Khoresh-e Karafs

Ingredients

• 700g lamb shoulder or beef chuck, cut into 3cm cubes
• 1 whole head of celery (about 700g)
• 2 large bunches flat-leaf parsley (about 200g)
• 1 small bunch fresh mint (about 40g), or 3 tbsp dried mint
• 2 large onions
• 3 garlic cloves
• 1 tsp ground turmeric
• 2 tsp fine salt
• 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
• 4 tbsp lemon juice
• 6 tbsp sunflower oil
• 750ml water

Before you cook

• Trim the celery, peel away any coarse strings and cut the stalks into 4cm batons, keeping the pale leaves.
• Wash the parsley and mint, spin or pat them very dry, then chop them finely along with the celery leaves.
• Peel and finely chop the onions and garlic.

Steps

1. Heat 3 tablespoons of the oil in a heavy pot over medium heat.
2. Fry the chopped onion for 10 minutes until soft and golden at the edges.
3. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute until it smells sweet.
4. Stir in the turmeric and black pepper and let them sizzle for 30 seconds.
5. Add the cubed meat and brown it on all sides, about 8 minutes.
6. Pour in the water, bring it to a boil, then cover and simmer gently for 45 minutes.
7. Heat the remaining 3 tablespoons of oil in a wide frying pan over medium heat.
8. Fry the celery batons for 8 minutes, turning them, until the edges are golden but the pieces still have bite.
9. Lift the celery out and set it aside on a plate.
10. Add the chopped parsley and mint to the same pan and fry for 6 minutes, stirring constantly, until the herbs darken and smell nutty.
11. Scrape the fried herbs into the meat pot along with the salt.
12. Cover and simmer for 30 minutes so the herbs melt into the broth.
13. Slide the fried celery in on top and simmer uncovered for a final 20 minutes, without stirring hard enough to break the batons.
14. Stir in the lemon juice, then taste and add more until the stew is sharply lemony.
15. Rest the pot off the heat for 10 minutes before serving with steamed rice.