Bita works as a volunteer at the social enterprise, Food Works. Here’s her recipe for Zeytoon Parvardeh, Persian marinated olives with walnuts.
The dish heralds from north Iran and can be served as an easy appetizer or as an accompaniment. You can enjoy the olives with pre-dinner drinks, as part of a meze-style platter or with cheese and crackers - which is Bita’s favourite way to eat them.
Tips
Some like the olives to be whole and others like them chopped. You can have them however you prefer but if you chop them up, make sure the pieces are not too small.
If you grind the walnuts, the combination with the rest of the ingredients (except the olives) will form a paste. This is how it’s served in Persian shops in North Iran.
If fresh mint is not available, use two tablespoons of dried mint.
Start with 2 tablespoons of pomegranate molasses, add more after two hours of chilling if you'd like the marinated olives to be more sour.
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Place olives, walnuts, garlic and mint in a large bowl and stir well.
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In another bowl, add in pomegranate molasses, salt and olive oil. Mix well until all the ingredients are combined.
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Pour the dressing on the olives and toss well.
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Cover and refrigerate for at least two hours.
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Serve cold.