Shalgham ba Asal

The Persian winter remedy: turnips gently steamed until tender and eaten warm with honey, cinnamon, and a little saffron

Origin: Iran (the Persian home remedy)

From the journey of Turnip.

Across Iran the turnip, shalgham, is regarded as a vegetable of warmth and health, eaten through the cold months and reached for above all at the first sign of a sore throat, a cough, or a winter chill. The simplest and most traditional of its remedies is shalgham ba asal: turnips steamed or gently boiled until soft and sweet, then eaten warm with a spoonful of honey, a dusting of cinnamon, and sometimes a thread of saffron. It is a folk medicine and a homely sweet at once, given to children and to anyone feeling poorly, the soft, faintly sweet root and the soothing honey believed to calm a cough and ease the chest. The dish belongs to the deep Persian tradition of food as medicine, in which ingredients are 'warm' or 'cold' in nature and the cook balances the body as much as the plate; the turnip, warm and gentle, steamed soft and sweetened with honey, is the classic warming winter food. It needs almost nothing doing to it, and that is the point: it is the turnip at its kindest, a humble root turned into comfort.

Ingredients

Turnips

  • 6 medium turnips, peeled and halved or quartered

To finish

  • 4 tbsp honey
  • 0.5 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1 pinch saffron threads, ground and steeped in 1 tbsp hot water (optional)
  • 1 tbsp butter (optional, for a richer dish)
  • 1 tbsp chopped pistachios or walnuts, to garnish (optional)

Method

  1. Set the turnips in a steamer basket over simmering water, cover, and steam for 20–25 minutes, until completely tender and a knife slips through easily. Alternatively, simmer them in a little water until soft.
  2. Lift the hot turnips into a warm serving bowl. If using, toss with the butter while they steam.
  3. Drizzle generously with the honey and the saffron water, and dust with the cinnamon.
  4. Scatter with chopped pistachios or walnuts if you like, and serve warm, eaten with a spoon.

Notes

This is comfort food and folk remedy both, eaten warm against a winter cold. For a more medicinal version, the turnips are sometimes simmered in their cooking water with extra honey to make a thin, sweet, throat-soothing syrup taken by the spoonful. The dish is best warm and freshly made; it does not keep well. A squeeze of lemon or a few black peppercorns can be added in the warming, drying spirit of the Persian winter kitchen.

The Gastrographer

The Gastrographer

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