- All right, check it out, guys.
It's Trevor James, we are with Mr. Taster.
We are in Tehran, Iran,
in a local morning market.
And today Hamid is bringing us
for a full-on food adventure.
- [Hamid Voiceover] Yeah, we're
gonna go to Tajrish Bazaar,
and we're gonna explore some foods.
And then we're gonna go for
bowl kebab, Persian sandwiches,
and many stuff we're gonna taste today.
Right here.
- Be with us.
- Let's check it out.
(upbeat Middle-Eastern music)
This is part three of nine
of our Ultimate Iran
Food Adventure Series.
And, today, we're going full-on
for seven insanely
unique Persian delicacies
with Mr. Taster, including getting invited
into the back kitchen and kebab pit
of one of the best restaurant's in Tehran.
So, make sure to watch
all the way until the end
to discover them all with us.
Huge thanks to Mr. Taster and to Ali
from cometopersia.com for
arranging this whole trip.
Let's eat, and here comes Mr. Taster
in his Taster-Mobile.
Hey, buddy.
We're going on an adventure today.
(laughing)
This is awesome.
And we are off on a food
adventure in the Taster-Mobile.
It is so tight in there.
- We've got cool air in
it, 1972, Mini-Wiener.
(couple laughing)
- [Trevor] Look at the
mini-windshield wipers.
- [Hamid] It's not working.
(couple laughing)
- And we are just cruising through Tehran.
Wow, this market is busy.
- Yeah, it's busy, oh let's go
to (speaking in foreign language).
They got Haleem and Ashe Sayed.
Look at it, it's so busy.
Salaam.
- Salaam.
- Salaam.
Ash Reshteh.
- Reshteh.
(Trevor speaking in foreign language)
(Trevor and cook laughing)
We got Ash Reshteh, lentil
and noodle Persian herb stew
right there, and yogurt.
And what's this here, the green?
- It's mint.
Mint?
- Yeah.
- Look at this, that's
the famous bosh-mezze.
Bosh-mezze.
That's the famous Persian noodle stew
for the World Noodle Tour.
Look at this, rapid fire.
We got herbal noodles,
chickpeas, we got curd going on.
(Trevor and cook speaking
in foreign language)
Wow, Ash Reshteh.
Persian noodle stew with fried onion.
So, we've got this, another type.
- [Hamid] Ashu-la-ga-lam-kar.
- [Trevor] Ashu-la-ga-lam-kar.
With mint, and then this is
the Haleem, the wheat stew.
And he's topping the
Haleem with brown sugar,
white sugar, and sesame,
and it goes right out
to the hungry locals.
Wow, you can get it to go.
That's a big scoop.
Wow, look at all the onions on there.
Bosh-mezze, it's delicious.
Merci!
- This is the ashu-la-ga-lam-kar.
(Trevor speaking in foreign language)
(men laughing)
- [Trevor] So, here is
the breakfast specialty.
That's the Haleem, right?
- [Hamid] Haleem, yeah.
- [Trevor] Which is a wheat and beef stew.
And he's topped it with brown sugar,
sesame, and--
Sugar.
- Regular sugar.
- It's got more mint in it.
- More pure.
- More baby beef in it.
- More baby beef, and then
we've got the Ash Reshteh,
which is the Persian herb noodle stew.
- [Hamid] It's for the
Noodle Tour, wasn't it?
- [Trevor] For the Noodle
Tour, and the mint on top.
And curd.
- And curd.
- [Hamid] And this ashu-la-ga-lam-kar.
And ashu-la-ga-lam-kar
is a really famous one.
Really?
- Yeah.
- This is the emperor, this is the king.
- Yeah. (laughing)
- It smells like a
breakfast cinnamon cereal.
Mmm.
- It tastes good.
- Mmm, it's sweet and cinnamony and beefy.
And here is the Ash Reshteh.
Wow, and you can see that
mint oil and the curd
and the fried onion and
the noddle, of course.
Let's try it out.
- My favorite.
- Wow, chickpeas and beans and
curd and sweet onion noodle.
It's really minty, that's unique.
(speaking in foreign language)
Merci. (speaking in foreign language)
And next up, Mr. Taster is bringing us
for the ultimate Persian sweet bread,
soaked with date syrup and cooked
in the biggest tandoor
non-oven you'll ever see.
- So, we're going for,
we call it, noon-gan-dee.
Noon-gan-dee.
- Yeah.
- [Trevor] Look at all the spices.
Wow, super cool.
You like Iran, Ting?
Yeah.
- This market is so cool.
And we've got these sugar beets over here.
Broad beans.
