Sour cherry pilaf

While most children feast on candies and other sweets as snacks, in Iran, what drives kids crazy with an almost manic delight is the sourest treat you can find. Think very tart fruit leathers made mostly of plums, but also barberries, pomegranates or tamarind. Or dried and salted sour cherries, crisp and sour greengage plums in spring (sometimes sprinkled with salt), qareh qurut or black kashk, a by-product of yoghurt (usually a hard paste with the most exquisitely sour flavou