Lamb pilaf with pistachios and pomegranates
Legend has it that the 13th-century crusader Gaspard de Sterimberg took a cutting from a grape vine growing near the Persian city of Shiraz and planted it on his farm in the Rhône Valley when he returned home.
Before anyone gets hot and heavy about the eco-piracy issues involved in such a snip, it is worth pointing out that this tale is actually not true. Recent DNA testing by Dr Carole Meredith of the University of California has shown that Shiraz is a native of France and not Persia.
Some scientific breakthroughs are met with joy and jubilation, but Dr Meredith has encountered a surprisingly sulky response to her results. It seems that, when it comes to Shiraz, most wine lovers prefer fiction to fact. And it's not hard to work out why.
The combination of Shiraz and a reading from the Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam might seem like cringe-worthy, over-blown gastro-porn in the cold light of day, but don't knock it until you have tried it after dark with a glass in your hand. Who among us would turn down the Persian poet's offer of "a loaf of bread beneath the bough, a flask of wine, a book of verse - and thou beside me singing in the wilderness - and wilderness is paradise now"?
Truth should never be allowed to act as an obstacle to love, lust, liquor or lunch. Besides, wherever the Shiraz vine first bore fruit, the flavours in the wine really do suit the perfumed smoky splendours of Middle-Eastern gastronomy.
So open a spicy Shiraz and pretend that we don't know about Dr Meredith and her kill-joy findings. There is nothing nicer than a Shiraz paired with a Persian-style lamb, pistachio and pomegranate pilaf. Because the rice is deglazed in Shiraz it takes on a pretty purple hue and the wine's burgeoning plum-like flavours reach out to the sweet generosity of the pomegranates.
Each peppery, spice-laden sip melds and mimics the rich warmth of the ginger-marinated lamb and the buttery abundance of the emerald pistachio nuts. In every dark, delicious drop there is the promise of one thousand and one nights to come.
Scheherazade, heroine of that other great Persian literary classic One Thousand and One Nights, transformed the harsh fact of her execution at dawn into a happily-everafter marriage when she told stories to her murderous beau until he could not live without her. I'm with Scheherazade on this one - fact is over-rated. Fiction is a much better route to paradise now.
Lamb pilaf with pistachios and pomegranates
SERVES FOUR
2 T butter
3 T olive oil
1 large onion, peeled and finely chopped
1 cup Basmati rice
2 T finely chopped fresh ginger
1 T garlic, finely chopped
½ cup Shiraz
2 cups lamb stock
500g de-boned leg of lamb - cut into 2cm cubes
½ t salt
½ t black pepper
2 pomegranate (juice and seeds)
1½ T white wine or sherry vinegar
½ t olive oil
½ cup shelled, chopped pistachios
½ cup chopped parsley
½ cup chopped coriander
1. Melt the butter with two tablespoons of olive oil. Add the onions and cook until soft, then add ginger and garlic and cook for a further minute. Add the rice and toss to ensure it is well coated with butter and garlic.
2. Add the wine to the rice and boil until all the liquid has evaporated then add the stock and bring to the boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer until the rice is al dente and most of the liquid has been absorbed for about 15 minutes.
3. While the rice is cooking, heat the remaining oil in a wide frying pan over moderate heat. Brown the lamb on all sides and cook until hot but still rare and tender. When the rice is cooked, add the lamb and toss well.
4. While the rice and lamb are being prepared, squeeze the pomegranates making sure to capture both the juice and the seeds of the fruit. Discard the rinds and the bitter pith.
5. Mix all remaining ingredients together and stir into the rice and lamb. Season to taste. Serve hot.