And here it, look at
that giant tandoor oven.
It's like a cave.
Salaam.
- Salaam.
- That is the biggest
tandoor I've ever seen, wow.
So, this whole wheat.
- Yeah.
- And what I love about
Iran is how there's hundreds
of varieties of bread.
And he's just starting to make the bread,
so it's a whole wheat with sugar.
That is a true art to get it
into those perfect round balls.
Oh, and we're just turning up the flame.
And I've never seen a bigger
tandoor oven in my life.
That is a cave.
Wow, and they get really big.
You could see all the sesame on there.
And look at the paddle.
Look how big that is.
Look at that!
It is going on the paddle.
(laughing)
It's huge.
Noon-Gak.
- Noon-Gak.
Noon-Gak.
(Trevor laughing)
Look.
It should come from here.
- [Trevor] Ooh, look how big that is.
- [Hamid] Yeah, wow.
- [Trevor] Mr. Taster!
- They are scared of burning my hair.
(Trevor and Hamid laughing)
- [Trevor] Wow, look at the
size of that, good luck.
Oh no!
(crew laughing)
It fell.
(Hamid chattering)
It fell, that's why we
leave it to the pros.
- [Hamid] The heroes.
The king of breads.
The king of Noon-Gak.
(Trevor and Hamid laughing)
- [Trevor] Boom, and there
it is, isn't that amazing?
- Yeah, it is amazing.
- You can smell the
sweetness of the dates,
the wholesome whole wheat.
Look at that.
- There it is.
(laughing)
Look at that, Noon-Gak.
- Yeah, Noon-Gak.
(Trevor laughing)
- You can smell, oh, the dates.
And there's a ton of bread here.
- Yeah, this is bung-la-way cake.
It's got walnuts, it's got dates in it.
And this Cake Yazdi.
- Cake Yazdi.
How would you normally eat this?
- Like this, no, no. (laughing)
- Do you just break it off?
- You take some.
- Wow, and go for it.
Mmm, oh yeah, you can
really taste the dates.
Mmm.
(Hamid speaking in foreign language)
It's like a sweet--
(Hamid and Trevor
speaking foreign language)
- (laughing) What was that?
- That is one of the tastiest
breads I've ever eaten.
And, everyone, that is Baklava Cake.
Look at that, there's
walnuts, dates, sesame
in a thick, heavy bread.
You can just take a bite out of it.
Mmm.
(Hamid laughing)
It's that thick layer of
sugar that makes it delicious.
Merci.
- Merci.
- Merci, thank you.
Thank you, we're gonna keep going.
And next up, Mr. Taster is bringing us
deeper into the market to go
for the butteriest tomato
koobideh wrap in the world.
Extreme butter and lamb juice.
Look at this, guys.
- Yeah, let's find the
vegetables, fresh vegetables.
Salaam.
- Merci.
- Oh, fresh honey right from the comb.
Wow, look at all the spices here.
Oh, and mountains of saffron and dates.
It's all here.
You got chilies and tomatoes
and all the fresh fruit you could dream of
with lots of fruit, and
look at the saffron,
mountains of saffron.
And look at all the spices here, buddy.
So much, look at this spice mountain.
And look at the unique art
all over the walls here
at this morning market.
- And now we're gonna for kebab.
- The local koobideh.
Look at that.
- Salaam.
Salaam.
- Salaam.
(Hamid speaking in foreign language)
Salaam.
- Salaam.
- [Hamid] The bread wing inside.
We've got koobideh, a chicken kebab.
- [Trevor] Look how they
just soak up the butter.
Koobideh onion--
Onion with parsley.
- With parsley.
- Butter, tomatoes, look at that.
- [Trevor] Look at the mountain
of butter just melting.
And there it is.
We're adding more tomatoes and butter.
Look at that, never seen that before.
So many tomatoes and butter,
and they just get sliced
up into the juice.
And that butter is gonna melt
and go with these koobideh.
Oh wow, and he's just adding koobideh
into the buttery, tomatoey goodness.
And those are gonna be added
with the Persian wrap.
Oh, look at the butter on that.
That is what it's all about.
Wow, we're just soaking
that in the butter.
(speaking in foreign language)
That is unlike anything I've ever seen.
Nothing is as buttery as that.
And there it is.
Look at that.
- Look at that.
Covered in tomato and butter.
And there it is.
- And look at that.
- Oh my goodness, it's
so sloppy and buttery.
Ooh, that is the sloppiest, most buttery,
juicy-looking, tomatoey,
sloppy wrap I've ever seen
with koobideh.
And it's full of the onion with parsley.
