Lamb Neck, Bulgur + Bean Porridge

Name: Lamb Neck, Bulgur + Bean Porridge (Sholeh-ye Mashhadi)
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 3 h 15 min
Total time: 3 h 30 min
Yield: Serves: 8 to 10
Cuisine: Iranian
Ingredients: 1 cup/180 g bulgur; 1 tablespoon ground ginger; 2 tablespoons lamb-tail fat or ghee; ¼ cup/50 g dried pinto beans; 1 tablespoon ground cardamom; 4 medium onions, peeled and thinly sliced; 1 tablespoon fine sea salt; 2 lb/900 g lamb necks (available at good butchers or Middle Eastern markets); ¼ cup/50 g dried mung beans; ¼ cup/50 g dried white/navy beans; ¼ cup/50 g dried chickpeas; 1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper; 1 tablespoon ground nutmeg; 1 teaspoon turmeric; ½ cup/100 g rice, soaked for 30 minutes and drained

Sholeh-ye Mashhadi

Preparation info

Serves:
8 to 10

Difficulty
Complex
Ready in
3 hr 30

Appears in

Cooking in Iran

By Najmieh Batmanglij

Published 2020

About

A specialty of Mashhad and a favorite in the region, sholeh falls somewhere between a porridge and a thick soup. This unique-tasting brothy, meaty dish is full of umami flavor. And although it takes a long time to cook, it’s well worth the effort. I adapted this recipe from one by Sedigheh Shams, given to me by her daughter Fatemeh, one of Iran’s wonderful contemporary poets.

Ingredients

Asia
Iran
Mashhad
Main course

Ingredients

Method