The souvenirs of Shiraz make it to the top of a travelers’ shopping list in Iran. After all, Shiraz is Iran’s city of poetry and culture, with a history that reaches far back, to the prehistoric days. Yes, besides majestic houses, poetic mausoleums, historic landmarks, and unforgettable food, Shiraz is also home to irresistible souvenirs. You can satisfy your sweet tooth, or thirst for artistic handicrafts with souvenirs produced in Shiraz. But you need to know their names and what each of them is. So, without further ado, here is your guide.

The delicious souvenirs of Shiraz

Thanks to its geographical location, Shiraz is blessed with a beautiful nature and a variety of fruits. Together with the locals’ taste, they have given rise to the most delicious dishes and snacks. It is not possible to visit Shiraz and not try its delicious food, including kalam polo, shami, koofteh sabzi, halim bademjan, ash-e sabzi, and ash-e mast.

The good news is that while you can eat these dishes in Shiraz, you can also take back home some delicious souvenirs from Shiraz. But what exactly should you bring back? Don’t worry, we have got this covered here!

Masghati|Muscat Shiraz

One of the delicious souvenirs of Shiraz is masghati, also called muscat. This sweet is basically made by starch, pistachios, sugar, and saffron. You can also find masghati in other cities of Iran, but the one made in Shiraz is unique because of its taste. Especially the kind of masghati made in Larestan county of Shiraz is reputed to have a special taste and texture.
Masghati is usually decorated by petals of flower or nuts. Because of its sweet taste and delicious appearance, masghati makes its way to Iranian celebrations, such as Nowruz. It is usually served besides the famous muffins of Shiraz.

Shiraz Falude

The good news for dessert lovers is that they can try the one of a kind Falude in Shiraz. Some say falude is similar to te Turkish sorbet, but not so much. Falude is a cold and sweet desert, made with noodles as thin as vermicelli.

These noodles are made of starch and are kept in a half-frozen juice of sugar and golab (rose water). Falude is served cold and with the addition of different kinds of syrups. The most popular additive to Falude is lime juice. Even though you can find falude in the other cities of Iran as well, it is original to Shiraz.

Shiraz Muffins

One of the most delicious cookies of Iran is in Shiraz. Locals call it “koloocheh Shirazi”, which loosely translated means muffins of Shiraz. These muffins are in fact flat rounded pieces of cookies which are usually found next to another sweet, called masghati (you just read about it). These two are usually served during the celebrations of Nowruz, the Iranian New Year. Instead of using wheat flour, rice flour is used to make this kind of cookie.

Kak or Shiraz Yukhe bread

Kak or Yukhe bread is in fact a kind of sweet you can find especially in Shiraz and Kermanshah. This delight is in fact made by thinly spread sheets of dough which are rolled and sprinkled by sugar, cinnamon, and powdered pistachio. Yukhe is the best company for a cup of afternoon tea.

Fasa Bread

One of the popular crispy and sweet treats of Shiraz is Fasa Bread. Even though the word ‘bread’ is used in its name, this is in fact a kind of sweet. As this kind of sweet is most commonly made in Fasa city of Fars Province, the sweet is named after the city. The ingredients of Fasa bread include: rose water, cardamom, saffron, and wheat flour.

Shiraz distillates

Besides its fame as Iran’s city of poetry and literature, Shiraz is also famous for its flowers and herbs. While you can enjoy their appearance or smell, you can also benefit from their medical advantages. These herbs and flowers are distilled to make special drinks that can be used both for making sharbats (a kind of sweet drink, served cold in the summer) and for medical purposes. A distillate is called “aragh” in Farsi. Some of the most famous distillates you can find in Shiraz are:

Aragh Bahar Narenj

Bahar Narenj is the orange blossoms which appear in the spring. The distillate has a variety of benefits. Some of these include:

Relaxing and uplifting the mood
Curing tension headache and migraine headaches
Treating sleep disorder

Aragh Bidmeshk

Bidmeshk is the Persian willow blossom. The benefits of the distillate include:

Relaxing and boosting the nervous system
Uplifting the mood
Helping digestion and boosting the appetite
Sleep inducing

Golab

Golab is the Persian rose water, extracted from Damask rose. Golab is widely used both to add flavor to food, sweets, and drinks, and as medicine. Some of its benefits are:

Helps relaxation
Reduces the feeling of exhuastion
Calms down the stress, and smelling it can help headache
Boosts the gums
Contributes to a healthy skin
Controls and reduces fever
Energizes the body

Aragh Nastaran

Nastaran is a species of wild rose called the dog rose. Some of its benefits include:

Helping stomach pain
Anti-depressant
Treating sleep disorder
Boosting the nervous system
Preventing kidney stone

Aragh Nana

Nana is the Persian word for mint. The benefits of mint are not a secret to most of us. Now its distillate has almost the same benefits. To name some of them:

Relaxation
Helping digestion
Calms stomach pain
Rich in anti-oxidants
Fights depression

Please note that it is important to use all of these distillates in moderation. Excessive use might result into serious damage to the liver and the other organs.

Lemon and lemon juice

Shiraz is famous for the variety of fruits from the citrus family. The small, green, sour lemons of Shiraz are the most popular part of every meal in the summer, in Iran. The lemon’s extract is used as a salad dressing, to add delicious sour flavor to Shirazi faloudeh, to use in different sharbats or make sweet and sour lemon juice. If you purchase the lemon juice, make sure to keep it in your main suitcase in the airport. Liquids more than 150 milliliters are detained at the airport.

