Persian recipes to celebrate Nowruz at home

8 Recipes

Kuku from Wholesome Choice Market, 18040 Culver Dr, Irvine.

Here are eight delicious dishes to cook for Nowruz, the Iranian new year.

By Genevieve Ko

March 18, 2020

The dish sabzi polow ba mahi features fried and smoked white fish with crispy rice layered with herbs.

Rice with herbs, pan-fried white fish and smoked white fish (sabzi polow ba mahi)

2 hours

Serves 6 to 8

A dish of Rice with toasted noodles and lamb or Reshteh Polow.

Rice with toasted noodles (reshteh polow) served with lamb

4 hours 30 minutes

Serves 6 to 8

Fresh Herbs Kuku aka Kuku-ye-sabzi, cooked by Chef Tony Esnault, of Spring, his wife Yassmin Sarmadi and mother-in-law Shamsi Katebi for Nowruz.

Fresh herb kuku (kuku-ye-sabzi)

1 hour

Serves 6 to 8

These three recipes, from chef Tony Esnault and his mother Shamsi Katebi, form one impressive meal. They’re each great on their own too.

kuku sabzi (Persian greens frittata)

1 hour 20 minutes

Serves 6 to 10

Kismet's kuku

1 hour 30 minutes

Serves 12 to 16

Deconstructed kuku sabzi

1 hour 20 minutes

Serves 2 to 4

Three more versions of kuku-ye-sabzi reveal the versatility of this combination of greens and eggs.

Refreshing and light. Recipe: Persian-style herb and cheese platter

Persian-style herb and cheese platter

30 minutes

Serves 6 to 8

Tartines à la Perse: halvah on toast with herbs.

Tartines a la perse (Persian toasts)

30 minutes

Makes 4 large tartines, 4 to 8 servings

A plate of cheese and herbs is essential to any Persian meal. Here are two different ways to present it.

Genevieve Ko is the former cooking editor for the Los Angeles Times. She is a cookbook author and has been a food writer, editor and recipe developer for national food media outlets. Ko graduated from Yale after a childhood in Monterey Park.

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