There you go! Another Iranian potage (aash – آش) recipe. My version is a bit different from the traditional one but we love the result! This recipe is vegan if you use coconut oil and vegetable broth. You can add some greek yogurt as garnish if you like. I like mine with lots of cracked black pepper and a bit of lemon juice. Hope you enjoy 🙂

Ingredients

1/2 Cup White Basmati Rice
1 Cup Dried Sprouted Mung Beans (you can also use regular mung bean, sprouted is easier to digest and takes less time to cook … If I have time I sprout the mung beans myself for about 2-3 days, in that case there is no need to soak the beans)
1 Large Carrot (grated), Optional
2 Tbsp. Coconut Oil (or Ghee, I used half of each)
2 Bunch Parsley (about 2 Cups Chopped)
2 Bunch Cilantro (about 2 Cups Chopped)
1 Bunch Dill (Chopped)
6 Scallions (Green Parts, Chopped)
1 Garlic Clove (Mashed)
2 Cups Chopped Spinach (I used Frozen)
4 Cups Good Quality Broth (vegetable, chicken or bone; I used half bone broth and half chicken)
4 Cups Filtered Water
3 Tsp. Dried Mint
1 Tsp. Coriander Seed Powder
1 Tsp. Cumin Powder
Thumb Size Piece of Fresh Ginger
Thumb Size Piece of Fresh Turmeric
1-2 Tsp. Salt (depends on how salty the broth is, start with less and you can always taste and add more at the end if needed)
Fresh Black Pepper

Method

1. Soak the rice and mung bean overnight.

2. Wash and drain the mung beans and add to a pot with enough water to cover. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat a bit and cook the mung beans for about half an hour. Note: mung beans take longer to cook than rice, that’s the reason I start cooking them before adding the rice.

3. Add the oil to a large pot and add the grated carrot and saute for a minute or two. Then add the spices and dried mint, and grate the fresh ginger and turmeric and let fry for about a minutes until fragrant.

4. Drain the half-cooked mung beans, wash and drain the rice and add them to the pot with salt and pepper.

5. Add the broth and water and bring to a boil. Now lower the heat and gently simmer the potage for about 1 hours until the rice and mung bean become mushy and fall apart. Make sure to stir the potage from time to time.

6. Add the chopped herbs, spinach, and mashed garlic and cook for another hour over medium heat (simmer gently).

8. Taste and add more salt and pepper if needed.

Enjoy hot!

Serves 3-6 (depending on portion size)