Borani-yeh Karafs (Celery Yogurt Dip) Recipe (2024)

The dried cranberries in this recipe suggests that the Times Cooking section could do home cooks a great service by recommending uses for various pantry items - dried spices and fruits, fresh herbs, bottled sauces, canned beans and fish, different oils and vinegars, seasoning mixes, dried pastas, various types of rice and so on. Listing recipes according to a key pantry item would be of enormous help in editing and using up the myriad items that accumulate in overstuffed larders, like mine

Times Cooking people, please fix your search engine so I can search on ingredients! also make it possible to do an "and" search. At present the only kind of search possible is an "or" search which turns up far too many hits when I am looking for a particular recipe. The search engine on ckbk.com is much better.

Diamond Crystal kosher salt is like half as dense as the more common Morton’s—that may be the cause.

The most common version of this dip in Iran features sautéed (wilted) then finely chopped spinach plus minced sautéed garlic. Bravo to Naz for adapting the dish to celery.

Yes, there are times when I search by ingredient and if the recipe title begins with "Crispy" or "Sheet-Pan", it's necessary to include the adjective to have it come up. Also, I'm sure I'm not the only one with thousands of saved recipes, but there seems to be a limit to how many can be requested. When one page comes to "show more recipes" that works perhaps one time, then freezes. But tech concerns only, I use this site every day and it's responsible for probably 90% of what I cook. Thank you!

I found I needed almost twice as many celery ribs to make 2 cups diced.

In follow-up to Amber's request that you add an "AND" feature to the search function, it would also be great if you tuned it so as _not_ to include all recipes with items that start with the same three letters as the term for which one is searching (or have a similar spelling) and enable tagging search terms by category (so that, for instance, searches for Turkish recipes don't turn up all the recipes for using up leftover Thanksgiving turkey).

Wouldn’t the original Persian recipe use dried barberries ( zereshk) instead of cranberries?Kalustyan’s sells them (kalustyan’s.com) . Mostly used in rice pilafs for their citrusy sour taste.

I loved this. Used fresh mint and restrained the salt due to other comments but it was lovely. Should have made whole batch instead of a half!

What other kind of nut would be suitable besides hazelnuts? Pistachio? Almond?

I would try pine nuts, either chopped or ground.

Allergy to hazelnuts in my family, so subbed with walnuts - absolutely delicious. Also an allergy to garlic so this was a real treat. Expected lots of leftovers, but barely 1/4 cup left. Our new favourite dip, for sure.

Too salty

Will try with grated raw celeriac!

This recipe is quick, delicious, rich and versatile while also not high in fat. It is often on the table as an appetizer paired with pitas, fresh or chipped. It also pairs well with crudités and crackers. If it shows up at a gathering it never fails to garner praise and requests for the recipe. My only changes are a the addition of a bit of Aleppo pepper and, when possible, the use of fresh dill and mint.

Mince the celery.

Excellent. Mince celery.

Remember the garnishes.

Like another reviewer, I regret making half the recipe. Delicious, fresh and healthy! I served this to guests with mini sliced cucumbers and cherry tomatoes. Loved by all!

Used pistachios and tripled the amount -- made the dip more filling and it was a big hit at the dinner party.

I wasn’t paying attention, used table salt and this turned out inedibly salty. I’d recommend putting in no more than 3/4 teaspoon to start and then salting to taste.

Really great dip. I added a pinch of sugar which I think balanced the flavours. I didn't have dried mint so I used fresh. Guests loved it enough to ask for the recipe.

A wonderful, versatile dish. Big hit at the two parties I've brought a bowl of this to. I didn't have cranberries and used golden raisins instead (really living up to my white suburban stereotype) and I thought it was just as delicious. You don't taste raisins, it just brings a nice sweetness and acidity to balance the fattiness of the yogurt. PS - Don't be like me and use a drizzle of peppermint extract in place of mint. Yuck! Had to make the whole thing over.

Incredible! Made this for a get together and it was a huge hit. Followed recipe exactly except for the mint because I was out of it. Served with rainforest crisps and root veggie chips. This one is going to get made again and again!

Allergy to hazelnuts in my family, so subbed with walnuts - absolutely delicious. Also an allergy to garlic so this was a real treat. Expected lots of leftovers, but barely 1/4 cup left. Our new favourite dip, for sure.

Where has this dip been all my life? I grew up in the 70s and 80s around people who cooked Syrian-Lebanese and North African dishes. Later on, in the 90s, I discovered Persian dishes, thanks to a good friend. Nothing makes me happier than eating tasty dishes like this. Thank you, NYT!

What did I do wrong? Even though I kept adding more nuts, more cranberries, more lemon juice, more salt, even some garlic--it tasted like yogurt with celery. Not bad, just very bland.

Loved this dip! I actually avoided the salt all together to have this with a spice rubbed chicken. Excellent combination. I used fresh Dill and dried mint. Can’t go wrong with this one

August, 2021. Made for all four Meeks, and they loved it. Made as written except used fresh herbs. Big hit.