Chelow kebab or chelow kabab ( ) is an Iranian dish consisting of

steamed rice Cooked rice refers to rice that has been cooked either by steaming or boiling. The terms steamed rice or boiled rice are also commonly used. Any variant of Asian rice (both indica and japonica varieties), African rice or wild rice, glutino ...

() and one of the many varieties of Iranian

kebab Kebab ( , ), kebap, kabob (alternative North American spelling), kebob, or kabab (Kashmiri spelling) is a variety of roasted meat dishes that originated in the Middle East. Kebabs consist of cut up ground meat, sometimes with vegetables an ...

. It is considered the

national dish A national dish is a culinary Dish (food), dish that is strongly associated with a particular country. A dish can be considered a national dish for a variety of reasons: * It is a staple food, made from a selection of locally available foodstuffs ...

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 ...

, and was probably created during the time of the

Qajar dynasty The Qajar family (; 1789–1925) was an Iranian royal family founded by Mohammad Khan (), a member of the Qoyunlu clan of the Turkoman-descended Qajar tribe. The dynasty's effective rule in Iran ended in 1925 when Iran's '' Majlis'', conven ...

. Chelow kabab is served with accompaniments such as butter,

sumac Sumac or sumach ( , )—not to be confused with poison sumac—is any of the roughly 35 species of flowering plants in the genus ''Rhus'' (and related genera) of the cashew and mango tree family, Anacardiaceae. However, it is '' Rhus coriaria ...

powder, basil, onions, and grilled tomatoes. The traditional beverage accompanied with chelow kebab is

doogh Doogh () is a cold and savoury Iranian drink. It is made with fermented milk. Unlike its sister beverage of Turkish origin, ayran, Doogh is not diluted yogurt. According to the Iranian Ministry of Food Standards, Doogh "is a drink resulting fr ...

, an Iranian

yogurt Yogurt (; , from , ; also spelled yoghurt, yogourt or yoghourt) is a food produced by bacterial Fermentation (food), fermentation of milk. Fermentation of sugars in the milk by these bacteria produces lactic acid, which acts on milk protein to ...

-based drink, sometimes made of carbonated water. Persian kebab barbequed in skewers bbq Iran

In the old

bazaar A bazaar or souk is a marketplace consisting of multiple small Market stall, stalls or shops, especially in the Middle East, the Balkans, Central Asia, North Africa and South Asia. They are traditionally located in vaulted or covered streets th ...

tradition, the rice and accompaniments are served first, immediately followed by the kababs, which are threaded on skewers, as well as a piece of flat bread (typically

lavash Lavash (; ) is a thin flatbread usually leavened, traditionally baked in a tandoor (''tonir'' or ''tanoor'') or on a '' sajj'', and common to the cuisines of South Caucasus, West Asia, and the areas surrounding the Caspian Sea. Lavash is one ...

). A skewer is placed directly on the rice and while holding the kabab down on the rice with the bread, the skewer is quickly pulled out.

Varieties

* Barg - barbecued and marinated lamb, chicken or beef kabab dish. The most popular form is filet mignon beef. * Koobideh - is an Iranian minced meat kabab which is made from ground lamb, beef, or chicken, often mixed with parsley and chopped onions. * Jujeh - grilled chunks of chicken, sometimes with bone, sometimes boneless. * Soltani - ''soltānī'', meaning "(a meal) in the style of a sultan." Typically it is combo plate of barg and koobideh plus rice. * Shah abbasi - ''şāh äbbāsī'', meaning "(a meal) in the style of a shah." Typically it is combo plate of barg, koobideh and jujeh plus rice.

References

{{Cuisine of Iran, kebab Iranian cuisine National dishes

Varieties

See also

References