Cooking With Bibi Aysha
Date: Thursday, 3 October 2024
Topic: Palestinian Cuisine Part 2
Recipe of the week:
MAQLUBA WITH LAMB
Serves: 6
INGREDIENTS:
Lamb Preparation:
-12 bone in lamb shoulder pieces or boneless lamb, cut into medium-sized portions
-1 large onion, chopped
-4 cardomom/elachi pods
-4 bay leaves
-¹/² tsp ground Allspice
-¹/² tsp sugar
-1 tsp salt
-¹/² tsp black pepper
Vegetable preparation:
-2 large eggplants, sliced into thin rounds
-1 cauliflower head, cut into florets
-2 large potatoes, peeled then cut into thin rounds
-2 tomatoes, cut into thin slices
-3 tblsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
-Salt & black pepper to taste
Rice Preparation:
-2 cups Basmati Rice
-5 cups of leftover lamb broth(broth from after cooking the lamb above)
-Salt to taste
-¹/² tsp black pepper
-¹/⁴ tsp cumin seeds
-¹/⁴ tsp turmeric powder
-1¹/² tsp garam masala or 7 spice optional
Garnish:
-¹/⁴ cup fresh parsley, chopped
-¹/² cup slivered almonds toasted in olive oil or ghee
METHOD:
1.Wash lamb pieces, then add into a deep pot and cover with water. Cover the pot & leave to simmer over medium heat for a few minutes. You will notice a residue on the top, remove with a spoon & throw away.
2.When the water in the pot is clear, add the onions, cardomom pods, bay leaves, allspice, sugar, salt & pepper to the pot. Cover the pot, then leave to simmer over medium heat for 1¹/² to 2 hrs or until the lamb is tender. Boneless lamb cooks in less time.
3.While the meat is cooking, preheat oven to 200°C then prepare the veggies & rice.
4.In a dish, toss the eggplant slices, cauliflower florets, and potato slices with the extra virgin olive oil, salt & pepper ensuring the veggies are coated in the oil. Add more olive oil if necessary.
5.Arrange the vegetables in 3 seperate rows for each vegetable type on one large, greased baking sheet eg: all eggplants together evenly, all cauliflower together & all potato slices evenly together. Vegetables must not overlap.
6.Bake for 30 min until tender & lightly golden. Flip over once halfway through the baking process.
7.For the Rice preparation soak the rice then drain and mix with the spices for the rice prep.
8.By now the meat should be cooked so drain the water & use it as lamb broth to cook the rice in.
How to assemble the pot:
1.Use a non stick pot and grease again with oil or Spray N Cook. Arrange a layer of the soaked rice at the bottom of the bot.
2.Now add a layer of tomato slices then top the tomato slices with a layer of the baked eggplant slices, baked cauliflower florets and baked potato slices.
3.Now add the cooked lamb pieces and cover with the remaining soaked rice grains. Cover the top of the rice with a fitted heat proof plate to keep the rice intact when it starts to simmer.
4.Pour the lamb broth over the rice covering it completely with an inch extra on the top.Leave to boil then simmer for 30 minutes over medium heat until the rice is cooked.
5.Remove from heat and leave aside for 20 minutes in the pot before serving.
6.When you are ready to serve, use a large platter with raised edges then swiftly flip the pot over the top of the platter while tapping at the bottom of the pot a few times.
7.Slowly raise the pot to reveal the different layers of the aromatic Maqluba.
8.Garnish the top with toasted, slivered almonds & fresh chopped parsley. ENJOY!
