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Persian lamb soup with sumac and meatballs

Persian lamb soup with sumac and meatballs

Main dishes

Ach-e Somagh of Hamadan and Isfahan: long-cooked rice and herbs, fried meat balls, and a vibrant red sumac sauce, garnished with fried onions and mint.

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Recipe from Roozitaa, adapted by Recette de cuisine · · updated on

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This hearty soup (ach) from the provinces of Hamadan, Isfahan, and Orumieh owes its color and acidity to the sumac, which is soaked and then squeezed. The meat balls and herbs make it a complete meal.

Ingredients and directions

  • Prep time30 min
  • Cook time1 hr
  • Resting1 hr
  • Total2 hr 30 min
  • DifficultyMedium
  • CostPricey
  • Cooking methodsaucepan
  • Estimated cost$53.28 $8.88 / serving Estimated price; varies by store. Converted from euros at the ECB rate of October 12, 2026.

Ingredients

6 people
  • $2.01
  • $16.72
  • $3.52
  • $30.19
  • $0.21
  • $0.25
  • $0.22
  • $0.16

Prices from US supermarkets for 5 of 8 ingredients; Belgian prices for the rest.

Directions

  1. Cook the broken rice in water until it is tender (rice flour will shorten the cooking time).
  2. Add the washed and chopped herbs: the finer they are, the better the flavour. ≈ 3 min
  3. Season and pepper the meat, knead it, and form meatballs about the size of a walnut; brown them in the oil and add them to the soup.
  4. While the meatballs are cooking, wash the sumac and soak it in water for 1 hour.
  5. Squeeze it into a cloth to collect its bright red juice, and then pour it into the soup. ≈ 3 min
  6. Finely chop the onion, sauté it in a pan, add some to the soup, and reserve the rest for garnish.
  7. Serve garnished with mint and fried onions.

The bill

Persian lamb soup with sumac and meatballs

  • 200 g of broken rice or rice flour$2.01
  • 60 g of dried sumac$16.72
  • 250 g of ground meat$3.52
  • 1 kg of herbs: chives, parsley, tarragon, cilantro, and a little mint$30.19
  • 1 large onion$0.21
  • oil$0.25
  • 1 tablespoon of dried mint$0.22
  • salt, pepper$0.16

Total$53.28

that's $8.88 per person

Estimated price; varies by store.

Equipment

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Before you start

Ingredients

  • 200 g of broken rice or rice flour
  • 60 g of dried sumac
  • 250 g of ground meat
  • 1 kg of herbs: chives, parsley, tarragon, cilantro, and a little mint
  • 1 large onion
  • oil
  • 1 tablespoon of dried mint
  • salt, pepper
  • water

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