Haleem (Persian Savory Meat and Wheat Porridge)

Haleems have long played an important role in Persia’s cooking culture. They are generally composed of a cereal—although some varieties contain legumes such as lentils—that is well mashed along with shredded meat that makes for a filling, well-rounded, and energizing meal. For these reasons it has long been popular as a pre-dawn and post-sundown meal during Ramadan, but it is also enjoyed year round throughout the Persian diaspora. 

In western terms, Haleems are best described as a thick porridge. There are different types of haleems whose names most often cite the key identifying ingredient. The most historically important and famous version, made with wheat berries and lamb, simply referred to as haleem, is the one I present here. 

Since the tenth century CE, the dish was purchased from specialized haleem cookery shops and consumed as a hearty breakfast in the winter, garnished with sugar and powdered cinnamon–making it both a savory and a sweet dish. In past centuries, haleem required days of preparation and specialty equipment to achieve its signature smooth and elastic consistency. Today haleem is still prominent in Iran and its surrounding regions, and is often served not just for breakfast but also for lunch and dinner. Here is a look at the origins and key ingredients of this Persian wheat dish and how to make it at home.

Origins of Haleem

Although there are slightly different narratives about the origin of haleem, all point to it originating in the geographical region of today’s Iran and Afghanistan and then moving to other parts of the Middle East, Central Asia, Caucasus, and India. In one narrative, Haleem goes back to the legendary mythical Kiyāniān dynasty of Persian folklore; haleem is described in Shāhnāmeh, Iran’s national epic, and in Avestā, the sacred texts of Zoroastrianism. In another narrative, Haleem’s origin is credited to the sixth century King Khosrow I of the Persian Sassanian dynasty.

After Muslims conquered Persia in the 7th century haleem remained an important dish in the area. In fact, The Legendary Cuisine of Persia by Margaret Shaida references haleem as a favorite dish of the Prophet Mohammad. The oldest known documented recipe for haleem is from the oldest surviving medieval Arabic language cookbook from the 10th century. In this medieval cookbook the author recites a poem crediting the Persian Sassanid empire with creating haleem. This surviving 10th century recipe is remarkably like the contemporary preparation method. By the 13th century, haleem had become popular enough in the region that different versions were being cooked—including rice haleem and pistachio haleem—and versions of the dish were included in at least two 13th century medieval Arabic language cookbooks, where many Persian origin dishes with Arabic names were described.

A Dish with Many Names

In the contemporary Persian language, there are two different spellings of haleem. They are هلیم and حلیم. They both are pronounced the same: haleem. Most historical cookbooks use the حلیم spelling and most of the contemporary cookbooks use the هلیم spelling. Prior to the 20th century, haleem was also commonly referred to by another name–harriseh. In some of the southern provinces of Iran on the shores of the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman, it is still called harriseh, and is indeed called that in many of the region’s Arabic speaking countries where similar dishes with different names have had a long history. In some other countries, for example in Armenia, similar dishes are referred to as harissa–not to be confused with the North African spicy sauce with the same name. In addition to Iran and Arabic speaking countries, haleems are also well known and popular in contemporary Afghanistan and in certain regions of India. Some Muslims in India prefer to call the dish daleem because Haleem is another name for God.

Haleem in Religious and Cultural Settings

In many countries throughout the world, from Iran to India to Afghanistan and throughout the Arab world, haleem is more popular and more available during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. It is the perfect high energy and filling dish for the pre-dawn meal–sahari–before one’s daily fast and to break one’s fast during the post-sundown meal,eftār. On Āshurā, the 10th day of Muharram, the first month of the Islamic calendar, Shi'ite Muslims make haleem in large quantities to commemorate the martyrdom of the Prophet Muhammad's grandson, to be shared as alms.

In addition to its importance for Muslims during Ramadan, haleem is also a special Shabbat food for some Persianate Jewish families. Some Christians in Iran and the surrounding regions, particularly in Lebanon and Syria, serve haleem on the Assumption Day (aka the Feast of the Assumption). Zoroastrians consider haleem a dish for special rituals such as on the anniversary of passing of family members.

