55678 Fri Aug 29 21:08:36 -0700 2003 8 2 Los Angeles Area 0 288638 You've probably got a restaurant you've been meaning to try for years - always seen but never entered. One of mine was Ferdussi Taste of Persia in Costa Mesa. Gurlfren and I finally tried it this week, and really enjoyed it! The menu posted by the door promised a wide array of vegetarian fare, so GF was doubly eager to venture in. Both of us are first timers to Persian cuisine, so I went in with an open mind. There were only three other tables occupied (8pm on a Tuesday night), so the waiter was willing to offer advice to us newbies. After telling him that I knew nothing about Persian food, he suggested kebabs, which sounded boring to me. I said I'd like to try something more adventurous, and he steered me to a stewed dish called Fessenjon, based on a sauce of ground walnuts and pomegranates. I chose the lamb version over the chicken, and was rewarded with a sweet, tart and savory dish of lamb shanks braised until tender and falling off the bone. Fessenjon reminded me of a Oaxacan mole negro, minus the chili heat, but still complex and fully flavored. Definitely a great recommendation on the waiter's part. So my brain scanned for "what's that flavor...." and whirred for awhile before it came up empty. I get all lit up and turned on when I enjoy new cuisines because my brain plays the "guess what this is" game and desperately wants answers. I thought about asking permission to go into the kitchen, but I held back. Maybe next time I'm there and the place is slow.... GF ordered the Vegeterian sampler, which was a massive platter with two kinds of basmati rice and an variety of side dishes. The zereshk polo is basmati flavored with barberries (a tart dried berry of some kind), and the albaloo polo is a pink-hued rice with wild sour cherries. Both were wonderful complements to the following: Yogurt w/ cucumber & mint: reminds me of tzaziki but flavored w/ mint, plus small diced cukes. A cucumber and tomato salad, which was light, refreshing, and a palate-cleansing foil to the other dishes. Eggplant dip (Kashk budemjon) Gheimeh (yellow split peas, tomato sauce and sun dried lime) Ghormeh Sabzi (spinzch, fresh herbs, kidney beans and sun dried lime) I have a hard time describing specifics on the last three items. They were stews of a sort meant to be eaten over the rices, and I meekly list them as the menu describes them without my additional commentary. I'm afraid I'd do it injustice as I lack a Persian frame of reference. Since the Ferdussi dinner, I've visited the Jordan Market in Laguna Hills and saw barberries and the other ingredients used in our dinner. So I've got a source for the ingredients. Can anyone recommend a good Persian cookbook that's more than a list of recipes, but rather explains the context / history / background of the cuisine? Link: http://www.ferdussi.com/ Fri Aug 29 21:08:36 -0700 2003 0 Professor Salt 1 288651 okay i'm trippin. i was just going to post about ferdussi tonite. today was the first time that my wife and i went there to eat. we were going to go to native foods at the camp, because my wife said the menu looked great, but they still weren't open yet. (they said they would open in august) so we went to orchid persian food on bristol and paularino. we like orchid and have been there before for dinner. but they had almost nothing available for vegeterians for lunch and their lunch buffet was meager at best. so we went to ferdussi on the corner of bristol and macarthur behind the 31 flavors. they have an expanded lunch buffet on fridays for 10.99. they had a ton of choices for vegeterians and the food was great. besides the buffet they have the veggie sample plate mentioned above and a persian vegeterian sandwich. the service was great and we'll go back again soon. Sat Aug 30 03:12:33 -0700 2003 288638 0 davidt 1 288659 You might get a cookbook at the Super Irvine Market - Culver & the 5 Freeway (behind Denny's). It is a Persian store. Sat Aug 30 11:58:36 -0700 2003 288638 0 MzMaggie 2 288679 Good call. I will look for books next time I'm there. Sat Aug 30 21:41:59 -0700 2003 288659 0 Professor Salt 3 288703 There is also a new Persian grocery store on Culver by the 405 (at Michaelson) where the Whole Foods Market used to be (next to Charo Chicken). They might