MARKETS : A Gateway to the Pilafs and Pitas of Armenia

Tarzana Armenian Grocery, 22776 Ventura Blvd., Woodland Hills , (818) 703-7836. Open 7 a.m.-9 p.m. Monday-Wednesday, 7 a.m.-10 p.m. Thursday-Saturday. Also at 18598 Ventura Blvd., Tarzana , (818) 881-6278. Open 9 a.m.-8 p.m. Monday-Saturday .

From the moment the valet takes your car, the new Tarzana Armenian Grocery shatters all notions of a little Armenian grocery where you’d stop for some stuffed grape leaves and tabbouleh salad. Where you enter is just the second level of a three-story, white-tiled combination grocery, deli and restaurant.

Extending the entire length of one wall, a long mahogany cappuccino bar provides most of the mid-level seating. At the back of the room, stairs lead down to a boutique-like Armenian grocery surfaced with more white tile, pure nouveau-California. From the overhanging third-floor gallery, laughter and conversation float out over the bright, airy room. Up there, at tables draped in white linen, customers feast on Armenian appetizers.

This newly opened Woodland Hills store is the second branch of the Chelebian family’s Tarzana Armenian Grocery. Their first venture, a modest market, is a few miles east on Ventura Boulevard in Tarzana, where it moved seven years ago from its original location on Clark Street.

Viken Chelebian, chef at the new place, remembers how all five Chelebian kids, now partners in the business, grew up in their mother’s tiny shop. “After school,” he says, “we stocked the shelves, helped wash and marinate the olives, made sandwiches and shelled fresh walnuts. The business was so small most distributors wouldn’t deliver merchandise. We all piled into the family’s old station wagon and drove to Fresno and Los Banos to pick up basturma, sujuk and cracked wheat. And we bought our baby eggplants from a Japanese farmer.”

Mother Rose made her own braided string cheese, tiny whole pickled eggplants and the turnip pickle she still prepares today. Those hard-to-find items, which Armenians cherish, attracted her first customers. She also dispensed recipes and instructed shoppers on the use of filo dough or how to fill their boereg pastries, a service her daughters Sona and Zepure often perform today at the Tarzana store.

Like most Armenian cooking, Tarzana Armenian Grocery’s menu reflects elements from Armenia’s sundry Middle Eastern and Russian conquerors and the various lands in which Armenians have taken up residence in their diaspora. In the Chelebians’ case, there is a Syrian accent. The pilafs, pitas and kebabs may each have a regional personality, but they are basic to every Armenian kitchen.

You’ll find the sort of foodstuffs here that Armenian cooks have bargained for in ancient Near Eastern markets. But these days, when you come to stock up, there’ll be a valet to park your car.

SHOPPING LIST:

The Tarzana store has a slightly wider selection of groceries than the Woodland Hills branch. It also has a few of the cuisine’s more esoteric ingredients such as frozen quail.

PREPARED FOODS:

Mezzeh , the selection of little tastes that begin any Armenian or Middle Eastern meal, can be a few olives and pickles with cheese or an elaborate spread, as in the yarn of a Lebanese cafe owner who bet he could set a table with 200 mezzeh in an afternoon. Because his butcher ran out of lamb, the poor fellow could come up with only 178 items and lost his bet. Here is a selection from the Tarzana Armenian Grocery that would do any mezzeh table proud.

* Keufta: A football-shaped, deep-fried meatball; the outer covering of bulgur wheat ground with lamb is stuffed with more lamb spiked with pine nuts. This is one of the best versions I’ve tried.

* Lahmajun: A sort of miniature pizza, its exceptionally thin crust is scattered with minced beef, Aleppo pepper (see ingredients), herbs and garlic. Warm it in a preheated 400-degree oven for just a few minutes. Look for lahmajun in the store’s freezer.

* Cheese boereg: The name is given to two different items at this store. One is a pan-sized pie of flaky filo dough with a soft cheese filling, cut in diamond-shaped baklava- style segments like the Greek cheese pie tiropita . This one is homemade and must be ordered a day in advance. The commercially made cheese boeregs in the freezer are the traditional triangular Near Eastern turnovers of filo with cheese filling.

* Spinach boereg: Unlike the cheese boeregs , these little turnovers have a pie crust-like covering. The filling is spinach and cheese.

* Sarma: Mrs. Chelebian’s stuffed grape leaves start with the delicate baby vine leaves packed especially for the store. Her rice filling includes a touch of tomato sauce that gives the meatless sarma a “meaty” flavor.

* Hummus: The familiar bread dip of pureed garbanzo beans, sesame paste ( tahineh ), garlic and lemon juice.

* Baba ghannouj: “We grill the eggplant for this and our eggplant salads in the morning,” chef Viken says, “when the grill is completely clean and we can turn it up real high to get that smokey flavor. You can taste the difference.” The eggplant is then mashed with the same garlic and tahineh flavoring as hummus.

* Ikra: A finely chopped salad, almost like a relish of roasted eggplant, tomato, garlic, fresh coriander leaves and Aleppo pepper.

