Ash Reshteh (Persian Noodle and Herb soup)

• servings: 6 servings
• active time: 5 minutes
• total time: 1 hour 45 minutes

Ingredients

1 large onion - diced

4 large garlic cloves - diced

1 ½ tablespoons dried mint

1 teaspoon turmeric powder

½ cup dried chickpeas soaked overnight (or 1 cup canned chickpeas)

½ cup dried kidney beans soaked overnight (or 1 cup canned kidney beans)

1 cup dried green lentils

1 bunch (~ 2oz / 60g) fresh parsley

1 bunch (~2oz / 60g) fresh cilantro/coriander

12oz / 340g fresh spinach

4 green onions/scallions

4oz / 120g reshteh noodles (or dried udon noodles / linguine)

½ cup liquid kashk mixture *see notes (or ¾ sour cream or thick Greek yogurt)

4 cups vegetable broth - I've used low sodium

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

½ lemon

Salt and black pepper to taste

Fried crispy onions, fried dried mint, extra dollop kashke or sour cream / thick yogurt

Directions

In a large pot, saute the diced onion with 1 tablespoon of olive oil over a low heatOnce lightly golden brown, add the diced garlic, turmeric, dried mint and the 2nd tablespoon of olive oil. Saute for 3-5 minutes until aromatic and fragrant

Add the vegetable broth and 4 cups of water, season well with salt and pepper and bring to a boil over medium heatIf using dried chickpeas and kidney beans that have been soaked overnight, add these in now. Allow to simmer slowly for 30 minutes (lid on)

After 30 minutes, reduce back to low heat, add the dried lentils and simmer for 15 minutes (lid on)

Whilst the broth is simmering, prepare the fresh herbs. Disregard any coarse stems but finely chop the remaining stems of the parsley, cilantro, green onions and spinach. Roughly chop all of the leaves

Add all of the fresh herbs and spinach and simmer for 30-40 minutes until all the greens are cooked through and wilted (lid on)If using canned chickpeas and kidney beans, add these in now

Break the noodles into 3 even pieces and add them to the broth to cook as per the package instructions. They should be fully cooked through and not al dente*Note if the broth is too thick, you can add 1-2 cups of water if needed. Ensure to taste the broth and legumes to ensure they are cooked and season if needed

Add the kashk, sour cream or Greek yogurt and stir through until the broth is nice and creamy. Add a good squeeze of lemon juice and allow to cook for a few minutes Serve up your delicious Ash Reshteh with an optional garnish of crispy fried onions, fried dried mint oil and dollop of kashk / sour cream or yogurt and enjoy this bowl of Persian comfort food!

Nutrition

• Calories: 395 kcal
• Total Fat: 7 g
• Saturated Fat: 1 g
• Unsaturated Fat: 5 g
• Trans Fat: 0.002 g
• Cholesterol: 1 mg
• Sodium: 319 mg
• Total Carbohydrate: 62 g
• Dietary Fiber: 19 g
• Total Sugars: 8 g
• Protein: 24 g