have a cookbook there as well. Also, Jimmy-Zs (in Irvine on Campus near UCI) owner/chef might give you some high end suggestions for Persian recipes. He is sometimes available when its slow in there (they open at 4:pm for dinner and are open lunch time and weekends, too). There is a spice that is very good, but I don't remember the name of it. Its a very common Persian spice. It is sprinkled on the plate of stuffed grape leaves at Jimmy-Z and its a dark powder, kind of like a sweet nutmeg. The sauce of yohurt and cucumbers (and little berries) it is served with is also a very good. I have one neighbor that is Persian/Jewish and his sisters and aunts make some really good dishes. We had a potluck around the time of the Persian Festival at William Mason Park in September, annually. See also, http://fooddownunder.com/cgi-bin/search.cgi?q=persian at the link below. Also, at Trader Joe's you can find a tasty cucumber and yoghurt dip in the deli area and a Tasty Bite box of ready to heat and serve Kashmir spinach or some Madras lentils. I think they're termed "Indian" food, but very similar to some Persian dishes if you're into a fast food fix at home. See a list of Tasty Bite products at, http://www.shopnatural.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=CTGY&Category_Code=B29030 Link: http://fooddownunder.com/cgi-bin/search.cgi?q=persian Sun Aug 31 14:53:28 -0700 2003 288679 0 kc girl 1 288709 As you know, Persia is the old name for Iran, except many Iranians do not like to change their "Persian" heritage and insist on referring to themselves as Persian due aversion to the political upheavals and land seizures that sent many of them to America on the Queen Mary up until about 1960. One such Iranian, sorry, Persian, works at NBC Studios as a film editor for Access Hollywood and The Jay Leno Show. He has parties with good recipes, but they don't use a cookbook. His family also traveled often to England because his father was a Diplomat (whose land holdings were seized which left him nearly penniless). Funny, but he lives about a mile from Ferdussi in Costa Mesa. As you know, old time cooking depends on indigenous ingredients and Persia is very arid inland even though it borders the sea at the Persian Gulf (Fars and Shiraz, south) and the Caspian Sea (Behran, north). See the link below for a very brief history of Persian cuisine. Sorry, I don't have a name of a specific cookbook yet with a history of their cuisine. But know India has also been an influence around there as well. Link: http://www.theelegantchef.com/persian.html Sun Aug 31 15:22:36 -0700 2003 288638 0 kc girl 1 288710 Okay, googled this link that might be of assistance. Much Persian cooking is long and labor intensive as they enjoy long hours at home with friends and family. (In America, well at least California, their party hours are regularly from 10pm to 3am) Maybe try reading one in a Persian restaurant for a conversation starter. Link: http://specialflavors.com/RecipesandPeople/iranrecipes.htm Sun Aug 31 15:30:34 -0700 2003 288638 0 kc girl 2 288715 Dear Professor Salt, In interest of your information drive about Persian history and cuisine, remember Omar Khyam? the historical Persian? I was made to memorize some of his writings when I was in the 8th grade. Something like, "The moving finger writes, and having writ, moves on. Nor all your piety nor wit shall change a line of it." See, http://www.okonlife.com/ for a bit of a read at the link below. I wonder if many Persians can quote him. I wonder how much influence he had on the Persian people. Link: http://www.okonlife.com/ Sun Aug 31 16:10:56 -0700 2003 288710 0 kc girl 3 288738 kc girl, thank you very much for taking time to respond with such interest. I wasn't taught the lyrics of Omar Khyam when I was a kid. I guess my public school in NY (circa early `80's) wasn't as internationally-minded as your middle school. However, in pursuit of Persian cookbooks, I stopped by Camelot Books in Fountain Valley today. Didn't see any Persian books, but picked up a harcover edition of Japanese Cooking: A Simple Art by Shizuo Tsuji for $14. Great used bookstore with a sizeable cookbook section, in the same stripmall as Tsuruhashi and Prehistoric Pets. Worth a visit, if you're in the area. Mon Sep 01 00:46:57 -0700 2003 288715 0 Professor Salt