Khoresh-e Beh – Persian Quince Lamb Stew
Quince season is in full swing here in the UK and so I’m bringing you the perfect Persian recipe to showcase this delicious autumn fruit: Khoresh-e Beh, Persian quince lamb stew! It’s very easy to make! The prep time is short and sweet and it basically takes care of itself in the pot.
Serve this mouthwatering lamb stew with aromatic Persian saffron rice.
Cook the most popular Persian dishes at home with the help of my e-book.
Time
Prep: 20 min
Cook: 1 h 40 min
Total: 2 h
Ingredients (serving 4)
500g / 1.1lbs lamb leg or shoulder
1 piece of bone marrow (optional)
2 quinces (approx. 250g, chopped)
1/4 cup yellow split peas (80g)
8 Aloo Bokhara / golden sour prunes
1 onion
3 cloves garlic
1/4 cup tomato paste (60g)
6 tbsp vegetable oil
1 tsp turmeric
1/2 tsp black pepper
3 tsp sugar (or to taste)
2 to 3 tbsp lemon juice (or to taste)
1 cinnamon stick
salt to taste
Method
Prep the ingredients
Finely chop the onions and garlic.
Cut the meat into approx. 3cm or just over 1 inch large cubes.
Sear and fry
Heat about 4 tbsp of vegetable oil in a frying pan and sear the meat over high heat from all sides until golden brown. This should take about 10 minutes. If your frying pan is too small to fit all the meat, sear it in two batches. You don’t want it to cook, just to brown on the outside.
Remove the meat from the pan and transfer the onions to the same pan with the same oil in it. Gently fry them over medium heat for about 10 minutes. Then add the chopped garlic and fry both together for a further 3 minutes.
Get the stew cooking
If your pan has a lid transfer the meat back to the pan, together with the bone, if using, and the onions and garlic. Alternatively, transfer everything to a pot with a lid. Now you can add the golden sour prunes. tomato paste, cinnamon stick, and season it with turmeric, black pepper and salt (do not add too much salt, you can always add more later).
If you have the Iranian/Middle Eastern yellow split peas add them now. The Iranian split peas take much longer to cook than the ones found in UK supermarkets. If you don’t have the Iranian ones, pre-cook them separately in salted boiling water until cooked. Drain the water and set the split peas aside until it’s time to add them to the stew.
Get the stew cooking
Add 2 cups of freshly boiled water to the other ingredients. Bring the stew to a simmer, then reduce the temperature to something between low and medium. Put the lid on and let it simmer for 1 hour.
Chop and sauté the quinces
Cut the quince in half. Slice them lengthwise and remove the firm core.
Chop them into cubes of your preferred size. If you don’t sauté them immediately transfer them to a bowl of water to prevent them from turning brown. If that’s what you do, make sure to dry them before sautéing to prevent hot oil splatters.
Sauté the chopped quince in 2 tbsp of vegetable oil for about 5 min. This is to help them maintain their texture and prevent them from getting too soft when simmering in the stew.
Finishing touches
After 1 hour of simmering, add the chopped quince to the stew and let them cook in it for 20 minutes. Add the sugar and lemon juice, as well as the cooked yellow split peas, if you boiled them separately. Add more salt if needed. Let the stew cook for another 10 minutes.
Serve your Quince Lamb Stew with aromatic Persian rice. Enjoy!
I’d love to see your Khoresh-e Beh! Feel free to tag me with @igotitfrommymaman on Facebook or Insta so I can take a look and give you a thumbs up!
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