Kusa Mahshi

Kusa Mahshi is arabic name for minced meat stuffed baby zucchini. Usually made in tomato sauce or yogurt sauce.

Ingredients:
6-8 mini zucchini, middle part removed
150 g. minced lamb
100 g. rice soaked in boiling water for 30 minutes
3 garlic gloves
Salt and pepper
1 tsp. Baharat (arabic 7 spice mix)
1 tsp. dry mint
1 can diced tomatoes
2 Tbsp. Tomato paste
1 bouillon cube Maggi

Method:
1. Prepare zucchini by removing flesh from the middle. Wash a pat dry.
2. Fry minced lamb for 5 minutes and mix with previously soaked in boiling water rice, baharat, sat, pepper and 1 minced garlic glove. Set aside to cool.
3. Put a shallow pan on the medium fire, add 2 cups of water and dissolve one beef or lamb bullion cube. Bring to boil and add can of diced tomatoes, tomato paste and bring to a simmer.
4. Stuff zucchinis with cooled meat mixture, do not reach 0,5 cm till the top of zucchini.
5. Add remaining minced garlic and dry mint to tomato sauce, season with salt and pepper.
6. Add stuffed zucchinis to simmering sauce, cover with a lid and let it simmer on very law heat for 30-40 minutes. Do not over boil - zucchinis should be soft but not mashy to touch.
7. Serve hot with tomato sauce over vermicelli rice. Sprinkle with mint.

Sahtein!

Green Wheat with Chcken ("Freekeh Ma Dajaj")

One of my favorite Middle Eastern Dishes. Freekeh (or Farik) - is the type of cerela made from green weat which goes through a roasting process in its production. The wheat is harvested while the grains are yellow and the seeds are still soft; it is then piled and sun-dried. The piles are then carefully set on fire so only the straw and chaff burn and not the seeds. It is the high moisture content of the seeds that prevents them from burning. The now roasted wheat undergoes further thrashing and sun-drying to make the flavor, texture, and color uniform. It is this thrashing or rubbing process of the grains that gives this food its name, farīk or “rubbed.” The seeds are now cracked into smaller pieces so they look like a green bulgur. It typically served with chicken, but variation with Lamb is aslo possible.

Ingredients:
1/2 Chicken cut in pieces with bones and skin on
1 cup Freekeh
1/2 large onion
Olive oil
Toasted Pine Nuts
Water enough to cover chicken

Spices:
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. cardamom (or pods)
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1/2 tsp. Baharat (Arabic Spice mix)
Black pepper corns
Salt to taste

1. Prepare the chicken and boil it with spices until cooked.
2. Wash freekeh in large amount of water discarding dirt and stones. Drain in colander for 30 minutes.
3. Remove cooked chicken from stock, sprinkle with spices, brush with a bit of olive oil and cook in hot oven for 15 minutes just to give it some crispiness.
4. Drain stock.
5. Cook some diced onions in the skillet with 1 Tbsp. of olive oil until translucent. Add freekeh and cover with chicken stock - 3 cm. above surface. Bring to boil, cover with a lid and let it simmer for 30 minutes. Give it a stir once in a while or add more water or stock if needed.
6. Serve in one plate, garnish with toasted pine nuts or browned onions.

Fish with Sesame Paste Sauce ("Samak Bil Tahina")

One of the best arabic dishes! Tahina sauce goes perfectly well with fish.

Ingredients:

500 g. fillet of white fish (hammour)

Salt, pepper, olive oil

1/2 tahina (sesame seed paste)

1 cup water

juice from one lemon

1/2 onion chopped

2 cloves of garlic

Pomegranate seeds, pine nuts, green onions

Method:

1. Prepare fish: wash, discard any left over bones, pat dry, season from both sides and drizzle with olive oil.

2. Bake in preheated to 180 C oven for 10-15 minutes. Time depends on if you cook one big peace or two smaller ones. Do not over bake.

3. Prepare sauce: mix tahina, lemon juice and water and bring to a light boil, just to dissolve the paste. In another skillet fry some onions with garlic in 1 Tbsp. of olive oil, add to tahina mixture and mix well.

4. Remove fish from the oven and spread tahina sauce over it. Place back to the oven for another 10-15 minutes.

5. Garnish with fried pine nuts and green onions on top.

Sahten! :-)

PS: for side dish i made some basmati rice with turmeric and raisins:

1. Wash 2 cups of basmati rice until water will become clear. Let it drain in a sieve for 30 minutes.

2. Heat some olive oil in heavy pan and fry rice for 2 minutes until coated well in oil and extra liquid evaporated.

3. Add 3 cups of boiling salted water and close the lead, leave on law heat for 10 minutes.

4. Open the lead and quickly drizzle 1 tsp. of turmeric over rice, close the lead again and cook for another 5 minutes or until rice cooked through and fluffy.

5. In small skillet heat 1 Tbs. of olive oil, add washed and dried raisins and fry for a minute.

6. Add to rice and mix all together before serving. Or just drizzle over rice on serving plate.

Fatoush - Arabic salad #1

I finally getting close to discovering favorite fatoush recipe. This is how close i could get till now.

Ingredients:

1 large tomato

2 medium cucumbers

5 small radishes

Salad leaves

Fresh Mint

Fresh thyme

Toasted arabic bread

Dressing:

Olive Oil

Juice from 1 lemon

Salt

Sumac

Pomegranate Molasses

Method:

1. Cut all vegetables medium to small chunks.

2. Toss salad with olive oil, salt, sumac and lemon juice.

3. Drain and arrange on the serving plate.

4. Toast some pieces of arabic flat bread in the over sprinkled with olive oil.

5. Arrange arabic bread pieces on top of the salad.

6. Best part is - generously sprinkle on top with pomegranate molasses.

Sahtein!