9 Persian Idioms and Proverbs Related to Soup (Âsh)

Updated: 8 July 2019

Sizdeh bedar marked the final day of the Nowruz season, and we’ve officially started our first 1398 work/school week. “Nature day”, as sizdeh bedar is also commonly known, is one of several days throughout the year when it’s tradition to eat âsh. Âsh is essentially a soup, but it differs from soup (which is a cognate in Persian) in that soup is lighter and usually an appetizer while âsh is thick and heavy enough to eat as the main meal. In My Persian Corner version 1.0, one of the very first posts that I ever wrote was about how âsh featured prominently in the Persian language, an article that I had been wanting to repost for some time. While I was shopping for produce yesterday, I was excited to see bulbs of fresh garlic back in the market, which got me thinking of sizdeh bedar 4 years ago. I was at an outdoor fair when I spotted a woman simmering an enormous pot of âsh to perfection. In between customers trying on sunglasses and not purchasing them, she was chopping up enough fresh garlic to add to the âsh that anyone who ate it would have to avoid all human contact for the remainder of the month of Farvardin. All this blathering to say that it seemed like an opportune time to revamp and repost this article. Read on to discover 9 Persian idioms and proverbs related to soup, specifically âsh, with clips from the comedy series Shahgoosh to help you hear them in action.

It’s important to note that âsh makes up the foundation of several Persian words. We have:

آش / âsh = [hearty] soup

آشپز / âshpaz = soup maker (cook)

آشپزی کردن / âshpazi kardan = to make soup (to cook)

آشپزخانه / âshpazkhuneh = soup maker’s house (kitchen)

And there are so many types of âsh! Âsh reshteh (beans, herbs, and noodles) is classic and vegan-friendly (as long as you scrap the whey). Then there’s âsh-e doogh (made with yogurt), âsh-e anar (pomegranate), âsh-e jo (barley), âsh-e shole ghalam kâr (made with meat), âsh-e torsh (sour âsh)… the list goes on with every city/region having its own specialty.

I guess it should come as no surprise then that âsh holds a special place in many Persian idioms and proverbs. Let’s take a look at what they are.

Nokhod-e har âsh

Literally: A pea in every soup

English equivalent: To stick one’s oar in

I’ve seen this mostly translated as “to have a finger in every pie”, but the Persian idiom implies a sense of nosiness and meddling. So I think a better equivalent is “to stick one’s oar in.”

Âsh-e dahan suzi nist.

Literally: It’s not a mouth-burning soup.

English equivalent: It’s nothing to write home about.

Âsh-e khodet râ ham bezan.

Literally: Stir your own soup.

English equivalent: Mind your own business.

Remember when pronouncing this that râ is reduced to /o/, so it sounds like âsh-e khodeto ham bezan.

Harchi pul bedi, âsh mikhori.

Literally: You eat as much soup as you pay for.

English equivalent: You get what you pay for.

Âshi barât bepazam ke roosh yek vajab roghan bâsheh.

Literally: I’ll cook you a soup with lots of oil on top.

English equivalent: I’ll fix your wagon.

This is often accompanied by a hand gesture showing a vajab. In this clip from Shahgoosh, we can see the character making the gesture (referring to the amount of oil, of course) while telling his colleague that he needs to call his wife to tell her “what kind of âsh he has cooked up.”

Âshpaz ke dotâ shod, âsh yâ shur mishe yâ binamak.

Literally: When the cooks are 2, the soup is either salty or bland.

English equivalent: Too many cooks spoil the broth.

Kâseh dâghtar az âsh

Literally: A bowl hotter than the soup

English equivalent: More Catholic than the Pope

Hamun âsh o hamun kâseh

Literally: The same soup and the same bowl

English equivalent: It’s the same old story. 

A slight difference between the Persian and English meanings is that in the Persian version, you do actually try to change something, but nothing changes.

Again in Shahgoosh, the older brother doesn’t like his sister’s fiance, and they’re always arguing. The brother tells him that until he leaves their family alone, it’ll be the same âsh and the same bowl.

Âsh-e nakhorde va dahan-e sukhteh

Literally: Uneaten soup and a burned mouth

English equivalent: This is used when you get in trouble and blamed for something that you didn’t do, kind of like a scapegoat.

It comes from the story of a shy boy who’s the apprentice of a businessman. One day, the businessman is sick, and a doctor prescribes him medicine. The shy boy picks it up and goes to drop it off at his boss’s house. The businessman’s wife, who was known for the mouth-watering âsh she made, had cooked âsh for lunch and invites the boy to stay. She goes into the kitchen to grab some spoons, and while the shy boy is waiting alone by the table, he decides it’s better to come up with an excuse and not stay for lunch. He fakes a toothache, and when his boss enters the room and sees him covering his mouth, he says, “Did you burn your mouth? You could have at least waited until the soup cooled off.” The wife returns with the spoons and shames her husband. “Âsh-e nakhorde va dahan-e sukhteh? How could he have burned his mouth if he didn’t even have a spoon to eat with!?” That’s when the businessman realizes his mistake. So now, when you’re accused of something you didn’t do, we say âsh-e nakhorde va dahan-e sukhteh.

Here’s a clip from – what else?- Shahgoosh where this idiom is used.

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