Shalma

“So we improvised and made do, substituting where possible, always with an eye out for the postman and packages from Iran. Packages bursting with dried herbs and spices, well-traveled scents and secrets from home. Envelopes with a few perfunctory words from family (lest officials be monitoring them) and a photograph or two pulled from all the picture albums that were left behind. Substitutes for all the loved ones that were left behind.”
― Naz Deravian, Bottom of the Pot: Persian Recipes and Stories

“Come dinnertime, we could always rely on the permanent fixture of two pots, standing at attention, prepared for their marching orders.”
― Naz Deravian, Bottom of the Pot: Persian Recipes and Stories

“These are the kinds of stews that bring us running to the family table. Whether the table is firmly planted in its destined place or lingering somewhere in between. The kind of stew that bridges the path to a new continent, a new country, a new life, a new kitchen with its own stories to tell.”
― Naz Deravian, Bottom of the Pot: Persian Recipes and Stories

“. . . Baba filled the void the only way he could think of: a faceoff with the two-burner stove, the two pots, and a heaping bag of sabzi--fresh herbs. The permanent lumps lodged in our throats were temporarily soothed by a steaming pot of khoresh ghormeh sabzi--fresh herb stew. The royalty of all Persian stews.”
― Naz Deravian, Bottom of the Pot: Persian Recipes and Stories