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Khoresh Karafs

Khoresh karafs is a traditional Iranian stew made from a combination of celery, beef or lamb, onion, parsley, and mint.

Prep Time
45 mins
Cook Time
1 hr 45 mins
Total Time
2 hrs 30 mins
Servings: 8 people
Calories: 176 kcal
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Persian , Iranian

Ingredients

  • 2 large onions , cut into thin strips
  • 1 kg boneless lamb shoulder meat (or beef shank, cut into pieces)
  • 2 lb celery
  • 3 oz. fresh mint , finely chopped
  • 10 oz. fresh flat-leaf parsley , finely chopped
  • 1 teaspoon Turmeric
  • ⅛ teaspoon ground saffron , diluted in 2 tablespoons water
  • 3 tablespoons ab-ghooreh , verjuice, the sour juice extracted from unripened grapes or freshly squeezed lime juice
  • 8 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • 1 cup boiling water
  • 1½ tablespoons flour
  • salt
  • pepper

Instructions

    Cup of Yum
  1. To clean the celery, cut off the base and the leaves. Rinse the stalks thoroughly under cold running water and dry them with a cloth.
  2. Then, remove the strings from the stalks and cut them into 1-inch (2.5 cm) sections.
  3. Chop the celery leaves.
  4. In a large Dutch oven, heat 4 tablespoons of vegetable oil over medium heat and sauté the onions, stirring frequently, until golden brown and beginning to caramelize. Reserve in the pot.
  5. In a frying pan, heat the rest of the oil over medium heat and brown the garlic for 2 minutes then add the celery, mint and parsley for 10 minutes, stirring them very frequently, in order to fry them.
  6. Add the meat, turmeric and pepper to the onion pot and sauté over medium heat, stirring frequently, until the meat is browned. Mix well.
  7. In a large bowl, whisk the boiling water and flour and pour this mixture into the pot. Mix well.
  8. Cover and cook over low to medium heat for 30 minutes.
  9. Add the fried celery/parsley/mint mixture, and the saffron. Mix well.
  10. Cover and simmer over medium heat for 15 minutes then over low heat for 45 minutes.
  11. Season with salt and add the ab-ghooreh or lime juice to the stew 10 minutes before the end of cooking.
  12. If the mixture is too liquid, increase the heat and reduce the stew until obtaining a smooth sauce. If on the contrary it is too dry, add a little boiling water.