Persian Gaz (Iranian Nougat): Recipe, Calories, Photos

Every traditional food in the world with popularity has its own unique story and origin. The tasty Persian Gaz is no exception and is one of the most popular souvenirs purchased from Iran.

What is Iranian Gaz? The Iranian Gaz or the Persian Nougat is a candy made of nuts like pistachios, rose water, and sap (a fluid extracted from a plant). Not only the Iranian Gaz candy is super flavorful, but it also has many health benefits. Stay with us to learn more about the Persian Gaz, its history, recipe, price, and more.

What is Gaz Angabin?

The Persian term “Gaz” is related to the words “Gaz-Angabin”. Angabin is another word for honey in Persian, and with the combination of Gaz and honey, this simply means the “honey of Gaz” extracted from the Tamarisk plant species in the Zagros Mountain ranges in Iran. The Gaz is supposed to be the sap extracted from the Tamarisk tree.

Iranian Gaz History and Origin

The origin and the making of the Persian Nougat dates back to 450 years ago during the Safavid dynasty. The ancient city of Isfahan is where Gaz candy was first made.

Eating sweets and candies have always been customary in ancient Persia for thousands of years. According to archeological researchers, sweets were an essential and common consumption item for the hospitality customs in Iran that still exist up to this day.

Although the exact date for the production of the Iranian Gaz in Isfahan has not been officially recorded, the past generations of Gaz producers have shown the modern world how the recipe and its history have passed down over the years.

The Safavid dynasty was a flourishing era in Iran where art and culture were booming in the cultured city of Isfahan. Historians also state that the making of Gaz candy precedes to the Qajar dynasty during the reign of Agha Muhammad Khan Qajar, which was before the Safavid era.

The Iranian Gaz was then exported to the neighboring and western lands and later became one of the most popular food items from Iran among other countries. The kings in ancient Iran would use the Gaz candy as a gift offered to royal families from the West.

Halva Chubeh

The Halva Chubeh is the earliest sweets made in Iran, which is quite similar to the Gaz in the market. Halva is a confectionary originally from Iran, made from flour, eggs, rosewater, and other ingredients.

Halva chubeh is a crispy white sweet made of egg whites, sugar, and pistachio that are mixed in a copper container, and within 2 hours, the Gaz mixture is formed.

The mixture is then cut into small pieces, forming cookie-like sweets. In the olden days, agriculture workers would eat these sweets during work to reduce exhaustion and boost their mood.

Persian Gaz Health Benefits

The Iranian Gaz candy is sweet and gummy with a blend of healthy nuts that adds relishing flavors to this traditional nougat.

Because of the presence of pistachios or walnuts and Angabin (Honey) in the Iranian Gaz, this candy is not just appetizing; it boasts several health benefits as well. Here, we are going to learn about some of these benefits.

Angabin Benefits

Honey is rich in antioxidants, minerals, and vitamins. Angabin, which is honey, contains calcium. Therefore, it is beneficial for the bones and is useful for the treatment and prevention of osteoporosis.

It has laxatives that can improve bowel movement and stop constipation and hemorrhoids. It is also the best laxative for children and the elderly who suffer from such health problems.

Since Angabin harbors magnesium, it can reduce the development of cancer cells. The white color of the Iranian Gaz is not made with any food coloring or such; it is all natural ingredients that are not harmful to the teeth, but it actually whitens the teeth and strengthens the gums.

Pistachio Benefits

Pistachios have a lot of nutritional properties. With the Persian Gaz containing a healthy ingredient like pistachios, you can strengthen the brain cells and memory.

This tasty nut is also useful for calming the heart and the nerves. Pistachios are recommended by many traditional doctors in Iran.

They can open up the liver channel pathways. Just like honey, pistachios are perfect anti-oxidants that can reduce the risk of cancer. They have low calories but have high protein, so you do not need to worry about weight gain.

How many calories are in Persian Gaz?

As mentioned earlier, pistachios are low in calories. The only ingredients in the Gaz with higher calories are honey, glucose, and flour.

Depending on the size of the Gaz you consume, the number of calories will vary. However, a moderate and most common size Gaz will have around 370 to 424 kilo calories. It will have around 9 grams of fat and 6 grams of protein.

