Reshteh

reshteh a Persian word meaning thread or string, sometimes referring to a very fine noodle like ‘angel’s hair’ but more often to a Middle Eastern fresh egg noodle of ribbon shape, often home made and hand cut.

Reshteh, as Perry (1982) points out, was ‘the only word for noodle known in the several 13th century Arabic cookery books and in the poems of the 14th century Persian rhymester Bushaq’. And it has indeed become the general Persian name for noodles.

Claudia Roden (1985), writing about the present role of reshteh in the Middle East, remarks that, ‘like rice, it has escaped the stigma of being a filling dish for the poor’. Indeed, although a common dish of the Arab world, it is considered suitable for special occasions. By standard practice the reshteh is broken up and fried brown, but nowadays it may be browned under the grill and added to rice.