Khoresh-e Aloo Esfenaj – Golden Sour Prune and Spinach Stew
Khoresh-e Aloo Esfenaj is a mouthwatering Persian lamb, golden sour prune and spinach stew, that has a subtle sweet and sour taste.
This dish doesn’t require much prep time, as all of the magic happens in the pot - as with so many Persian stews.
Serve this delicious stew with aromatic Persian Saffron Rice.
Cook the most popular Persian dishes at home with the help of my e-book.
Aloo Bokhara - Golden Sour Prunes
It is important to use aloo bokhara, golden sour prunes. They have a pleasant sour taste, that’s essential for this sweet and sour dish. The very sweet dark prunes, that you can find here in the UK in supermarkets don’t have the same effect.
You can find aloo bokhara or golden sour prunes in Asian, Turkish or Middle Eastern supermarkets or online, for example here in the UK or here in the US. You can see how they look in this picture.
Time
Prep: 15 min
Cook: 1 h 30 min
Total: 1 h 45 min
Ingredients (serving 4)
500ml / 2 cups water
500g / 1.1lbs lamb leg or shoulder
500g / 2 1/4 cups spinach
6 tbsp vegetable oil
10 golden sour prunes (aloo bokhara)
1 large onion
3 cloves garlic
3 tbsp lemon juice
2 tsp turmeric
2 tsp sugar
1 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp salt or to taste
1/4 tsp saffron
3 ice cubes
Method
Bloom the saffron
If you have saffron threads, grind them using a pestle and mortar. Then sprinkle 1/4 tsp of ground saffron over the ice cubes in a glass. Set them aside to melt, preferably in a warm place.
Prep the ingredients
Finely chop the onions and garlic.
Cut the meat into approx. 3cm or just over 1 inch large cubes.
Sear and sauté
Heat about 4 tbsp vegetable oil in a frying pan and sear the meat over high heat from all sides until golden brown. This should take about 15 minutes. If your frying pan is too small to fit all the meat, sear it in two batches. You don’t want it to cook, just to brown on the outside.
Remove the meat from the pan and transfer the onions to the same pan with the same oil in it. Sauté them over medium heat for about 10 minutes. Then add the chopped garlic and sauté both together for a further 3 minutes.
Get the stew cooking
Transfer the meat back to the pan with the onions and garlic, if you have a lid for it. Alternatively, transfer everything to a pot with a lid. Now you can also add the golden sour prunes. Boil 500ml / 2 cups of water in a kettle and add it to the other ingredients. Season the stew with turmeric, black pepper and salt or to taste. Bring the stew to a simmer, then reduce the temperature to something between low and medium. Put the lid on and let it simmer for 1 hour.
Sauté the spinach
Sauté the spinach in 2 tbsp of vegetable oil over medium heat for about 5 minutes until it wilts and its colour darkens.
Add the remaining ingredients
This step is optional but helps season your stew correctly and to preserve the whole prunes: Remove the meat chunks and prunes from the stew. This makes it easier to season the stew and combine all the ingredients, without mashing the now very soft golden sour prunes.
Add the sautéed spinach, together with the lemon juice, sugar and saffron water. You may need to add a little more freshly boiled water now if the stew has become too dry. Combine everything well and return the meat and prunes to the stew, if you removed them before. Let the Aloo Esfenaj simmer for another 20 minutes.
Serve your Khoresh-e Aloo Esfenaj with aromatic Persian rice and fresh herbs, yoghurt, or red onions, if you like. Enjoy!
I’d love to see your Aloo Esfenaj! Feel free to tag me with @igotitfrommymaman on Facebook or Insta so I can take a look and give you a thumbs up!
Want to save this recipe for later? You can pin it to your recipe board.
Looking for more Persian recipes? Here are more of my free written recipes!
Sign up to Maman’s recipe mail for notifications of new recipes on the blog and special offers on my courses.
Thanks for stopping by! Let’s stay in touch via Instagram, Facebook or Pinterest.