Haleem’s Historical Preparation

As noted above, preparation of haleem was historically very time-consuming and physically demanding. The involved cooking process, along with high demand for haleem, resulted in the establishment of commercial specialty shops with professionals dedicated to a large haleem cooking production. Professional haleem shops started in Iran and still exist to this day. These shopshe practice proliferated in other countries as well—in particular in India and Afghanistan. Haleem shops in the Indian city of Hyderabad are world famous. 

To be served as a breakfast dish, the traditional preparation started the prior evening. The two main ingredients, wheat berries and lamb, were cooked separately. Wheat berries that had been soaking in water for 24 hours prior to the start of cooking would be cooked for several hours until plump and soft, pounded, and then strained to separate any tough parts, resulting in a very thick–but still pourable–substance called “sheereh-e-gandom,” whose literal translation is “syrup of wheat.” 

In parallel, the large pieces of bone-in lamb were cooked to the point at which the meat would fall off the bone. The meat was then deboned, shredded by hand, and added to the large caldron of the syrup of wheat where it was all pounded together with large wooden hammerhead paddles–one meter long–continually for the rest of the night. The extended stirring and pounding would result in a thick elastic mixture in which, long shreds of meat would be present but hardly distinguishable from the surrounding sea of creamy wheat. The degree of elasticity of the haleem was a measure of the cook’s mastery of the process. Pre-dawn customers would line up at these specialty shops to purchase the freshly prepared haleem to take home, along with freshly baked famous Persian Barbari flatbread, for the household’s breakfast.

When haleem was being prepared at home back in the 18th and 19th centuries, family members would take turns stirring the pot throughout the night in order for it to be ready for the family’s breakfast. Not to worry, this recipe doesn’t require your entire family to stay up all night stirring the pot to get savory and hearty final porridge the next morning. In my recipe there are three main stages to cooking haleem: Cooking and processing of the wheat, cooking and shredding the meat, and the final cooking and stirring of the wheat and the meat together. Here’s how to get hearty haleem at home with the help of a few basic kitchen appliances and in under three hours.

Why This Recipe Calls for Cracked Wheat

Haleem is only as good as its foundation—the wheat—so for truly delicious haleem, selecting the right kind of wheat is key. Enter a well-stocked supermarket or a Middle Eastern market and you will be faced with half a dozen or more varieties of wheat products in grain form that differ in cut, size, and how much they’ve been processed. To make the picture more complicated, the same variety might be labeled differently from supplier to supplier and from wheat genus to genus. Here is a quick rundown of what you might find:

• Wheat Berries [a.k.a. Unpelted Wheat]: This is the whole kernel of common wheat (Triticum aestivum) with only the husk removed. It is the least processed version of wheat that you may find and takes a long time to cook. It is also used to grow wheat sprouts.
• Pelted Wheat [a.k.a. Dzedzadz; Jareesh, Jerrish, Gerish, Gerrish, Ceris, Hulled Wheat]: The outer layer of the grain is removed by abrasion (i.e., it has been pearled) and polished to make pelted wheat. The germ is still present but has been damaged to the point where it cannot be used to grow sprouts. Pelted wheat cooks a bit faster than whole grains of wheat berries. (You may also come across pearled versions of other genuses of wheat, other than the common genus, such as Farro and Spelt.)
• Cracked Wheat [a.k.a. Gorgot, Korkot, Gorgod, Yarma, Daliya]: These are pelted wheat kernels that have been crushed. The key advantage of cracked wheat is that it cooks faster than pelted or whole grain wheat. However, it goes rancid faster than other types. Cracked wheat is often confused with bulgur.
• Bulgur [a.k.a. Bulghur, Burghul, Arisah]: Bulgur is manufactured by soaking whole wheat kernels, par cooking them (by boiling or steaming), and then drying them. After drying, the hull and some of the bran is removed, after which they are crushed and sorted by size. You may find up to four different sizes of bulgur in some stores. Bulgur cooks very quickly. Finer bulgur can soaked in hot water then eaten without further cooking, while larger grades require further cooking to soften the grain before eating. Bulgur is often confused with cracked wheat.
• Wheat Flakes: This is wheat that has been soaked, steamed, and flattened between rollers to make flakes. Wheat flakes look just like rolled oats. They typically are not used for preparing dishes; instead they are usually used as breakfast cereal just like rolled oats.

