203 Persian Experience

The most eye and mouth opening experience this time I back to Vancouver, must be the Persian meal I had with some new friends in North Vancouver...

Persian food market and fast food restaurant all in one, on Longsdale Ave, North Vancouver.

The pastry section, having traditional Persian and general Western sweets side by side.

This is fast food counter. My friend told me that the signed written 'hot bread and meat', which is a common signage you'll find in Persian eateries.

A kind of slow stew, the most interesting thing is the little pea alike thing sprinkled on top. They are actually baby grapes.

Persian cook rice very differently from what we Chinese do, it's less starchy, not at all sticky, but just as delicious.

Lamb shank braised slowly in a tomato base sauce, with two kinds of rice. The shank is fork tender.

A paste or dip like condiment made with grilled eggplant, and goat milk on top. This is my friend's favourite dish.

This is like a Persian quiche, baked egg with various leaf vegetables.

This is my favourite dish of the whole meal, it's a kind of stew with tomato base sauce and beef. The beef is slow cooked to perfection, the sauce has a very strong characteristic by itself, with a hint of preserved lemon flavour, similar to those from Chaozhou cuisine or Vietnam cuisine. Cleverly top with potato fries.

Kabob, or kebab as more commonly transliterated, is native to Persian cuisine as well as many other Middle Eastern cuisines. Kabob is so common that Persians are said to have the ability to differentiate real charcoal grilled ones from gas grilled ones with a bite. That's nothing surprising indeed, just like many Chinese can tell if the chicken is frozen or fresh from one bite. The Kabob made here is very authentic, according to my friend.

2 kinds of kabob with saffron rice: saffron chicken and beef lamb mix, both are juicy and delicious. The whole tomato kabob on the side is not to be missed too.

This is another condiment like sauce, made with various leaf vegetables, and flavour with lemon. tart and tangy. It's said to be an acquired taste, but I found it pleasant and welcoming.

Very good Persian flat bread, freshly made in the house.

This Persian version of rice crisp is very popular, people ask for them. They're not as crisp as Chinese ones, but more filling and could just be treated as staple food rather than fun food.

Pomegranate juice is something you could drink with a Persian meal.

I think 99% Chinese people can't eat these traditional Persian sweets at all. It's saturated sugar. As a super sweet tooth, I'm ok with it of course, and also delighted to suspect that they're made with rose water so the flavour is nice, and the swirl one actually resembles Chinese dessert 蜜糖馬仔 Sachima in texture. Tastes good!