Iranian Gaz Recipe

The Iranian Gaz candy is mostly served with tea or other hot beverages. In the evening, after a challenging day, having a bite from the velvet-like and chewy Gaz is an opportunity you do not want to miss.

People in Iran also make Gaz at home, apart from buying them from a pastry shop. There are a few ingredients you need to make this treasured Persian Nougat.

You can read the authentic Gaz recipe in our article. Follow these steps to make your own Iranian Gaz! Firstly, you need to prepare the Persian Gaz ingredients. They are:

• 250 grams of sugar
• 375 grams of liquid glucose
• 5 egg whites
• 3 or 4 spoons of rosewater
• 100 to 150 grams of any nut you prefer (common nuts are pistachios or walnuts)
• ¾ glasses of water
• Some flour

To make the Iranian Gaz candy, you must first mix the water and sugar in a copper pot. Put the mixture on low heat until the sugar dissolves and the water gets hot. Do not let the water boil, you must put the pot on a heat diffuser to avoid overheating.

Once the sugar is dissolved, add the liquid glucose and mix well with a whisk or a wooden spoon until the nectar dissolves. In Persian, this process is called the “Thread” effect.

In the meantime, beat the egg white with an electric mixer until it becomes fluffy and doubles in size, so that it does not spill when we flip the container.

Then add rose water to the mixture and stir it for a while. You must be careful that the nectar does not boil while stirring. Make sure your cooker is on low heat.

Check the nectar between your two fingers until it reaches the threading effect, that is when the mixture is stretched like a thread between your two fingers.

When the nectar is ready, pour some of it into the egg whites and wait until they are at the same temperature. After stirring a little, pour all the egg whites into the nectar pot and stir the ingredients in a rotational direction.

This step must be done carefully! Stir the ingredients with a mixer at high speed for 10 to 15 minutes, and in between, turn off the mixer a few times and stir the ingredients with a wooden spoon until all the ingredients are well mixed.

The mixture in the pot must be constantly checked and stirred. But since the bottom of the copper pot is small and a heat diffuser is used, you can leave the pot from time to time and start stirring again so you don’t get too tired, this step takes about 1.5 to 2 hours.

When the material reaches the stage where it hardens and does not fall off the spoon, the Gaz is ready, and you can turn off the flame. Now add the nuts and mix them well so the nuts remain evenly all over the Gaz.

Then, wait for the Gaz to cool down and become lukewarm. Then, you can use any mold you like to make the Gaz shape. If you are using a mold, sprinkle flour inside the mold and then shape the Gaz dough into it and place the dough on the bottom of a dish. Hold it well and then put it in a serving dish.

Where can you buy the Iranian Gaz Candy?

If you want to taste the best Iranian Gaz in Iran, it is best to buy them from their place of origin, the beautiful Isfahan city. Several pastry shops in Isfahan are famous for making the best Gaz in Iran. We recommend buying the most savory Gaz from these locations:

Gaz Kermani

Gaz Kermani is one of the best Gaz makers in Isfahan, and the shop is more than a hundred years old. Haj Mirza Hossein Mohsenzadeh Kermani was the founder of Gaz Kermani in Isfahan during the Qajar era.

Apart from Kermani Gaz, Mozaffari Gaz is one of the oldest in the market, which started its activity in 1930, and like other traditional Gaz shops, the profession has been passed down from father to son.

Gaz Mozafari has a branch on Sheikh Bahai Street near Chaharbagh Abbasi Street, and its other branch is on Sheikh Sadouq Street.

There are thousands of locations in traditional and modern markets that specialize in making and selling Iranian Gaz candy.

Iranian Gaz Price

Depending on the packaging and the weight of your purchase, the Gaz price is different. For normal Gaz packages, the price is around 1 $, and luxury packages are up to 20 or 50 $. You can find higher prices on the market as well.

Finally

Gaz is one of the most traditional sweets produced in Iran. Since the making of this candy, the Iranian Gaz has undergone many changes. A sweet and chewy nougat sold worldwide and loved by many abroad. Gaz is a very popular souvenir purchased by visitors. If you happen to visit Isfahan, don’t forget to try out this delicious Persian candy.

Are you planning to travel to Iran and looking for an Iran resort? Consider Matinabad eco resort. Maybe you will find interesting things to do in Isfahan.