Selecting the correct type of wheat grain is important to successfully making this dish at home in a timely manner. The most traditional flavor and texture results from using wheat berries, pelted wheat, or cracked wheat. I’ve tasted and tested all three side by side and found it is practically impossible to tell the difference between haleem made from whole grains such as wheat berries or pelted wheat or haleem made from cracked wheat. One major difference and advantage to cooking with cracked wheat over the other two varieties is that it takes considerably less time to cook—about a full hour less than cooking the other whole grains such as wheat berries or pelted wheat. Cracked wheat is the best option for home cooking since it achieves the ideal porridge texture and flavor in much less time than the other grain options.It has been my go-to variety for making the traditional Persian haleem—therefore, it’s what I call for in this recipe. Cooking haleem with cracked wheat results in a final porridge with the desired full bodied elastic texture and nutty flavor, and in less time than with other forms of wheat.

Another advantage to using cracked wheat is that it is cheap and available in some well-stocked supermarkets, grocery cooperative markets, as well as in Persian, Afghani, Indian, Middle Eastern, and Mediterranean brick-and-mortar shops. It is also readily available on Persian online grocery sources such as Kalamala Persian Grocery, Sadaf, Persian Basket, and Tavazo—and of course you will find it on Amazon.com. My preferred brand of cracked wheat is Sadaf which is also the most frequently available brand in brick-and-mortar markets. In my experience over the years, it is the brand with the most uniformly sized crushed pieces.

Select the Right Cut of Lamb and Shred It into Long Strands

While haleem can be made with a variety of meats, lamb is used in this recipe. It’s the most common cut of meat used in haleem. Its assertively gamey and rich flavor enhances the otherwise neutral and bland flavor of the wheat porridge. The best cuts of lamb for haleem are the neck, shank, and leg—preferably all with bone. Choose just one cut for this recipe. 

It's important to cook large pieces of meat rather than small chunks. We want larger pieces of meat whose muscle fibers have not been severed so that once the meat is cooked until tender, deboned, and pulled apart the result is long shreds, which is a key characteristic of haleem’s traditional preparation. No need to trim the fat or sinew (fibrous connective tissue attaching muscle to bone) from the lamb as they contribute richness and flavor to haleem–ultimately, most of it will melt away into the stock during the cooking.

Tips for Cooking Haleem at Home

Cook the Wheat Twice

Similar to the industrial preparation of haleem described above, the cracked wheat in this home version is still cooked in two stages, but on a smaller scale and in a shorter time frame. When first cooking the wheat, initially there will be lots of bubbles and foam with a high risk of boilovers (This is normal as the starches in the wheat swell, forming viscous gel, making it difficult for the air bubbles to escape easily so they foam and bubble and can go over the edge of the pot).. To avoid boil overs, keep the heat low, stir frequently, and leave the lid a bit open.

Save Time with a Food Processor

A food processor is the best tool to quickly break down the cooked wheat into a puree. Where a century ago this process would have relied on industrial equipment in a professional setting or hours of manual labor, the grain can now be pulverized within minutes.

Finish with a Hand Mixer

Instead of relying on family members to stir a pot all night, or on industrial sized wooden tools to beat the mixture, a hand held mixer works great for home consumption. After 10 to 15 minutes of beating, the mixture should be transformed into a supple, elastic porridge. It should be silky and perfectly smooth, with the faintest bit of texture from the lamb that’s now broken down into barely visible specks. 

Getting this ideal porridge still takes effort and time, but the meat and stock can be made and stored up to four days in advance and the wheat can be par-cooked, pulsed, and strained before storing for up to two days. Better yet, make the porridge whenever is convenient for you, then cool it down and freeze in individual portions. You can then enjoy it whenever you want.

Serve with an Assortment of Garnishes

Persian haleems are generally cooked with very little seasoning, allowing the eater to season it according to personal and regional preferences with one or more combinations of sugar, ground cinnamon, sesame seeds, melted butter, crispy fried onions, coconut flakes, honey, salt, or pepper. If you know the taste preferences of your guests or family members, take the opportunity to either garnish the top of a large bowl of haleem for family-style serving or garnish each individual haleem bowl with the preferred spices and flavorings of their diners.