Abgoosht ( ''Âbgušt'', ; literally "meat broth") is an

Iranian Iranian () may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Iran ** Iranian diaspora, Iranians living outside Iran ** Iranian architecture, architecture of Iran and parts of the rest of West Asia ** Iranian cuisine, cooking traditions and practic ...

stew. It is also called dizi (, ), which refers to the traditional stoneware crocks it is served in. Some describe it as a "hearty mutton Persian soup thickened with chickpeas."

Preparation

Ābgoosht is usually made with lamb,

chickpea The chickpea or chick pea (''Cicer arietinum'') is an annual plant, annual legume of the family (biology), family Fabaceae, subfamily Faboideae, cultivated for its edible seeds. Its different types are variously known as gram," Bengal gram, ga ...

s, white beans,

onion An onion (''Allium cepa'' , from Latin ), also known as the bulb onion or common onion, is a vegetable that is the most widely cultivated species of the genus '' Allium''. The shallot is a botanical variety of the onion which was classifie ...

potato The potato () is a starchy tuberous vegetable native to the Americas that is consumed as a staple food in many parts of the world. Potatoes are underground stem tubers of the plant ''Solanum tuberosum'', a perennial in the nightshade famil ...

es,

tomato The tomato (, ), ''Solanum lycopersicum'', is a plant whose fruit is an edible Berry (botany), berry that is eaten as a vegetable. The tomato is a member of the nightshade family that includes tobacco, potato, and chili peppers. It originate ...

es,

turmeric Turmeric (), or ''Curcuma longa'' (), is a flowering plant in the ginger family Zingiberaceae. It is a perennial, rhizomatous, herbaceous plant native to the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia that requires temperatures between and high ...

, and dried lime. Other variations exist in the beans used, such as kidney beans and

black-eyed peas The black-eyed pea or black-eyed bean is a legume grown around the world for its medium-sized, edible bean. It is a subspecies of the cowpea, an Old World plant domesticated in Africa, and is sometimes simply called a cowpea. The common comme ...

. The ingredients are combined and cooked until done, at which point the dish is strained. The solids are mashed as ''gusht kubideh'' (, literally "mashed meat") which is desired in two stages; First, they eat its juice with pieces of bread or dried bread (for the useful use of dry bread) and the rest of the ingredients are eaten with a meat grinder completely beaten or unbeaten with bread, onions and seasonings such as pickles and vegetables. The popular Azerbaijani dish piti is a variety of abgoosht and encompasses many similar dishes in the region.

Variations

Assyrian abgoosht

Assyrians Assyrians (, ) are an ethnic group indigenous to Mesopotamia, a geographical region in West Asia. Modern Assyrians share descent directly from the ancient Assyrians, one of the key civilizations of Mesopotamia. While they are distinct from ot ...

of northwestern

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

, particularly surrounding

Urmia Urmia (; ) is the largest city in West Azerbaijan Province of Iran. In the Central District of Urmia County, it is capital of the province, the county, and the district. The city is situated near the borders of Iran with Turkey and Iraq. ...

, traditionally make abgoosht using beef, lime, kidney beans, and chickpeas, which is served in a lime broth with potatoes and eaten with onions and lavasha (an Assyrian bread) on the side. Assyrians typically make abgoosht in the winter. The regional pronunciation is "abgoosh", without the 't' ().

Armenian abgoosht

A similar dish in

Armenia Armenia, officially the Republic of Armenia, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of West Asia. It is a part of the Caucasus region and is bordered by Turkey to the west, Georgia (country), Georgia to the north and Azerbaijan to ...

is also called abgoosht. The difference is that in Armenia beef rather than lamb is used. File:Աբգուշթ.jpg, Abgoosht with various side dishes in Armenia

Piti (Caucasus and Central Asia)

Piti (or ''putuk'') is a variation of abgoosht in the cuisines of the

Caucasus The Caucasus () or Caucasia (), is a region spanning Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is situated between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, comprising parts of Southern Russia, Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan. The Caucasus Mountains, i ...

and

Central Asia Central Asia is a region of Asia consisting of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. The countries as a group are also colloquially referred to as the "-stans" as all have names ending with the Persian language, Pers ...

References

External links

{{Cuisine of Iran, stew Armenian cuisine Assyrian cuisine Chickpea dishes Iranian stews Iraqi cuisine Lamb dishes Soups