Chicken with walnut and pomegranate

Fesenjan is a Persian festive dish from the province of Gilan in the north of Iran. Chicken braises slowly in a dark, thick sauce of toasted walnuts and pomegranate molasses. It tastes nutty, sweet and sour and very rich, and with basmati rice it is a meal that often turns up at celebrations in Iran.

You can find pomegranate molasses, sometimes sold as pomegranate syrup, in Turkish shops or the international aisle, usually next to the grape molasses. It is dark and quite sour. If you only have pomegranate juice, boil it down with a little sugar and lemon juice until it turns syrupy.

You toast the walnuts first and then grind them. They make the sauce creamy without any cream or flour. You do not need a special pot, just a bit of time and a wooden spoon now and then so nothing sticks to the bottom. Brown the chicken well first so it gets some colour, then let it braise in the sauce until tender.

Rice is the best thing to serve with it. The pomegranate seeds on top look lovely when they are in season, and otherwise you can just leave them out. Fesenjan tastes even better the next day. Add a little water when you reheat it, as the sauce sets in the fridge.