Ranginak
Bushehr's date-and-walnut sweet as a stirred drink: aged rum, a syrup of dates, walnuts, cinnamon and cardamom, and bitters.
Ingredients
| Ingredient | ml | oz |
|---|---|---|
| Aged rum | 50 ml | 1⅔ oz |
| Ranginak syrup · homemade, P47 | 15 ml | ½ oz |
| Aromatic bitters | 2 dashes |
Ounces are rounded; measure in ml for accuracy. Homemade items link to their own page.
rocks glass
stirred with ice, served over one large cube
a date stuffed with a walnut half on a pick and a pinch of ground pistachio
The story
Ranginak is the sweet of the Persian Gulf coast: dates stuffed with walnuts, pressed under flour toasted in butter with cardamom and cinnamon, cut into diamonds and dusted with pistachio. In Bushehr it is on the iftar tray every night of Ramadan and on the table whenever a guest arrives. A spirit, a sweetener and bitters: when the sweetener is ranginak itself the drink needs nothing else. Aged rum because this is the sea coast and rum is the sea’s spirit; the stuffed date on the pick is the dessert you would have been given anyway. The whole plate goes into one syrup.
Method
- Chill a rocks glass with one large cube.
- Stir the rum, ranginak syrup and bitters with ice for 25 seconds.
- Strain over the cube.
- Rest a walnut-stuffed date on a pick across the rim and dust a pinch of ground pistachio on the ice.
How it tastes
Date and toasted walnut first, cardamom and cinnamon behind, the molasses of aged rum underneath and bitters keeping it from turning into dessert. Slow, warm, for the end of the night.
Persian taste: shirin (sweet), warm
Pair it with
- Food: Nothing, or a bowl of dates and a glass of water.
- Sweet: Ranginak itself, obviously.
- Snack: Salted roasted almonds
Variations
Bourbon
Bonded bourbon in place of rum, darker and drier.
Smoky
A bar spoon of peated whisky on top.
Coffee
A bar spoon of cardamom coffee concentrate stirred in: the Bushehr nightcap.
Balancing tips
- The syrup is dense; 15 ml is plenty, and 10 with a sweet rum.
- One big clear cube; this drink should dilute slowly.
- Shake the syrup bottle first; it separates.
Allergens
- Tree nuts (walnut, pistachio)
- Contains alcohol. Please drink responsibly.
Development notes
- Status: original recipe draft v0.1, not yet taste-tested.
- Test syrup at 10 and 15 ml with two rums.
- Try an orange peel.
Watch it mixed
Follow along
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Bushehr, imagined
