Gheimeh Explained

Gheimeh
Alternate Name:	Gheimeh, Ghaymeh, Qeimeh, Qaymeh
Country:	(Ancient Persia)
Region:	Fars, Ardabil, Qazvin, Bushahr and Kashan
Course:	Main Dish
Type:	Stew
Main Ingredient:	lamb, tomatoes, yellow split peas, onion, dried lime

Gheimeh, Gheymeh, or Qeimeh (Persian: قیمه) is an Iranian stew (khoresh) consisting of diced mutton, tomatoes, split peas, onion, and dried lime, garnished with golden, thinly sliced crispy potatoes. The stew is sometimes garnished with fried eggplant and is usually served with white rice (polow).^[1]

Etymology

The Persian word gheimeh (also transliterated as qeimeh) derives from Classical Persian qeema, which comes from a Turkic word qıyma 'minced meat', like the Urdu qīmā/ keema, Turkish kıyma, and Greek kimás.^{[2] [3]}

Iraqi variant

Iraqi qeema is made with finely diced meat and crushed split peas and is prepared on a large communal scale at the annual Āshūrā commemorations.

Iranian variants

• Gheimeh sibzamini (Persian: قیمه سیب زمینی|links=no): with thin-cut French fries.
• Gheimeh bademjan (Persian: قیمه بادمجان|links=no): with pan-fried whole or long-cut eggplants.
• Gheimeh nesar (Persian: قیمه نثار|links=no): with almonds and fried onions; a specialty of Qazvin.
• Pichagh gheimeh (Persian: پیچاق قیمه|links=no): a different dish with almonds and fried onions; a specialty of Ardabil. Pichagh (Azeri spelling: pıçaq) means knife in the Azerbaijani language, and it refers to the almonds.
• Gheimeh rashti (Persian: قیمه‌ رشتی|links=no): with sour pomegranate paste, pomegranate juice, tomato, and verjuice; a specialty of Rasht.
• Gheimeh nokhoud (Persian: قیمه‌ نخود|links=no): with chickpeas instead of split peas; a specialty of the Persian Gulf coast of Iran; similar to abgoosht.
• Gheimeh kadou (Persian: قیمه‌ کدو|links=no): with pan-fried whole or long-cut squash.
• Gheimeh beh (Persian: قیمه به|links=no): with pan-fried whole or long cut quinces.
• Gheimeh bamieh (Persian: قیمه بامیه|links=no): with pan-fried okras. It also has lemon juice and cinnamon.

See also

• Khoresht
• List of lamb dishes
• List of stews

Notes and References

1. Book: Shaida, Margaret . The Legendary Cuisine of Persia . 2018-04-10 . Grub Street Publishers . 978-1-911621-59-1 . en.
2. Book: Platts, John . A Dictionary of Urdu, Classical Hindi, and English. W. H. Allen & Co . 1884 . London . 81-215-0098-2 . 797.
3. Oxford English Dictionary, s.v.