The taste and aroma of Iranian ash, famous for incoming tourists to Ardabil

Iranni Ash (Ash Doogh) is one of the traditional dishes of Ardabil, which is cooked with beans such as chickpeas, leeks and local and mountain vegetables and doogh, and due to its deliciousness and popularity, it is still seen on people’s tables. This soup is mostly cooked in different areas of the city and the village and the recipe for this food is inherited from mother to daughter. Today, this soup is cooked all over the province in urban centers.

Generally, this dish has a common recipe in different parts of the province and in some areas it may be a little different, for example in Khalkhal in some areas Arishta (noodles that are traditionally prepared in Khalkhal at home) are also added to this dish but the ingredients It usually includes buttermilk, leeks, local and mountain vegetables, chickpeas, flour, eggs, garlic, mint, rice, salt and dumplings.

To prepare this delicious soup, they pour the doogh into a pot and put it on the gas heat. In a separate bowl, pour an egg and flour and a little doogh and mix well to mix, then add the mixture to the doogh and stir constantly. Stir until the buttermilk boils, but after boiling, there is no need to stir, but until the buttermilk boils, it should be stirred constantly so that the buttermilk does not burn.

Of course, when the eggs are added, there is no need to stir constantly, and they cook the soup several times until the doogh boils, but if the egg is beaten, it must be stirred continuously until the doogh boils; After boiling the doogh, reduce the heat of the flame so that the doogh boils slowly, and after boiling the doogh, add the cooked chickpeas.

In the meantime, the minced meat with the grated onion and a little salt in the form of chopped balls the size of a hazelnut and poured into the soup, do not cook the soup for a minute after adding the meat to get its own meat, and then Slowly stir the soup.

After cooking the meat for five to six minutes, that is, when the meat has reached the top of the pot, add the garlic and the rest of the vegetables and add salt and reduce the gas flame to cook the soup with a low heat. After cooking the vegetables and rice 20 minutes later, the soup is cooked and ready to serve, and after cooking, the hot mint soup is prepared and poured over the soup.

To cook doogh soup, local doogh or Iran is generally used, and in some cases, yogurt is used instead of doogh, by dissolving the yogurt in the appropriate amount of water and then cooking doogh in the same way; Of course, in some areas, this soup that is prepared with yogurt is also called “Qatikh Ashi”.

One of the things that makes Iran Ashi taste special and different in different regions is the use of different types of leeks in different regions. In general, vegetables include a combination of coriander, dill, leeks and the green part of onions. Its stem is very popular. Among other vegetables, we can mention Olig, which is a type of mountain vegetable that has a very positive effect on the taste of doogh soup.

Due to the fact that the main ingredients for cooking doogh soup are local ship and livestock products, after these products (doogh, chickpeas and mountain and local vegetables) in this area, especially between the Shahsoon tribes and rural communities, cooking this soup is also common. have been.

From ancient times, this soup has been seen in ceremonies such as the thirteenth day of Badr, and it is always heard in the sayings of grandparents that doogh is cooked in the ceremony of the thirteenth day of Badr. In addition to home use, this dish is also widely distributed in rituals and religious ceremonies.

Other provinces also have Ardabil doogh soup, but their cooking ingredients are different from Ardabil doogh soup, because Ardabil doogh soup is light and simple and is cooked with the least available ingredients.

In addition to this advantage, Ardabil Doogh Ash has a higher position due to its delicious pastries due to the existence of first-class pastures and consequently the high quality of dairy products produced in the province, as well as mountain plants with unique taste and aroma compared to common dishes in other provinces. Is.

Doogh is also a traditional dish that is associated with the culture and religion of the people of Ardabil and the people of Ardabil use this dish in their ceremonies. Some people in Ardabil cook doogh every year at the time of delivery of the new year to have a good and blessed year when the soup boils at the time of delivery of the year, or most people in Ardabil cook doogh on the 13th of Badr.

Due to the cold and mountainous climatic conditions of Ardabil and the fact that legumes such as chickpeas can be grown in this environment, as well as the variety of vegetables in this region and the abundance of dairy products, this dish is well adapted to the climatic and geographical conditions of Ardabil.

Due to the popularity of this food among travelers and tourists, every year a large income from cooking and selling this food comes from eco-tours and restaurants and restaurants selling doogh.

In order to introduce this dish, every year from August 27 to 29, a dish festival is held in Nayr city, in which 22 provinces participate, and each province introduces the traditional dishes of its region. .

Holding this ceremony every year preserves the ritual and tradition and preserves the recipe of traditional food and introduces the patterns of food tourism, health tourism and nomadic tourism. And its durability is a fundamental step.