Let's try it out.
Mmm.
- My favorite kebab
wrap, koobideh like this.
- That right there.
That is so buttery, it's so delicious.
This right here is worth
coming to Tehran for.
- Look at that, look at that.
(Trevor laughing)
Only in Tehran.
- Only in Tehran.
- The best of the best.
- The best of the best, only in Tehran.
Merci.
- Merci.
- Super delicious.
And we're gonna keep going.
And next up, Mr. Taster is bringing us
to the ultimate barbecue kebab platter
and lamb shoulder restaurant in Tehran,
and going into the kitchen
to see how it's all made.
And this looks beautiful, what's up next?
- It's a Persian restaurant.
We're gonna have
and the lamb shank.
- Lamb shank.
- Kapitan Abed is the
chef of this restaurant.
And he's really good singer.
- Merci, oh, really?
- Salaam.
- Salaam, salaam.
Thank you, salaam, thank you.
- He's the owner of restaurant.
Salaam.
- Salaam, how are you?
(crowd chattering)
Nice to meet you.
- And good-looking as that, look at that.
Salaam.
- Salaam.
(crowd chattering)
- He's the fireman.
- The fireman.
Oh, with the goggles.
He's wearing goggles, fire goggles.
- So, this is the chicken kebab.
This is fillet kebab,
and this is shish kebab.
- The shish kebab.
And I love this fire.
We've got a full grill,
and those tomatoes are
worth coming to Iran for.
(chef singing in foreign language)
(crowd applauding)
- Merci.
Merci.
- That was good.
- [Trevor] And that's
the tahdig right there.
That's the crispy rice from the bottom
soaked in saffron.
How is that?
- Look at that.
- [Trevor] Really good.
And what's this here?
- [Hamid] It's lamb shank.
- [Trevor] Cooked in oil.
Wow, look at the big chunk of meat.
Look at that, broad bean, dill rice.
It's called the--
- Baqali polow.
- Baqali polow.
So, we got the broad bean, dill rice.
The regular Persian rice.
The lamb shoulder.
- Garlic and onion, look at that.
- [Trevor] And here's
saffron, saffron rice.
And barberry.
And then we're adding on
the crispy saffron rice
from the bottom of the pan.
Ooh, and what's this?
- [Hamid] This is a special sauce.
And look at that.
Butter!
- Butter, more butter.
- More butter, wow, that looks delicious.
Oh, and we're adding even more.
This is the onion-tomato sauce.
That is amazing, thank you.
And what's this here?
- [Hamid] We call it Kapitan Abed Sauce.
- [Trevor] Kapitan Abed Sauce.
Right out to the seating area.
And this is the kebab platter.
That is incredible, we got the koobideh.
The chicken.
- Shish kebab.
- Shish kebab, and this is the best part,
my favorite spot, the grilled tomatoes
covered in saffron butter.
Look at those, and there it is, merci.
Oh, and this is ours here, look at that.
Wow!
Persian meat, merci.
- Merci.
- Oh, and the secret saffron oil.
The Kapitan Abed Sauce, merci, merci.
Oh, and there's more.
(men laughing)
Look at the meat, merci.
Wow, what a beautiful sight,
so we got the chicken in saffron.
We got the--
Barg kabab.
- Barg kabab,
which is leaner, right?
- [Hamid] Yeah, exactly.
- [Trevor] We got the shish kebab.
- [Hamid] The shish kebab,
we call it shashlik.
- [Trevor] Shashlik, oh, the tomatoes.
This is delicious.
- This looks really good.
- We've got lamb in it.
We've got chicken leg.
We've koobideh and tahdigs and barberries.
- And barberries, fried chicken.
The koobideh is in the back here.
Right there, it's like a hidden koobideh.
And then this is what I'm
really looking forward
to trying here.
- We've got shoulder.
We've got a special sauce on top.
This is saffron, butter,
and kar-mon-shahi oil.
Also, tomato with onion sauce on that.
- With the special Persian rice.
- Yeah, Persian rice.
- We're gonna pour this
tomato onion sauce,
or a bit of both.
Wow!
- And also dill and broad bean rice,
which is baqali polow.
And the tahdig on top.
- [Trevor] And they've
also given us a plate
of the Tahchin, the upside Persian--
- [Hamid] Upside down rice.
- Rice with saffron on the bottom.
And I'm gonna take some of
that tahdig with the rice,
tomato sauce, and the meat.
Mmm.
Oh, wow.
(Hamid laughing)
It's so delicious.
This is the best food.
The best meal
in Iran.
And this is the herbal
dill with broad bean rice.
Mmm.
Oh yeah, you can taste
the dill and butter.
- And broad bean.
- What I love about this
is how soft the rice is.
- [Hamid] Let's go for shish kebab.
- Shish kebab, oh yes.
Kapitan Abed shish kebab.
- Ready?
- Yeah.
This is everything you need.
- [Hamid] And you can't see the fat here.
It's making it more delicious.
- [Trevor] Does this remind you
of your home or your--
- Yeah, because it's from Mashan.
- So, if you miss home,
you can come eat all of this.
- Yeah. (laughing)
- And that meat right there is so tender.
Look at that, it just fall off the bone.
And now I'm gonna try that Tahchin.
Mmm.
(Hamid speaking in foreign language)
- Good.
- Saffron.
Really good.
Wow, what an amazing meal.
- Yeah.
- We've got a big group
of friends with us.
We're gonna finish all this food
and keep going for it.
- Yeah, let's go.
(chef singing in foreign language)
(audience applauding)
Merci, merci, merci.
- Wow!
Amazing.
(chef laughing)
Thank you.
- Merci.
Merci, that's strong.
And next up we're going for, perhaps,
the most buttery kebab bowl in the world.
Get ready for the extremely
juicy koobideh butter bowl
with bricks of butter.
Oh, there's Mr. Taster.
- [Hamid] It's my restaurant.
I cheated. (laughing)
Salaam
- Salaam.
Salaam.
- Salaam.
So, it's kebab in a bowl.
And they're grilling right over here.
Koobideh.
- Yeah, koobideh.
He's the king of the kebab.
- The kebab king.
The kebab sultan.
It's like walking into
a kebab production line.
- [Hamid] Yeah, look at that.
- There's the smoky, grilled
tomatoes with koobideh.
The best kebabs in Iran.
Right, juicy lamb kebabs.
The fillet and then all over top
of the tomato and pepper.
You're walking into a butter factory.
It's so much butter.
Look at that.
And you can see the butter
just melting on there.
Merci.
And look at the bread
right off the tandoor.
It's got that tandoor smell.
(Hamid speaking in foreign language)
Extra butter as a gift.
Merci.
(Hamid laughing)
Wow!
Merci.
- Merci.
Oh, and more bread.
Merci.
- [Hamid] So, we've got
koobideh, sesame, tomato.
- [Trevor] And the green pepper.
- And fillet kebab.
We normally take the bread.
- Normally take the bread.
- [Hamid] Put the kebab inside.
And some koobideh.
- [Trevor] Look at that.
Merci.
- Merci.
- This is for you.
- Thank you, and I'm just gonna cover it.
Oh, Persian butter, Persian butter.
- And add some sumac.
(men laughing)
Even more, let's go.
- Try it out.
Mm.
(speaking in foreign language)
(laughing)
- And this kebab is
more famous in Ardabil.
My dad came from Ardabil as well.
Oh, really?
- Yeah.
- So, your dad's hometown meat.
- Exactly. (laughing)
- Oh man.
Mmm.
You can really just mix it in.
They're really, really good.
- Really good.
The best in the world.
- Merci.
(Hamid speaking in foreign language)
Thank you, buh-bye.
Wow, that was honestly
some of the best meat
I've ever eaten, super delicious.
Merci.
- I love you, mister.
I love good.
- Thank you, that was really delicious.
- Thank you.
- Wow, people are so friendly here.
And next up for a midday snack
Mr. Taster is bringing us
to try the ultimate Persian energy drink,
made with the longest
list of fruits and spices,
and one of the most unique
drinks that you'll ever try.
Next up, we're just exploring
the streets of Tehran,
going for the--
Majoon.
- Majoon.
Salaam.
- Salaam, salaam.
- Salaam, look at this,
it's the smoothie station.
And here's the fresh batch, look at that,
banana, vanilla, saffron ice cream.
Wow.
- [Shop Staff] This one
is vanilla ice cream.
- [Trevor] Oh, vanilla.
Wow, what's this?
- [Shop Staff] Date juice.
- [Trevor] Date juice and coffee, wow.
Cocoa.
- Cocoa.
This is so unique.
Cinnamon, wow.
Banana sauce.
There's so many ingredients in here.
Pea powder.
- Fake powder.
Coconut powder.
- Coconut powder.
Oh wow, and what's this?
- Flowers.
Flowers?
- Yes.
Flowers. (chattering)
Mohammadi, you know?
- [Trevor] Mohammadi Gole.
- [Shop Staff] Banana blend.
- [Trevor] Sesame.
Oh, pistachio, there is
so much going in here.
Rose water.
Cream.
Oh, apricot.
Wow, that is a full-on
Persian majoon energy drink.
Oh, and more saffron ice cream.
- Saffron ice cream, yes,
especially ice cream for Iranian.
- Iranian saffron ice cream.
(men laughing)
It's falling.
(Hamid and Trevor laughing)
Oh, look at that massive pulp.
That's really tall.
- We should eat it like this.
- (laughing) Just put it in our mouth.
Look at this.
- Testing.
- Tasting, testing.
(laughing)
There it is.
There we go, thank you.
It's okay.
- It's okay.
(shop staff chattering)
Fold it like this
Oh, it's thick.
- Very soft.
- Wow.
It's really thick, thank you.
It looks amazing.
- Shall we start?
- Let's start.
Mmm.
Oh wow, that is delicious.
- Thank you.
(Hamid speaking foreign language)
- It's so unique and the flower.
That's the Mohammadi flower.
Oh wow.
Mixing.
That's the energy smoothie, mmm.
- After eating, it's for you know.
Really strong.
- That right there is the best
smoothie you'll ever taste,
so unique, floral and
chocolaty and coffee,
full of delicious saffron
ice cream and thank you.
- Thank you very much.
- It's so nice.
Thank you.
- Thank you.
Buh-bye.
And last up to finish up the night,
Mr. Taster is bringing us to
try classic Persian sandwiches
from his favorite
sandwich joint in Tehran.
And to finish up the night
we're just driving through Tehran.
We're going for an
extreme Persian sandwich.
And this is it right here.
Here we go.
The extreme Persian sandwich.
(Hamid speaking foreign language)
How are you?
- Fine.
- Salaam.
So, what should we get?
- [Hamid] I think we
should get one Olivieh,
one brain, and one tongue,
and bandari is that one.
- [Trevor] Salaam.
Thank you.
We're going in to get the brain sandwich.
Wow!
Look at that.
There is the brain, that's gold.
Those are gems.
Oh, and this is the tongue here.
Beef tongue.
- Beef tongue.
So, we got lamb brain, beef tongue.
And is that beef sausage?
- [Hamid] Sausage and onions.
- And isn't that a beautiful sight?
- It's really good.
- [Trevor] The brain is bubbling.
(speaking in foreign language)
(chef speaking in foreign language)
- [Hamid] Welcome, welcome to Iran.
- [Trevor] And here we go.
Oh, tongue delivery and
then add tomato and pickle.
- [Hamid] And pickles
and parsley and onions.
- [Trevor] Oh nice.
And here comes the brain,
that's the one I'm
looking forward to trying.
Look at that, oh and the bandari.
- [Hamid] Look at that.
- [Trevor] That looks amazing.
And we're gonna get another sandwich, too.
- [Hamid] We're gonna have the Olivieh.
- Olivieh, the Persian potato salad.
And we got five--
Sandwiches.
- Sandwiches.
- Persian sandwiches.
- Persian submarine sandwiches.
Ooh. (laughing)
- I'm bigger, so I'll go for this one.
No, I'm joking.
- Ooh, it's bulging with lamb brain.
- Shall we start?
Let's try it out.
- One, two, three.
- Mmm.
Mmm.
Oh wow, a little sourness from the pickle.
- Good meats, isn't it?
- Freshness from the tomato, oh yeah.
And there's the tongue just
grilled in that light oil.
- They boil it before they fry it.
- So, it's really soft.
- Exactly.
- Mmm.
Mmm!
That is soft.
- [Hamid] And now we're
gonna go for bandari.
- [Trevor] And go right for the chile.
- Oh, look at that.
It's juicy, look at that.
- It is juicy.
My favorite part aside from
the filling is the bread.
It's really good!
- [Hamid] It's good.
- Mmm, oh yeah, that sausage is delicious.
A little smokey, a little spicy,
a little sweet from the onion and peppery.
- And it's really good with the
because onion, tomato, and--
- Everything with the pickle.
Parsley, yeah.
- Parsley,
the tomato, the bread.
Merci.
- Merci.
- Thank you, thank you.
Can you tell him his sandwiches
are some of the best I've ever had.
(Hamid speaking foreign language)
Thank you.
- Thank you very much.
Thank you, thank you.
Thanks a lot, Mr. Taster.
- Thank you.
- That was an awesome day.
You guys can check out Mr. Thought Taster
on Instagram in the description below.
Also, gotta give a big
thank you to Pishgharavolan.
Cometopersia.com, if you guys are thinking
of checking out Iran.
They've put together this
amazing trip, thanks a lot.
- We love you, thank you.
