Persian Rice Cookies (Nan e Berenji), Simplified Recipe (2024)

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Table of contents

• Persian Rice Cookies
  • Nan e Berenji, Shirini Berenji
• The Cookies
• Persian Rice Cookies Recipe
  • The Method
• Ingredients for Persian Rice Cookies
  • White Rice Flour
  • Cornflour (Cornstarch)
  • Butter or Vegetable Oil?
• Persian Rice Cookies Flavouring and Topping
  • Rose Water
  • Cardamom
  • Poppy Seeds
  • Ground Dried Rose Petals
  • Ground Pistachios
• Persian Rice Cookie Pattern
• How to Serve Persian Rice Cookies
• How to Store
• Nowruz Recipes

These Persian rice cookies, or naan e berenji, are one of many Persian cookies traditionally made for Nowruz, the Persian New Year that falls on the Spring Equinox.

Previously published 2015. Republished with updated content Feb 2023.

Persian Rice Cookies

These are probably one of my favourite cookies for their just-sweet flavour and light, airy, yet slightly chewy texture. Persian rice cookies are also known as Nan e Berenji and Shirini Berenji. Let’s break that down, shall we?

Nan e Berenji, Shirini Berenji

• nan = bread
• e = I’ve talked about this before, an ezāfe, it connects words in Farsi, to indicate a relationship between the words on either side of it
• berenji = rice
• shirini = sweets, referring to all manner of pastry in Iran

So, literally, rice bread, or rice sweets.

The Cookies

Persian rice cookies are traditionally topped with poppy seeds, although many families, like mine, also finish the cookies off with crushed rose petals and pistachios.

Authentic nan e berenji have an enticing floral and musky aroma because we flavour them with rose water and cardamom.

If you’ve been a long time follower of LinsFood, you’ll know that rose and cardamom is a very popular combination in the Middle East and surrounding region.

Persian Rice Cookies Recipe

The traditional Persian rice cookie recipe calls for the cookie dough to be refrigerated overnight, because it’s very, very soft and wet. This was how I’d always made it, and the recipe that I published in 2015.

However, I’ve had many requests for a shorter recipe, and also a couple of readers for whom the recipe just didn’t work. It was too soft and spread too much. So I’m finally delivering – easy Persian rice cookies recipe!

Essentially, I’ve tweaked my old recipe to allow us to chill the dough for just 1 hour, with no loss of flavour and texture. One hour is enough for the rice flour to absorb moisture and fluff up, the key to shirini berenji’s texture.

The cookies taste exactly the same, with the old airy, yet slightly chewy texture.

The Method

1. Lightly cream the butter and sugar with a wooden spoon. So instead of using beaters, we’re going to “beat the butter” with a wooden spoon. That means round and round vigorously.
2. Add the flours ( I use a little cornflour/cornstarch).
3. Bring it all together without kneading.
4. Wrap in clingfilm and chill for 1 hour.
5. Shape with hands then create a pattern on each cookie.
6. Top with poppy seeds, and bake for 15 – 18 minutes.

Ingredients for Persian Rice Cookies

White Rice Flour

They’re rice cookies, so we definitely want rice flour and specifically plain white rice flour. Not glutinous rice flour that we use in East and South East Asian cooking.

You should be able to find rice flour in the baking aisle or in the aisle that sells gluten free baking supplies. It’s also an essential ingredient in Asian cooking, so Asian shops are always a good bet, whether South Asian or East Asian.

Cornflour (Cornstarch)

I add just a little bit of cornflour (cornstarch in the US) to our Persian rice cookie dough to aid the structure of our cookies. This also helps to ensure that are cookies don’t spread too much given the much shorter cooking time.

Butter or Vegetable Oil?

Some families use butter while others use a neutral vegetable oil. I find Persian rice cookies made with vegetable oil a little bland for my liking, given their already subtle nature. So I always use salted butter.

But I love my butter, I’ll have it in any shape or form. Do what you like, especially if you want dairy free Persian rice cookies, then by all means, use vegetable oil in baking your nan e berenji.

Persian Rice Cookies Flavouring and Topping

Rose Water

Traditionally, this would be it, along with cardamom. But every family has its own slant on traditional recipes.

Some may use orange flower (blossom) water instead.

Both rose and orange flower water will be found in the baking aisle, next to the vanilla. Failing that, here are my affiliate links to get them via Amazon (these are the ones I use):

• Nielsen Massey Rose Water
• Steenbergs Organic Rose Water
• Steenbergs Organic Orange Flower Water
• Ground Cardamom (once opened, keep it in an airtight container)

Cardamom

Cardamom is a natural accompaniment to rose water in many, many Middle Eastern desserts and pastries.

Because I use ground cardamom a lot (my morning tea for starters), I tend to have ground cardamom seeds in stock at all times.

If you don’t have any, just pry open 12 cardamoms, get the seeds out and pound them to a fine powder with a pestle and mortar.

Poppy Seeds

Poppy Seeds are most definitely the topping of choice for Persian Rice Cookies. They add colour, texture and the slightest hint of fruit and nuttiness.

You’ll find poppy seeds with the other spices in your local supermarket.

Ground Dried Rose Petals

On LinsFood, we love topping our Persian rice cookies with ground edible dried rose petals. All my Persian friends and clients go wow, why didn’t I think of that, when they bite into one.

You’ll find them in South Asian stores or online. If you’re in the UK, Waitrose stocks them. But here’s my Amazon affiliate link for dried rose petals.

Click here to find out how to use dried rose petals.

Ground Pistachios

Pistachios are a very popular ingredient in the Persian and Middle Eastern kitchen. You can ground them up and use them to top your Persian rice cookies as an alternative topping.

Persian Rice Cookie Pattern

Traditional Persian rice cookies have a pattern imprinted on them. This can be anything and made with any tool.

I just use an ordinary fork and create 4 lines across for the pattern you see. You can also use cookie stamps or just press down once with your fork flat on the cookie surface.

Or, honestly, leave it plain.

How to Serve Persian Rice Cookies

As you would any cookie, really. You don’t have to make these Persian rice cookies just for Nowruz or Eid. They are perfect for Christmas, Easter, Diwali or for anytime you fancy cookies!

Iranians’ drink of choice is tea, served black. So you could do that, serve your Nan e Berenji with Persian tea. Or serve it with anything you fancy: coffee, milk or hot chocolate.

Click here for our Persian Tea recipe.

How to Store

Store your Persian rice cookies as you would any other cookie: in an airtight container. They will keep for 5 days, although around the 3rd day, they’ll get noticeably softer and chewier.

And that’s it, shall we get our aprons on?

Nowruz Recipes

You’ll find more Nowruz recipes here, like the following: