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There is a Precious Boy in Finland, a 7 year old who has found room in my heart. He loves mechanical robots and wants to be a policeman when he grows up. About a week ago, this Precious One lost his two front teeth. He looks so funny and proudly goes about, showing his gap to everyone. His current favorite foods are apple stew and blueberry cake. He also loved pears braised in caramel sauce. You guessed it! This Precious One loves fruits and sweet dishes. To accommodate the fact that he is missing two front teeth, I thought of this soft fruit stew.
Do you know the Japanese folklore about Momotarō (Peach Boy)?
I have made peach stew both with fresh peaches and canned/compote peaches. I found either to be good. In the San Francisco Bay Area, the only month we get ‘great’ peaches is August. Stores carry peaches months before and after this summer month, but they are not as large or tasty as ones stocked in August. Good brands of canned peaches are high-quality, skinned, cored and ready to use.
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Peach Stew • Khoresh’e Hulu • خورش هلو
Recipe by: Fae’s Twist & Tango (fae-magazine.com)
INGREDIENTS
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 680 g/ 1.5 lb stew beef (veal, lamb or chicken) cut in 5 cm/ 2” cubes
• vegetable oil
• 1 cup hot water
• 1 bay-leaf
• 5 firm, unripe peaches -or- two 425 g/ 15 oz canned peaches
• 10 pieces pitted, dried plums –or- 2~4 Tbsp granulated sugar, to taste
• 1 tsp tomato paste (no more)
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/16 tsp ground black pepper
• 1/8 tsp turmeric powder
• 1/16 tsp cinnamon powder
• 2~3 Tbsp lime juice to taste
• smidgen – 1/32 tsp ground saffron, dissolved in 1 Tbsp hot water
DIRECTIONS
◊ In a non-stick medium sauce pan, pour 2 Tbs oil and on high heat, as soon as oil is hot, add chopped onions and stirring constantly, sauté until edges start turning brown. Scoop out to a dish and set aside. Add cut meat one by one and sear all sides until slightly browned. Add sautéed onion, boiling water and bay-leaf. Lower heat to medium-low and simmer for 1~1½ hour, until meat is done, but not over-cooked.
◊ If using fresh peaches: Wash peaches well to remove fuzz. Cut in half and remove pit. Brown cut sides in 1 Tbsp oil and set aside. If using canned peaches, drain peaches but retain juice to use later.
◊ Position rack in middle of oven and preheat to 175°C / 350°F.
◊ In small bowl, mix together, tomato paste, salt, pepper, turmeric, cinnamon, lime juice, saffron and ½ cup juice from the cans.
◊ In an oven-safe dish, place 10 half-peaches cut side down, around edges. Put plums in between (plums add sweetness, thickness and a bit of darker color to the sauce). Empty cooked meat in the center. Pour seasoning mixture over meat. Liquid from meat and seasoning should equal no more than one cup of liquid in the dish. If not enough, add more peach juice from the cans. Note that peaches will sweat and add liquid to the dish.
◊ Tightly cover dish with foil, place in oven and bake for 45 minutes. You may serve in the baked dish. Here, garnished it with fried red onion cut into rings.
◊ Vegan Option: This dish may be made vegetarian/vegan by skipping meat and using vegetable bouillon.
◊ Stew / khoresht is almost always served wit h Persian rice / polo.
~ Noushe jan • نوش جان ~
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A few important points in making an outstanding Persian khoresh:
♦ Don’t skimp on oil… use as much as needed for frying/sautéing. Boiling oil also cooks and adds flavor. It can be skimmed off before serving.
♦ Brown/sear onion and meat very well.
♦ Adding 1/16 ~ 1/8 tsp of ground saffron, dissolved in 1 Tbsp hot water, will substantially add to taste.
♦ Don’t use too much water for cooking, just enough to steam and condense. –Simmer on low heat for a long time. This helps flavor fusion of ingredients.
♦ Best if stew is made a day in advance and refrigerated for taste to meld.
♦ Almost all stews can be frozen. Exception: If stew includes potato(es), potato pieces to be removed before freezing.