Shiraz Aurantium

The name of Shiraz is almost synonymous with narenj, which means aurantium or bitter orange. Having a walk in Shiraz, especially in spring when the trees blossom, is usually accompanied by the mesmerizing scent of aurantium which grow abundantly in Shiraz.

Narenj is usually used as an additive to the food, many restaurants serve kabab with pieces of Naranj on the side so that you can squeeze it on your meal. Narenj is also a good company of salad. You can take these scented pieces of Shiraz back home with yourself, as a reminder of the experience you had in the city.

Darab Orange

Now that lemons and bitter oranges have made it to our list of best souvenirs of Shiraz, why not oranges? Oranges, as species of citrus fruits, grow very well in Fars province and Shiraz. Especially the city of Darab, in Fars, is considered as a center for the production of a variety of citrus fruits. It is impossible not to want to take some oranges back home with yourself, after tasting the amazing oranges of Darab.

Arsanjan Pomegranate sauce

One of the most famous pastes and sauces used in Iranian cuisine to add flavor is pomegranate sauce. It is used to make fesenjan stew, sour kabab, and a variety of other dishes. And guess what? Once you visit Shiraz, you can get some of the purest, and most delicious types of pomegranate sauces.
A historical city of Fars Province, called Arsanjan, produces the best kind of pomegranate sauce in the area. Here, pomegranate orchards and trees are not hard to spot, since they are everywhere. The best time for making the sauce is in mid-autumn, when pomegranates have grown well enough. The process has many details and contains its own tricks.

You might also like to know that pomegranate sauce comes in three tastes: sweet, sour, and sweet/ sour. Most shops offer a taste of the product before buying it. In any case, this will bring a special taste and color to your dishes. So, consider having it on your shopping list.

Verjuice shiraz

The list of edible souvenirs from Shiraz continues. The last one on our list is verjuice. Verjuice is extracted from ripe grapes. The fruit is small in size and tastes more sour than green grapes. Verjuice can be found anywhere in Iran, but thanks to its suitable climate, Shiraz is home to the best kinds of grapes in Iran, therefore, the best verjuice is also produced here.

Verjuice can be used as a salad dressing, or an additive to different dishes. Want to make your favorite dish extra sour? Then verjuice is trusted to help you achieve what you want. Even though verjuice also has a lot of medical benefits for the body, consuming it is not recommended especially to pregnant women, those suffering with stomach problems or pains, or people with high blood pressure. Other than that, don’t hesitate to give it a try an buy it if you like.

Shiraz Crafts Souvenirs

As the city’s history reaches far back into the prehistoric era, and its culture is imbued with the diversity of ethnic groups who have lived in Shiraz, today the city has numerous delicate crafts which can be purchased as souvenirs. Here is a list of the most prominent crafts found in Shiraz:
Gabbeh is a variety of Persian carpets and pile rugs, which is usually made by people living around the Zagros mountains, especially the Qashqai and Bakhtiati tribes.

Because of its thickness, texture, the number of knots, small size, patterns, and use, this kind of rug is considered more as a kind of kilim. Also, it is cheaper than carpet because it is easier to make.

Gabbeh is made of natural wool which is colored with natural plant dyes. In addition to this, the patterns of gabbeh are simpler, sometimes leaning towards the abstract. It is hard to find decorative patterns of carpets in gabbeh.

Kilims are a kind of rugs which have been produced since ancient times. They have been extensively made and used in the countries which consisted the Persian Empire in the past.

Kilims are usually made by wool or cotton and contain specific patterns and motifs. These may vary depending on the area where they are produced.
Monabat Kari, also called the Iranian wood carving, is a kind of art dating back to the Sassanid period (3rd – 7th centuries AC).

In this kind of art, the surface of wood is carved in different shapes and patterns. The result is amazing pieces of work, depicting a natural scenery, telling a story, or making beautiful pieces of art.

The Pottery of Shiraz

Pottery is one of the oldest crafts, accompanying Iranians since thousands of years before the Christianity. Pottery and ceramic objects made their way to the life of Iranians and became an inseparable part of their lives.

One of the famous crafts in Shiraz is its pottery and ceramic objects. Here you can find a variety of objects with different sizes and patterns, that can be used either as a daily object or decoration.

Ghalam kari

This type of metalworking, is a kind of art technically called toreutics. Ghalam kari involves carving out and engraving different shapes and patterns on objects made of a variety of metals, such as silver, gold, copper etc. Several tools such as special chisels are used for making this type of craft.

Khatam Kari of Shiraz

Khatam is a type of exquisite inlaid woodwork, made by pieces of wood, metal or bone. Making khatam requires a lot of work and attention to detail. Khatam kari objects either used as ornamental objects to decorate the space or are used as daily objects. The other materials used for construction of khatam objects are gold, metal wires, silver, aluminum, and brass.

The pieces are cut in different geometric shapes and designs, which are then glued and attached together on the object which is supposed to be decorated with khatam kari. Khatam kari items are used as jewelry boxes, pencil cases, frames and clocks.

Mosaic Made in Shiraz

The mosques and houses built in Shiraz usually look greatly different from those in other cities. Usually, the tiles and mosaics used in these structures contribute to a different color and appearance.

A kind of famous mosaic produced and used commonly in Shiraz is the Haftrang mosaic, which means having seven colors. A prime example is the tiles used in the Nassir Al-Mulk mosque.

In these mosaics, yellow, red, deep blue, turquoise, green, white, black and sometimes golden colors can be spotted. These mosaics are usually made in square, rectangular, and hexagonal shapes, and contain arabesque, religious, and historical motifs.

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