Every corner of Iran has its own ash, the thick, herby soups that Iranians eat in every season. Most are served steaming hot. Ash-e mast from Gorgan, the capital of Golestan province near the Caspian, goes the other way. It is a rice and spinach soup that is cooled completely and then stirred through with garlicky yoghurt and fresh herbs. On a hot northern afternoon it is exactly what you want.
It is also one of the easiest ash recipes there is. There is no meat and no lentils, and nothing needs watching for hours. The only real effort goes into the fried onions on top, and those are worth doing properly.
At a glance: serves about six. Soak the rice for four hours before you start. Allow time for the soup to cool completely before the yoghurt goes in. Easy.
Ingredients
- 500g spinach, washed and trimmed
- 1½ cups broken rice (nim-daneh), soaked for about four hours
- 1 cup broad beans (baghali)
- 2 cups sour yoghurt
- 2 small bunches fresh coriander
- 1 small bunch fresh mint
- 1 small head garlic, peeled
- 1 cup fried onions (piaz dagh)
- Salt and black pepper
Method
- Put the broad beans in a pan with a little water and a pinch of salt. Simmer until they are completely soft and falling apart, then set them aside to cool.
- Drain the soaked rice and put it in a large pot with about four cups of water. Bring it to the boil, then simmer until the rice is fully cooked and soft.
- Stir in the cooked broad beans, then add the spinach, roughly chopped. Do not add more water yet. The spinach will release its own liquid as it cooks over a medium heat.
- If the ash is still very thick, add a little boiling water. Let it simmer gently until the spinach is fully cooked, then turn off the heat and leave the pot to cool completely.
- While it cools, pound the coriander, mint and garlic together in a large bowl until soft. A mortar and pestle is traditional. A food processor works fine.
- Stir the herb and garlic paste into the yoghurt and season well with salt and pepper.
- Once the ash is completely cold, stir in the yoghurt mixture until smooth.
- Ladle into bowls and scatter fried onions over the top.
Washing spinach. Spinach holds a surprising amount of grit. Soak it in lukewarm water for a few minutes so the sand sinks, then lift the leaves off the top and rinse them in cold water. Do the washing before you chop, and cut the leaves roughly, into pieces of about 4cm. Chopped too finely, they turn to mush in the pot.
No broken rice? Use ordinary long-grain rice. Soak it for two hours, then squeeze the grains in your palm to crack them before cooking. Our guide to the Persian pantry lists where to buy the rest of the ingredients outside Iran.
Getting the onions right. Piaz dagh should be dry and crisp, almost powdery. Slice the onions thinly and fry them in plenty of hot oil, in small batches so they float freely. Drain each batch on a rack, then spread it out on a tray. Do not pile fresh onions on top of the last batch, or the whole lot turns oily and soft.
Adapted from a recipe published by the Iranian news site Fararu. If you like your summer food cold and sharp, try our Salad Shirazi alongside it. The broad beans for this ash are the same ones Gilan uses in baghali ghatogh, its famous dill and egg stew.
