Borani esfanaj
A Persian meze of yogurt and spinach, often served with a meal as a cool counterpoint to rice dishes. According to a popular legend, its name comes from the Sasanian queen Boran, who is said to have adored it. The most important step is squeezing the spinach dry after wilting — water from the leaves thins the yogurt within minutes and the salad turns into green soup. The finish is crisp fried onion and saffron.
Your own work in that: 5 min.
- Frying the onion 15 min
- Spinach 5 min
- Chilling 30 min
- Combining with yogurt 5 min
Step by step
0 / 8 doneFry the onion golden and crisp
Fry the thinly sliced onion in 3 tablespoons of the oil (keep the last one for drizzling) 12–15 minutes over medium heat, stirring, until deep golden and crisp. Lift onto paper. Half this onion goes into the yogurt, half on top.
Ingredients: 1 pcs onion · 4 tbsp olive oil · 40 g walnuts · 1 pinch saffron · 1 tbsp water · 1 tsp dried mint
Deep gold and crisp — half inside, half on top.Wilt the spinach in the same pan
In the fat left in the pan wilt the spinach, adding it a handful at a time; each batch needs 2–3 minutes, about 5 minutes in all. No longer — overcooked spinach darkens and loses its fresh taste, and in this salad it should stay bright green.
Ingredients: 500 g fresh spinach · 400 g Greek yogurt · 2 cloves garlic · ½ tsp salt · ½ tsp black pepper
Squeeze the spinach dry
Let the spinach cool until you can handle it and squeeze it hard in your hands, ball by ball, until it stops dripping. Half a kilo becomes a small handful. The most important step — water left in the spinach thins the yogurt.
Ingredients: 500 g fresh spinach · 400 g Greek yogurt · 2 cloves garlic · ½ tsp salt · ½ tsp black pepper
Squeezed dry — half a kilo becomes a handful.Chop the spinach finely
Chop the squeezed spinach finely with a knife. Do not blend — borani should have visible flecks of green in the yogurt, not a uniform green colour.
Ingredients: 500 g fresh spinach · 400 g Greek yogurt · 2 cloves garlic · ½ tsp salt · ½ tsp black pepper
Crush the garlic with salt
Crush the garlic with the salt to a smooth paste under the flat of a knife. Raw garlic in yogurt should be noticeable but even — chopped, it leaves sharp pieces you hit by chance.
Ingredients: 500 g fresh spinach · 400 g Greek yogurt · 2 cloves garlic · ½ tsp salt · ½ tsp black pepper
Fold the spinach into the yogurt
Mix the yogurt with the garlic paste, spinach, half the fried onion and the pepper. The mixture should be thick and firm. If the yogurt is thin, strain it through muslin for an hour first.
Ingredients: 500 g fresh spinach · 400 g Greek yogurt · 2 cloves garlic · ½ tsp salt · ½ tsp black pepper
Thick and firm — thin yogurt needs straining.Chill half an hour
Spoon into a shallow bowl and chill 30 minutes. The garlic needs time to spread through the yogurt. Meanwhile bloom the saffron in a spoon of hot water.
Ingredients: 500 g fresh spinach · 400 g Greek yogurt · 2 cloves garlic · ½ tsp salt · ½ tsp black pepper
Top with onion, walnuts and saffron
Swirl with a spoon, drizzle with saffron water, scatter with the rest of the onion, walnuts and mint and drizzle with the remaining tablespoon of oil. Serve with flatbread or alongside rice and kebabs.
Ingredients: 1 pcs onion · 4 tbsp olive oil · 40 g walnuts · 1 pinch saffron · 1 tbsp water · 1 tsp dried mint
Before you start
Frozen spinach works
Frozen leaf spinach, thawed and squeezed, gives a very good result and saves time. Frozen spinach in blocks is too finely chopped and watery — avoid it.
The borani family
Borani is a whole family of Persian yogurt salads: with aubergine, beetroot, courgette. The principle is similar — a vegetable boiled, roasted or sautéed and well drained, mixed with thick yogurt and garlic.
Two days in the fridge
Borani keeps two days in the fridge and is more garlicky on the second. Add the fried onion topping fresh or crisp it again in a dry pan — in the fridge it softens.
