Preheat the oven to 230C/gas mark 8. Line a large baking tray with baking paper. Divide the dough into 4 equal portions and shape each into a “boat” and place on the lined tray. Cover loosely with clingfilm and leave to rest in a warm place for 45-60 minutes. Using a pastry brush, brush the exposed flesh sides of each aubergine wedge with a good amount of olive oil. Arrange the wedges, skin-sides down, on the prepared baking tray, then sprinkle liberally with the cumin seeds, ensuring some seeds land on the exposed flesh of the wedges. Roast for 45-60 minutes or until the aubergine wedges are golden brown, with dark, burnished edges. Arrange the wedges on a large, flat platter and season well with salt and pepper. Stir the tomato sauce and place the kefta in the sauce, ensuring some of the sauce covers the kefta. Cook for 30 minutes with the lid ajar, stirring carefully halfway through and shaking the pan to ensure the kefta cook through and are immersed in sauce. Sabrina Ghayour, a Persian/British culinary writer, author, and TV presenter, married Stephen Lynn in London at the Chelsea Register Office last September, becoming Mrs. Ghayour-Lynn. Sabrina Ghayour was born in Tehran, Iran, and moved to west London with her mother at the start of the 1979 Iranian revolution. [3] Career [ edit ]

To make the kefta, combine all of the ingredients for the kefta together in a bowl, reserving a spoonful of parsley for the garnish. Season well with salt and pepper and really work the mixture into a paste, ensuring everything is evenly combined. Preheat two large saucepans or deep frying pans over a medium heat. Put the oil for cooking the chips into one pan, and the oil for frying the fish into the other. Bring the oil up to frying temperature, but do not allow it to smoke. Place the potatoes in one pan and begin to cook them. Add the rice, spices, butter and a generous amount of salt and pepper and cook, stirring, until the vermicelli is evenly coated in the melted butter and spices. Pour in 600ml/21fl oz cold water and stir again, then cover the pan with the lid, reduce to a very gentle simmer and cook for 30–35 minutes, or until the rice on top is cooked and fluffy. Line your largest baking tray with baking paper. Mix the polenta, za’atar, garlic granules and a generous amount of salt and pepper together in a small bowl. Place the sweet potato chips on the prepared baking tray, drizzle over the olive oil and use your hands to mix until the chips are well coated in the oil. Sprinkle with the polenta mixture and toss to coat the chips evenly. Bake the sweet potato chips for 30 minutes or so, until the chips are soft in the middle and browning around the edges. Aubergine is much loved and revered in eastern culture and I especially love it chargrilled, which gives an added meatiness through the charring. Saffron is the world's most expensive spice. The purest and highest grade of saffron comes from Iran and infusing some yogurt with its potency adds the perfect finish to grilled aubergines.

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Toast the breadcrumbs – either in the oven for 8 minutes at 180C/350F/gas mark 4, or in a preheated frying pan until they are golden brown. Then set them aside. Put the spinach in a large bowl with the yoghurt, garlic, walnuts (reserving some for garnish), sumac, a little drizzle of olive oil and a generous amount of salt and pepper. Mix together well. Spread the mixture out on a flat plate and drizzle with more olive oil. Sprinkle with extra sumac and the reserved walnuts. The first time I tried cauliflower soup, no exaggeration, I was head over heels in love with it. I cannot understand why it isn’t more popular. Despite cauliflower’s delicate nature when cooked, it can handle bold spices extremely well, and cumin is really one of the best pairings with it. Soups needn’t be a humble affair. They can be rich and decadent as well as comforting, and not just an opening act but very much the star of the show. This example, while simple in terms of ingredients, is a warming wonder of a soup. It’s true that Persiana is pretty much the perfect first child: published in 10 countries, it has sold more than 150,000 copies in the UK alone. Even for an industry that fetishises debuts, it has done fantastically well. Not that Ghayour could have predicted this. “I didn’t sleep for three months because I was so worried about what people were going to say.”

On a clean, floured surface, knead the dough for 5 minutes to activate the yeast and stretch the glutens within it. Allow the dough to rest for 10 minutes before kneading it again for 2 minutes. Repeat this process another 3 times and, on the second, incorporate the remaining 25ml olive oil. Return the dough to the bowl, cover it with a clean tea towel and leave it to rest for 3 hours. Once the resting period is over, the dough will have tripled in size. Ghayour teaches Persian and Middle Eastern classes at cookery schools. She has worked as a consultant on menu and product development for corporate firms, retail brands, airlines, caterers and supermarkets. [ citation needed]To make the salsa, combine the tomatoes, onion, and dill in a bowl. Add the olive oil and sugar and season well with salt and pepper. Mix together and set aside. Her recipes and work appear on a regular basis in lifestyle, food, and grocery magazines, as well as in major newspapers and online media, and she appears on a variety of cooking shows.

To make the tepsi kebap, put all the ingredients in a large bowl and, using your hands, work everything together well, pummelling the meat mixture for several minutes into a smooth, even paste. Season with salt and pepper.To make the fried onions, heat the oil and fry the onions until deeply browned and crispy. Transfer to drain on kitchen paper. Biryani is a dish fit for a king and its origin is largely credited to Persia. The delicate layering of rice interspersed with spices and meat or poultry relies on a special Persian steaming method known as dam pokht (or dum pukht if you are from India), meaning "steam-cooked". There are many variations of biryani from India to Pakistan, but authentic versions have no chilli in them whatsoever – just aromatic spices such as luxurious Persian saffron. My wonderful friend Asma Khan is the queen of biryani and nobody has a more delicate and expert hand than she does when it comes to making the best and most authentic. Asma very kindly shared some of her biryani wisdom with me, from which I am delighted to share a simplified version of this hugely popular dish with you. Meanwhile, boil the eggs for 6 minutes. Drain them, then plunge them into iced water so you can peel the shell off easily when cooked. Halve the eggs and set them aside. Ghayour then published Sirocco (2016) and Feasts (2017). Her fourth book, Bazaar – Vibrant Vegetarian Recipes, was published in 2019. Combine the toasted hazelnuts with the breadcrumbs and chopped parsley, sprinkle the mixture over the stew and serve with rice, flatbread or potatoes.

Towards the end of the cooking time, drain and rinse the mussels and clams. Pull the beards off the mussels and give them a gentle scrub. Ghayour and Lynn had a small ceremony, as per the pictures. There were limited people at their wedding dinner. Ghayour's two stepsons were also well-dressed for the occasion. Add the paprika, garlic granules and a generous amount of salt and pepper, then pour over the cream. I keep this cake on a plate covered with clingfilm and find it can be kept like this for up to a week.

Spice-rubbed spatchcocked poussin

Grind the saffron (if using) with a pestle and mortar, then pour over the 2 tbsp of boiling water and leave to infuse. In a small saucepan, combine the harissa and maple syrup and heat gently. As soon as the mixture begins to bubble, take off the heat and set aside.