Iranian dishes excel at making people who have never tried

 them fall in love at the first bite. The unique combination of 

spices and flavorings with a wide range of vegetables, herbs,

 fruit, grains, nuts, meat and most importantly rice only needs

 the wand of Iranian cuisine to perform magic and leave an

 explosion of unforgettable tastes in the mouth. The

 delectable smell, delicious look and perfectly pleasant taste

 make it almost impossible to resist them. To share the

 gastronomic delights of Iran, IFP has decided to file a series

 of mouth-watering recipes for Iranian dishes

Ingredients:

1. 500 grams minced veal or beef

2. One cup rice (100 grams)

3. 50 grams yellow split peas

4. Two heaped tablespoons chickpea flour

5. One egg

6. Two tablespoons finely chopped savory

7. One level tablespoon finely chopped mint

8. One level tablespoon finely chopped tarragon

9. One tablespoon finely chopped parsley

10. One level tablespoon finely chopped dill

11. One level tablespoon finely chopped wild leek

Dried herbs can be used instead of fresh ones.

12. Two large onions

13.  Two tablespoons tomato paste

14. Dried plums and walnuts for the filling

15. Salt, ground black pepper and turmeric to taste

16. Garlic powder to taste

17. Oil

18. Water

How to cook Koofteh Berenji

1. Wash the rice a few times and soak it in salt water for a

 few hours. Pour some water in a pot and bring it to the boil,

 then add in the rice to the boiling water; leave it there until

 the rice is partly cooked. Depending on the kind of rice, it

 might take a few minutes (less than 10). Afterward, drain the

 rice. If the rice turns out to be fully cooked, there is no room for worry. What matters is that rice should not be raw,

 because it might later cause your Kooftehs to fall apart or

 remain uncooked by the time the meal is expected to be

 ready.

2. Cook the yellow split peas in water with some salt as well

 until they are well cooked. Drain them too and set them

 aside. The ingredients should be free of any excess water

 before they are mixed, otherwise the mix won’t be sticky

 enough and cracks will appear in Kooftehs.

3. Before you make Kooftehs, you need to get the sauce

 ready. Peel and slice one large onion and fry the slices over

 a medium heat until they turn soft and golden brown, add

 salt, turmeric and pepper to it. Then spoon in the tomato

 paste and fry it until it starts to change color and becomes

 deep red; stir it frequently to avoid burning it. Afterward, pour

 three to four glasses of water into the pot; the water level

 should be high enough to submerge the Kooftehs when they

 are placed in the pot. Bring the sauce to the boil, as soon as

 you place the Kooftehs in the sauce, turn down the heat.

4. Grate the other onion. If the grated onion turns out to be

 watery, squeeze it to get rid of the excess juice.

5. In a large bowl, mix the grated onion, minced meat, rice,

 yellow split peas, herbs, chickpea flour and egg and add 

turmeric, black pepper, salt and garlic powder to taste. It is

 important that you press the mixture with your hands until

 the ingredients form a single smooth, consistent substance.

6. Take a handful of the mix, stuff a dried plum and walnut 

into it and then shape it into a ball. Add the Koofteh to the

 sauce. You should not put the lid on the pot. Turn the 

Kooftehs in the pot to let them cook well in the sauce. If you

 like, you can add some dried plums to the sauce as well. As

 for the filling, you can use other stuff like dried onions, 

barberries and boiled eggs, too.  The Kooftehs will need 

about an hour to simmer in the sauce before they are ready.

 The dish is served with flat bread.