Ghormeh Sabzi with Beef & Kidney Beans

📝 Ingredients

• 900 g lean braising beef
• 2 brown onions (about 200 g)
• 1 tsp turmeric
• 120 g fresh parsley (2 bunches)
• 50 g fresh coriander (1 bunch)
• 25 g fresh chives (1 bunch)
• 400 g frozen leaf spinach
• 2 tins kidney beans (500 g drained)
• 2 lemons (for the juice)
• 3 tbsp sunflower oil (1 for the meat, 2 for the herbs)
• 1 beef stock cube + 1 L hot water
• 450 g basmati rice
• Salt, black pepper

🍴 Utensils

• Flameproof casserole dish with lid
• Large frying pan
• Large saucepan
• Colander
• Chopping board and large knife

📖 Steps

1. Cut the beef into 3 cm cubes and pat dry with kitchen paper. Finely slice the onions. Defrost the spinach for 5 min in the microwave, squeeze it firmly to remove the water and chop roughly.
2. Heat 1 tbsp oil in a casserole dish over a high heat and brown the beef in 2 batches, 3 to 4 min each, without stirring too much so it colours. Lower to a medium heat, return all the meat, add the onions and cook for 5 min until golden, then add the turmeric and stir for 1 min.
3. Crumble the stock cube into the casserole, pour in 1 L hot water, season with pepper and bring to a boil. Cover and leave to simmer gently for 1 h over a low heat, stirring from time to time.
4. Meanwhile, wash and thoroughly dry the herbs, remove the thick stalks from the parsley and coriander, then chop everything very finely with the chives. The pile looks huge: that's normal, it will shrink by half as it cooks.
5. Heat 2 tbsp oil in a large frying pan over a medium heat, add the herbs and spinach and fry for 15 min, stirring often, until they turn very dark green and smell intensely fragrant. Don't let them blacken: this step is what gives the dish all its flavour.
6. Tip the fried herbs into the casserole with the rinsed and drained kidney beans and the lemon juice. Stir, cover and cook for another 45 min over a low heat, until the beef is tender and the sauce thick. Taste and season with salt and pepper.
7. 20 min before the end, rinse the basmati rice in a sieve until the water runs clear, then cook it for 10 min in a large pan of boiling salted water. Drain, return it to the pan, cover and leave to steam for 10 min off the heat.
8. Serve the stew in a large deep dish in the middle of the table, with the rice on the side. A thick sauce with a thin film of green oil on the surface is the sign of a successful ghormeh sabzi.