Persian Noodle Soup (Ash Reshteh)

Persian Noodle Soup: otherwise known as Ash Reshteh, Ashe Reshteh or THE BEST SOUP ON THIS PLANET! No, I’m not even kidding, it really is incredibly delicious – soul nourishing, herbalicious, beanariffic and vegetarian too! Ash Reshteh can be modified to be vegan, if so desired.

How good is it? Well, remember that episode of Seinfield – the one with the Soup Nazi? Of course you do. Remember the curmudgeon Chef who yelled at his clientele and if he didn’t like the looks of you or if you didn’t follow instructions you were sent away after waiting hours in line, without soup? Well, that character was based on a very real Chef in Manhattan who happens to be Persian. And guess what folks, urban legend has it that Ash Reshteh is the soup that put him ((Chef Ali Yeganeh) on the map and the soup that his customers felt was worth the wait and the abuse!

Chef Yeganeh might have popularized Persian Noodle Soup in Manhattan but he didn’t create the recipe. This soup has history and its roots can be traced back to 500AD. Ash Reshteh is associated with Spring and Nowruz (Persian New Years) and specifically Charshanbe Suri, also known as the Festival of Fire, where this soup is made to share with family and friends. The ‘reshteh’ or noodles, symbolize good fortune and luck. The bright green herbs braised in this soup symbolize Spring! You do not have to wait until the Spring Equinox to enjoy this soup though, it can and should be eaten often.

So, why is this soup so good one might ask? For me, it’s about the layering of flavors – the rich caramelized onions with turmeric, the braised bright green herbs, the combination of hearty lentils and beans, the tantric toppings of kashk (fermented whey) and turmeric fried onions with cool dried mint oil. Persian food often uses braised herbs in quantity (think ghormeh sabzi) and most dishes have a wonderful sour flavor profile. If kashk is not available, you can substitute yogurt – but don’t leave this sour element out because there is a holy trifecta going on here between soup base, kashk, and cool mint fried turmeric onions.

I have my own little story about Ash Reshteh. When I was Exec. Chef for Faz and his six Persian inspired Mediterranean restaurants we had a restaurant in Pleasanton with many traditional Persian dishes on the menu. The business clientele was not Iranian for the most part but, they really loved all the khoreshts (stews), the braised meats and of course, the foot long kabobs. I asked the Chef de Cuisine at this location to add Ash Reshteh to the menu because soup & salad was a popular request. He reluctantly agreed because all the choppy-chop that goes into this soup is time consuming. It’s an easy soup, don’t get me wrong, but the ingredient list is long. Guess what, it sold out within the first half hour. Ash Reshteh was permanently added to the menu after that and it sold out every single day. True story!

So don’t take it from me, don’t take it from Chef Ali and all of Manhattan, don’t take it from 3000 years of Persian tradition – try it for yourself and then tell me: IS THIS THE BEST SOUP ON EARTH OR WHAT!?!?!

Cooking Notes: I use a canned bean combo in this recipe and I don’t use dry beans in order to save time, to preserve flavor overall, and also because my family is stomach sensitive! I do use dry lentils. I like kashk, but I often sub yogurt if I don’t have time to hit up the Middle Eastern Market. If you can’t find ‘reshteh’ noodles, which are long flat wheat noodles, you can sub linguine. In these pictures I am using real reshteh, I find that they do hold up a little better than linguine but taste wise they are similar. Lastly, I use a few tablespoons of dry fenugreek in place of fresh, because I can never find fresh – don’t add too much or your soup will have a slightly bitter taste, but don’t leave it out either.

Ingredients

• Olive oil
• 2 large onions Walla Walla onions or yellow onion, sliced 1/4-inch thick on a mandolin
• 4 cloves garlic, shaved or minced
• 1 teaspoon turmeric
• 3 tablespoons dried mint
• 3/4 cup navy canned beans
• 1 cup canned chickpeas
• 3/4 cup canned kidney beans
• 1/2 cup puy lentils
• 8 cups water, vegetable stock, chicken stock or beef stock (plus extra)
• 1 bunch green onions, chopped
• 1 large bunch spinach, washed and chopped
• 1 bunches cilantro, chopped
• 2 bunches Italian flat leaf parsley, chopped
• 2 bunches dill chopped
• 1 fat large leek, washed well and chopped
• 2 tablespoons dried fenugreek
• Reshteh or linguini noodles
• 1/2 cup kashk, sour cream or yogurt for garnish

In the largest pot you have heat 5 tablespoons of olive oil over medium high heat. Add the onions and spread to cover the bottom of the pot. Season onions overtop with a few three-finger pinches of sea salt. Cook without stirring until the onions start to brown, about 4 minutes, then stir and spread again and brown without stirring (similar technique to making French onion soup) – cook until all onions are a rich brown color, about 15-20 minutes, it takes a little time to brown all of the onions.

Turn heat down to low and stir in the turmeric (do not burn turmeric or you will regret it!). Remove one quarter of the onion-turmeric mixture to a bowl, add 3 tablespoons of olive oil and 3 tablespoons dry mint, stir to combine. Cover and reserve, this is one of the garnishes.

Add a few more tablespoons of olive oil to the pot of onions and turn the heat back up to medium high. Add the chopped leeks and garlic and stir to soften (but not to brown), about 4 minutes.

Add the stock to the soup and turn heat back up to medium high. When the soup is simmering add all the beans and lentils. Cook for 10 minutes then add all of the greens. Stir and let slowly simmer for 30 minutes or until the soup is soft. If needed add more stock. The soup should be thick, so don't thin too much! Taste soup and add more salt to taste.

Add a handful of the reshteh noodles and continue to simmer until al dente, about 10 minutes more.

Serve soup in bowls, drizzle kashk over top and drape mint-tumeric-fried onions all around. Enjoy!

 

• Ladle the Persian noodle soup into bowls and top with dollops of kashk or sour cream and the onion-mint oil mixture.
• You may serve some additional lemon slices/vinegar/kashk or sour cream on the side.