Spices in Iranian Cuisine

Persian food is brilliant for gluten-free diets, vegetarians, and vegans. While there is an emphasis on meat, there is an equal amount of attention paid to delicious vegetable dishes accompanied by nuts, fruit, and rice.
Unlike other countries, Persian spices give warmth and flavor to a meal, rather than heat, making this food ideal for anyone sensitive to chili.
If you’re planning a Persian-style dinner party, you have to start with a good spice collection. With most spices, we recommend grinding them in the kitchen, rather than buying them already ground. Spices provide more punch and fragrance when you grind them at home, so it’s a good idea to invest in a good quality spice blender or pestle and mortar.
However, herbs and spices are the backbone of Persian cuisine and give incredible and distinct flavors to this cooking style.
While there is a whole gamut of spices to be enjoyed in Persian cooking, the following are some of the most popular:
The common ingredients include Saffron, sumac, cardamom, cumin, cinnamon, dried rose petals, coriander, black pepper, turmeric, dried limes, cloves, and such. As with any spice blend, there are many regional variations. Some include caraway seeds, nutmeg, star anise, angelica (golpar in Persian), etc.#Iran