Shabzi broth is a famous dish in Iranian cuisine.

But it left its locality to find a place for it in Iraq, and it became one of the most important dishes of Iraqi cuisine, especially in the city of Karbala (south of Baghdad), where it later took several names, including spinach or sabzi, as it is called by the people of Karbala.

What distinguishes the dish of Shabzi (or Sabzi in the Karbala dialect) is the cheapness of its ingredients, its high nutritional value and its sour taste, and different types of vegetables are involved in preparing the dish, which is usually served in the winter season.

Bashir Hassoun says that Karbalai cuisine is close to Iranian cuisine in terms of dishes that it is famous for (Al-Jazeera)

Shabzi Karbalai

All Iraqi provinces participate in serving the dish.

But Karbala has a special way of preparing it, says Bashir Hassoun, owner of a restaurant in the city center.

Hassoun added to Al-Jazeera Net that "Karbalai cuisine is somewhat close to the Iranian cuisine in terms of the dishes it is famous for, as well as the similarity of its characteristics and method of preparation, which is thus different from other kitchens in Iraqi cities."

Hassoun says that "the Karbalai family prefers green shabzi gravy, according to what is in place in Iran. But the Karbalai cuisine, in addition to its main components, differs from it by adding cowpeas, dried white lemon (or what is known as Noumi Basra), mint, dill, parsley and free fat (ghee). Al-Baladi), to follow in this way his own way of preparing the dish, but in the rest of Iraqi cities, it is added to tomato sauce and black lemon.

He adds, "We bring cooked and canned spinach from its original origin. We are dealing with an Iranian company that prepares the restaurant, while we add other ingredients that give it its Karbalai character, and present it with white rice to the diners."

Shabzi soup is a favorite among Karbala residents, despite the presence of other distinctive dishes in the city's restaurants (Al-Jazeera)

The main components

It is known that the main ingredient of the dish is spinach, which is rich in vitamins and minerals, and the dish is one of the largest sources of iron in other plant foods, and the broth is dark green and somewhat dense.

Muhammad Ali, one of the oldest cooks in Karbala, says that the shabzi broth consists of spinach, leeks, dill, parsley, coriander, mint, cowpea, meat and spices.

Ali added to Al-Jazeera Net that "the demand for shabzi soup is increasing despite the fact that the restaurant I work in serves many dishes, as it runs out very early, which prompts us to increase the quantity cooked."

green color

Shabzi stew is considered one of the most famous foods, and a main dish on family tables and city restaurants, which the city's people prefer to be green, because of its distinctive taste, as it is known for its sour taste.

Umm Alaa says that "Karbala has a peculiarity in terms of the name of the dish, as it is called sabzi, and thus it is unique with this name, which is completely different from the rest of the Iraqi cities that call it (spinach broth)."

Um Alaa (70) years old added to Al-Jazeera Net that "Karbala families prefer them green, according to their original recipe, which is the opposite of what some other kitchens go by adding tomato sauce, which changes its taste and greenish color."

Umm Alaa says that "the Karbalai kitchen is distinguished by adding beans, whether white or red, while families in other Iraqi cities add lentils or chickpeas. The Karbalai dish is also distinguished by its density, as it is coherent and the broth water is very little compared to the components of the dish."

Al-Jubouri indicated that Iranian farmers were the first to contribute to the spread of Shabzi stock in Karbala (Al-Jazeera)

Its inception

It is not clear historically when exactly the Persian dish of shabzi broth began to appear in the Karbalai kitchen.

But it is likely researchers and historians, that it appeared with the influx of Iranian workers to work in Karbala at the beginning of the last century.

Throughout the ages, various nationalities and cultures flocked to Karbala, including Persian, Arab, Hindi, Afghani and Turkish.

The dish is the product of mixing cultures.

Shabzi stew, a dish of Persian origin (Al Jazeera)

Hussein al-Jubouri, a researcher in Iraqi heritage and folklore, says, “Karbala is a destination for various nationalities for the purpose of visiting religious shrines there, and there are those who wish to reside until his death. Therefore, the city becomes a vast amount in which types of food are boiled, so these foods remain in the taste of Karbalai’s, so they develop them and spread. These foods will later be found in other Iraqi cities. "

Al-Jubouri added to Al-Jazeera Net, "The Iranian farmers were the first to spread the dish of shabzi stock in Karbala, and they used to bring seeds from their country when they came to work in the fields, planting them and eating them, and then their families followed them to settle in the city."

Iyad Zaini, whose family owns one of the orchards in Karbala, shares al-Jabouri's opinion, and says that most of the farmers and workers in other professions in the city were Iranians decades ago.

Zaini confirmed that the people of Karbala added to the Shabzi stew the character of the city and its culture (Al-Jazeera)

Zaini (60 years), who works as a calligrapher and painter in the old city of Karbala, says that "Iranian workers and peasants are the ones who introduced many dishes, including Shabzi stew, which affected in one way or another the Karbalai kitchen; but the Karbalaiians worked to make some modifications to those dishes To add the character of the city and its culture. "

Despite the simplicity of its ingredients, Karbala'is prefer shabzi stock to the rest of the dishes, as it enjoys a high level of interest compared to fatty or difficult to prepare foods.

Because of its high nutritional value.

The dish is served in most Karbala restaurants as a main dish.

Iraqi cuisine is famous for its many dishes that distinguish it from the kitchens of the countries of the region, most notably dolma, baja, tashreeb, fish muskf and others.

But the shabzi dish managed to compete with these dishes to take a prominent place.