* Simpoog aghtsan: Another roasted eggplant salad, this time with tomato chunks and a fresh lemon juice, olive oil and garlic dressing.

* Grilled eggplant: Thinly sliced, dry-grilled, then drizzled with extra virgin olive oil and sprinkled with parsley.

* Lentil pilaf: Nutty cracked wheat cooked and mixed with green lentils and onions, sauteed to a turn in olive oil.

* Basturma: Lean, dry-cured beef rubbed with a paste of hot pepper, garlic, fenugreek and salt, hung to cure until it has the same texture as prosciutto ham. Served sliced very thin.

* Sujuk: Also known as yershig, this most popular of Armenian sausages is almost as dry as salami. Its flavor and texture are similar to a spicy pepperoni. Sujuk is especially delicious with scrambled eggs and tomatoes.

* Maaneh: A dense beef sausage with a pronounced flavoring of garlic and allspice. Slice and saute it or mix with rice or bulgur pilaf for vegetable stuffings (available at the Woodland Hills store only).

* Pickled baby eggplant: Cured in a vinegar brine and colored with beet juice. Both stores carry these in jars in the market section.

* Turnip torshi: All pickles are called torshi, but turnip pickles are particularly popular. Mrs. Chelebian makes her own for the market. Their pink coloring comes from beet juice.

* Roasted chick peas: It’s surprising how nut-like this bean can taste when it’s roasted. Comes salted or unsalted.

* Roasted melon seeds: These roasted seeds in their shells are also eaten like nuts.

* Olives: The market stocks six kinds of olives and marinates them at the store. These include Moroccan oil-cured olives and several kinds from Greece: purple Kalamatas; meaty, lemony-tasting green Agrinons; and the small, crisp green Navplions.

MEZZEH CHEESES:

* Lebna: A smooth, rather sour cream cheese made by straining the whey from yogurt. As mezzeh it is drizzled with virgin olive oil and sometimes sprinkled with a little Aleppo pepper and fresh herbs or parsley.

* Feta: Each of the market’s feta cheeses has a slightly different character. The French is the lowest in fat and salt, and drier than the softer, creamier Bulgarian style. Greek feta is mild. Occasionally there is Israeli feta as well.

* Kasseri: This sheep’s milk cheese also has pronounced regional differences. The Greek version is the creamiest and heaviest; the Hungarian style is milder, and the Romanian version is sharp and smooth.

* Kashkaval: Can run from a sweet, delicate table cheese like the domestic variety to the semi-hard Bulgarian style made from sheep’s milk. The market also carries Hungarian and Bulgarian kashkaval.

* Haloumi: A soft whole ewe’s milk cheese from Israel, similar to mozzarella; it’s enjoyed for breakfast throughout the Middle East.

PASTRIES:

Esther, one of the Chelebian sisters, bakes pastries for both stores. They’re not all strictly Armenian. Some days you might find nut-filled meringue cookies, tiramisu or individual cheese cakes topped with fresh fruit. I like to eat her Armenian nazouk, a buttery shortbread, at the Tarzana store where you can seat yourself at one of the sunny window tables with a good double espresso. Her other Armenian specialties are:

* Khroubia: Wide butter cookies, with almonds and a snowy coat of powdered sugar, that literally melt in your mouth.

* Kadaif: Similar to baklava but made with a shredded wheat-like pastry. Esther makes a buttery cup-like nest of the dough with the traditional chopped nut filling.

* Bourma: Nut-filled kadaif in the form of a little log.

* Baklava: Made fresh every day, this is the way baklava was meant to be: high layers of light and tender filo filled with nuts. It’s not soggy with syrup, as some baklavas are.

* Lokum: Sometimes called Turkish delight, lokum conjures up visions of 1001 Nights. The cornstarch base is infused with orange flower water, mastic or other flavorings, and its center is stuffed with sweetened nuts.

SHELF STAPLES:

* Bulgur wheat: In Syria, wheat and lentils became the Chelebians’ winter staples when fresh vegetables and meat were unavailable. Bulgur (steamed, dried and crushed wheat) is the backbone of Middle Eastern cooking, and the deli’s wheat and lentil pilaf offers a delicious example of its use. Bulgur comes in four grades. The smallest (1) merely needs to be soaked for salads such as tabbouleh. Numbers 2 to 4 need to be cooked and are used in various pilaf-style dishes and stuffings.

* Dried eggplant: Drying was once merely a preservation method, but today dried eggplant and okra are valued as delicacies in their own right. Armenians steam the eggplants and stuff them with rice and meat. The okra makes hearty soups and stews.

* Grape leaves: The grocery carries several brands of grape leaves packed in brine. Their private-label pack includes only the smaller, more tender leaves; these are picked lower on the vine, as you can see by their lighter color.

* Mizithra cheese: Strong and pungent like Italian Romano, this dry cheese is preferred for cooking.

