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by Sabrina Ghayour from Persiana (Mitchell Beazley)Ìý

Persian spices are aromatic & flavoursome, never harsh or abrasive.Ìý Spicing is used in a subtle way & this spice-perfumed lamb is made with my special blend of some of the most commonly used spices, fused with more unique ingredients such as rose petals & lime powder.Ìý This particular spice blend works very well with the fatty nature of the shoulder cut of lamb.

Serves 8

Prep time 15 mins

Cooking time 4hrs

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Ingredients

2.5kg (5lb 8oz) shoulder of lamb

2 heaped tbsp sumac

4 tbsp dried edible rose petals

1 tbsp ground cumin

½ tbsp ground cinnamon

½ tbsp dried lime powder (or add 1 extra tbsp sumac)

vegetable oil

2 tsp sea salt flakes

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Method

1.ÌýÌý Preheat the oven to 160C/fan 140C/gas mark 3.

2.ÌýÌý Place the lamb shoulder in a roasting tin lined with non-stick baking paper.

3.ÌýÌý Put the sumac, rose petals, cumin, cinnamon & lime powder into a spice grinder or small food processor & process until the rose petals are ground as finely as you can manage.

4.ÌýÌý Drizzle a little oil on to the lamb & rub it all over the joint to create a surface for your spice mix to stick to, then season generously with the sea salt.

5.ÌýÌý Roast in the oven for 4hrs, then remove the lamb, cover with kitchen foil & leave it to rest for 10 mins before serving.

6.ÌýÌý To serve, you can literally take a fork & gently pull the lamb apart or be all fancy & rather unnecessarily use a knife to slice it.Ìý Serve with a green salad, potatoes or rice.

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ÌýYoghurt with Cucumber, Garlic & Dill (Cacik)

Pronounced ‘ja-jik’, this yoghurt dish is a staple when ordering grilled meat in any Turkish restaurant.Ìý Much like the Greek tzatziki, the addition of garlic sets it apart from India’s raita & Iran’s maast o khiar, but the dill is authentic to Turkey alone.Ìý Traditionally made with thick & creamy strained Turkish yoghurt, I would suggest you find good quality yoghurt to ensure the best results, although no matter what you use, it will be the perfect pairing to rich grilled meat dishes.

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Serves 4 as part of a mezze

Ingredients

1 large cucumber, coarsely grated or finely diced

500ml (18fl oz) Greek yoghurt

1 fat garlic clove, crushed

1 x 20g packet of dill, stalks & leaves finely chopped

sea salt & freshly ground black pepper

extra virgin olive oil, for drizzling

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Method

1.ÌýÌý Carefully squeeze out & discard the excess water from the grated cucumber – you can do this by hand or in a sieve.

2.ÌýÌý Place the cucumber in a mixing bowl & mix in the yoghurt.

3.ÌýÌý Add the garlic & dill, mix well & season to taste with sea salt & black pepper.Ìý

4.ÌýÌý Serve with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil.

Turmeric & Cumin Roasted Potatoes

Potatoes aren’t very common in Middle Eastern dishes, & when they are used we don't usually serve them as a side dish as it is generally done in the West.Ìý I created this dish for guests using a heavy-handed amount of spicing that surprisingly worked really well.Ìý It is a fantastic accompaniment to grilled meat, poultry & fish, as the potatoes can really hold a lot more spicing than even I had initially given them credit for.Ìý Use the leftovers to make a potato salad the next day, or fry them with eggs to make an Eastern-style tortilla.

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Serves 4-6 as a side dish

Ingredients

750g (1lb 10oz) baby new potatoes, scrubbed

4 tbsp olive oil

2 heaped tsp turmeric

3 heaped tsp ground cumin

1 tsp cayenne pepper

3 tsp sea salt flakes

freshly ground black pepper

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Method

1.ÌýÌý Preheat the oven to 200C/fan 180C/gas mark 6.

2.ÌýÌý Line a large baking tray with non-stick baking paper.

3.ÌýÌý Halve the potatoes.Ìý If you are using a larger variety of potato, cut them into rough 2cm (¾ in) cubes.Ìý Ensure all the pieces are roughly the same size (there’s no need to be too obsessive about this) so that they cook evenly.

4.ÌýÌý Place the potatoes onto the prepared baking tray & drizzle the olive oil over them.Ìý Sprinkle over the turmeric, cumin, cayenne pepper, sea salt & a generous amount of black pepper &, using your hands, mix everything together, ensuring the potatoes are evenly coated in the oil & spice mix.Ìý Spread out the potatoes in a single layer so that they roast properly then roast for 45 mins, or until they are nicely golden brown.Ìý Keep in mind that the spice blend will have coloured the potatoes, so once don, they may be a deeper brown than you are expecting.

5.ÌýÌý Serve with meat or chicken, or crumble over a little feta & some fresh herbs of your choice to make this dish a meal in itself.

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