On and On

This week begins a four-part series (interrupted by the Lunch Bunch on Tuesday) on making the Iranian dinner from Saveur magazine this month. I couldn’t help myself. I read loads of articles on food and find myself usually unimpressed. But something called to me; perhaps it was the:

• sour plums
• black limes
• fresh dill
• saffron

So after a good read, I found myself on Google looking for a Halal market, whereupon I stumbled upon Halalco Supermarket in Falls Church, VA, about 40 minutes from Washington, D.C.

Halalco Supermarket

155 Hillwood Avenue

Falls Church, VA 22046

(703) 532-3202

The walk through the front door was a little peculiar, filled with bric-a-brac, clothing of a sort, and other odds and ends, including a terrific bulk foods area with no containers in which to put the bulk foods. You know, peculiar.  Clearly, you need to know how the place work before you get there. I’ve been in so many ethnic supermarkets since the ’80s, that I didn’t think anything would surprise me. And the business card says it all: “Choice Zabiha meats, exotic international groceries, books on Islam, and gifts from the Muslim world.”

Lamb Hearts

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Just beyond the bulk area was the meats. That butcher area was jaw-dropping. At least six to eight butcher working hard chopped leg after leg of goat, lamb, and huge pieces of beef. And there wasn’t the slightest hint of the smell of dead animals anywhere.

I had the good fortune to connect with the butcher on my search for chicken thighs, and he collected some from the back for the dinner I was making. Between him and a sort of store manager with an Amish beard in Islamic clothing (who was a little frowny, given just how many items I needed to purchase), I walked out with tons of cool new cooking items. Very exciting. Very Saveur.

Over the next couple of days, I’ll walk you through what all those items created leading up to March 21st’s Norouz post for the start of Persian New Year. Such wonderful ingredients! Such creative cuisine that combines nuts with fruits and meats. And yet, making these meals didn’t take me a particularly long time. More to come…stay tuned.

- See more at: http://www.alunchboxblog.com/a-lovely-week-for-a-persian-dinner/?preview=true&preview_id=2478&preview_nonce=a7cebadf1f#sthash.9Qv4jRUs.dpuf