* Kefalotiri cheese: Another hard grating cheese with a fine nutty flavor. Like Parmesan, it is used to add punch to sauces, pastas and casserole toppings.

* Molukhia: Another vegetable dried in winter or eaten fresh in season. Somewhat like spinach, it is sold here both frozen and dried. Among its many uses are soups and a lasagna-like casserole with layers of rice, meat, diced onion in vinegar and a topping of crushed lavash, the dried cracker bread.

* Fava beans: A staple all over the Middle East, these show up in stews, cold salads, omelets and falafel. They are even eaten for breakfast boiled with onions and seasonings. Fava beans come frozen, canned and dried.

SPICES:

* Aleppo pepper: A medium-hot pepper used extensively in Syrian cooking (and, therefore, the Chelebians’ foods); in both stores it comes in a paste or relish simply labeled “hot pepper sauce.” In the Tarzana store, you will also find it dry and ground in the bulk spice section. * Sumac: This tart, fruity seasoning made from dried, crushed sumac berries is a staple in all Middle Eastern cooking. It eliminates the gamy flavor from lamb and is therefore popular as a marinade ingredient.

* Hawaij: A spice mixture somewhat like the Indian garam masala, based on cumin and garlic; often used in Israeli chicken soup and stewed meats.

* Zaatar: Also known as Greek oregano, it seasons just about every kind of dish. One delicious use is to brush bread dough with olive oil, then sprinkle it with zaatar before baking for a fragrant herb bread.

* Dried whole ginger: Use it grated for a flavor almost like fresh ginger but with more pungency. Sona uses it in her favorite caramelized apple upside-down tart.

* Mahleb: The inside of a sour cherry pit is ground on the spot to retain its elusive aroma. Like fresh cardamom, which the store also carries, it adds a heady, sweet perfume to breads and coffee cakes.

* Candy-coated anise seeds: Sprinkle over sweet breads, pastries or puddings.

* Mastic: This fruity, exotic spice comes in tiny glass tubes and looks like little pieces of rock sugar. Crush it for making Middle Eastern ice cream, homemade halva or pudding.

* Spanish saffron: A little vial of Iranian saffron, the classic saffron of the Near East, would cost about $50, Sona says. This $3 Spanish variety is a good substitute.

* Rose water and orange flower water: They give Middle Eastern desserts such as baklava their characteristic flavor. Use a tiny bit to flavor a syrup made by boiling 2 cups of water with 3 cups of sugar.

OTHER SPECIALTIES:

* Filo dough: In the cooler case, look for two styles of filo that come in fresh. The Long Beach white-label brand is thicker and better suited for wrapping boereg and other pastries with soft fillings. For strudel and tray pastries such as baklava , choose the thinner-leafed Omega brand, which rises high and light.

* Kadaif dough: This is the pastry dough that looks like shredded wheat. It comes frozen and ready to fill with nut mixtures, dried fruit or rolled-around chopped pistachios to bake into bourma.

* All-butter puff pastry: Ready to roll out for your favorite tarts, Napoleons or crescents.

* New walnuts in syrup: Picked before a shell forms and steeped in syrup, these preserved green walnuts are traditionally served one at a time on a tiny plate to eat with tea or coffee.

* Ground dates: Especially good for stuffing cookies such as three-cornered Hamentaschen or in strudel, which can easily be made with filo dough.

* Monukka raisins: Armenian cooks use these enormous moist raisins in meat dishes and pilafs as well as desserts.

THE MENUS:

The Woodland Hills branch serves full meals including breakfast or deli items throughout the day. Try bastourma with scrambled eggs or a true Middle Eastern breakfast of cheese, olives, sliced tomatoes and pita bread with your cappuccino. At dinner there is an array of kebabs, salads and often stuffed vegetables on the daily special. Managers Steve and Viken keep a good selection of California wines and vintage ports.

The Tarzana branch offers pita bread sandwiches rolled around their fillings like a burrito. The Veggie Delight with avocado, tomato and string cheese is the one that made the grocery famous, say the Chelebians. The menu also lists a selection of mezzeh. And don’t forget Esther’s pastries.

All the ingredients for this Sweet Armenian Pilaf are available at the Tarzana store.

SWEET ARMENIAN PILAF

1 1/3 cups long grain rice

3 tablespoons rose water

1/2 teaspoon saffron threads

1/4 teaspoon sumac

4 cardamom pods, cracked

2 cups water

2 teaspoons salt

3 tablespoons honey

1/4 cup unsalted butter

Rinse rice under cold running water and drain. Pour rose water into cup and add saffron, sumac and cardamom pods.

Bring water and salt to boil in medium saucepan. Add rice and simmer 12 minutes. Drain well.

Return rice to saucepan and blend in honey. Melt butter in another saucepan, add rice, cover and cook over low heat 15 minutes. Add rose water mixture, cover pan and continue cooking 10 to 15 minutes until rice is tender. Allow to stand 10 minutes before serving. Makes 6 servings.

Note: Clean saucepan is necessary after initial cooking period to prevent rice from sticking.