♦ There are red [1] stews (using tomato paste) and green [1] stews (using herbs). Garnishing red stews sparingly with caramelized onion before serving not only further enhances taste but visually enhances the dish.
[1] Slang: ‘red’ and ‘green’ are used to specify types of stews or mixed rices, using tomato paste vs. herbs respectively. This concept also helps host/hostess plan an event menu and serve a balance of reds and greens.
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So, what’s cooking in your kitchen?
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I have never heard of peach stew, but it looks so delicious I would want to taste it anytime I have an opportunity to. Thanks for sharing this delicious stew. I have bookmarked it!
Fae, have you heard of the cookbook Food of Life? I just bought it and it’s an encyclopedia of Iranian/Persian folklore and food. I cannot wait to cook from it!
Yes, check out my post on Favorite Cookbooks. Please let me know if you have any questions when you start cooking from its recipes! Happy Persian cooking! 😀 )))
I am very fond of fruit with meat and this recipe sounds and looks perfect.
Love the story. Very cute! I am saving this recipe. My dad’s peach tree also has great fruit only around August so I am excited to make this recipe when the time rolls around. But I think I would like to try it sooner if I find some good canned ones. 😀
A peach tree at home, how lovely… canned peaches are just fine!
Just had to come by to let you know that incidentally, we had just borrowed the “Japanese Children’s Favorite Stories” from our local library and I read Momotaro to Precious Boy when this post came out! We have been going through this wonderful classic published by Tuttle and illustrated by Yoshisuke Kurosaki and we love it so much we’ll be ordering our own copy! Such lovely, lovely tales full of little lessons to be learnt. I was thinking of you as I read them to Deshan after school. Thinking of you with love and warm thoughts, Sharon & Peach Boy
Peach stew sounds so delicious! It looks great!
Wow Fae!!! This is a first for me. Never thought about a peach-stew combination. It is so intriguing! Lovely presentation.
I love that tale of Momotaro! I have to read it with my youngest, Emma. And I especially LOVE that stew of yours! Wow Fae! Looks soooo delicious!! And beautiful!
Thank you Lidia! The stew will be a hit at your home.
I looked for the animation on Yutube for Emma…
There are fine HD clear Japanese versions, but this is the best English version I found:
Oh my goodness Fae!!!
I just saw this post and it’s dedicated to Precious Boy! How totally sweet is that! 😀 I will have to tell him about this. What an incredible surprise! I will be sure to make this for him. It looks divine. I foresee lots of dancing going on!! I will always keep this recipe and most importantly the story behind it. Thank you so much. With love from Finland, Sharon & Jedi Master age 7 xx
He is indeed, my Precious One! Kisses from far, for now! 😀
I’ve had plums but not peaches in a savory dish…you stew sounds delicious.
MMMMMM,…A very unusual dish for me but it looks really lovely, tasty & fabulous!
See I told you, youare a peach, making peach stew for this little boy was just peachy of you!
Seriously, I never have tried peach stew and it looks divine!
Looks delectable Fae. I love peaches..grilled, in salas, now stew. Yahoo and Yummy too!!
My mouth – keeps watering! I’m confident this stew was beyond delicious and hope noosheh jan hameh bood (Never heard of the Momotaro story, Fae, it is very interesting! You have the best stories!)
You had me at 7-year old boy. Thought you were going to tell a story about your son
thanks for the good tips on buying peaches Fae!!!
Wow. I’m looking at the ingredients and trying to imagine the taste of this stew. I can not seem to conceptualize the flavor! I am sure I would love this! I want to make it just because it is not like anything I have ever tasted before.
Looks lovely, hope he enjoyed it
I have never heard of this stew before, it sounds delicious and I can imagine the flavor when the peaches are at their peak. Lovely story about the little boy!
Suzanne, Many Iranians have not heard of it either. Iran is blessed with rich agricultural land. It produces high quality fruits.There are many varieties of fruit recipes (i.e. stews, mixed rice, stuffed). Azita has also introduced a few.