There is a variety of onions called salamouni here, with an elongated graceful shape; they taste just like regular yellow onions but the neat thing about them is that once boiled, their skins stay curled up, making them perfect for stuffing. 

This recipe is shared by Asma, my wonderful Kurdish friend, who told me it was her father’s favorite dish. I will post a short video of Asma making this in the next 48 hours.

The stuffing here is the basic rice and ground meat one with a generous amount of sumac. Cabbage leaves are included in the pot as well. 

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 pound of beef or lamb bones (preferably from the ribs)
• 1/2 pound of ground beef or lamb
• 2 cups of Italian or Egyptian or sushi rice
• Spices: 1 tsp of salt (or more), 2 tsp of seven-spice (or half cinnamon, half allspice, a touch of nutmeg), 1/4 cup of sumac (or more, to taste).
• Olive oil, as needed
• 1 pound of onions
• 1 pound of cabbage leaves
• 1 bouillon cube
• 1 large lemon juiced (or 1/2 cup of lemon juice)

1. Blanch the onions and cabbage leaves in plenty of salted water till thoroughly wilted and soft. Drain and set aside while preparing the stuffing briefly. 
2. In a bowl, mix the rice, meat and spices; add one or more tablespoons of oil to the mixture if it feels too dry. Heat  a large pot and brown the bones; set aside. 
3. Stuff the onion leaves one by one, removing the translucent skin covering between each layer of skin. Stuff the cabbage leaves, removing the stalks and keeping them aside to line the pot. Place the cabbage and onion leaves side by side in the pot. Cover with a small plate to hold them in place (place a rock on top of the plate if necessary for extra protection). Sprinkle sumac over the leaves, add water to the top and bring to a simmer; add the lemon juice gradually as the pot simmers gently for one hour. 
4. Serve warm or at room temperature.

What tourist brochures fail to mention when advertising the many advantages  of Lebanon  is that this is the place where self-expression rules.

Nowhere is this more evident than on the road.

Lebanese drivers favor honking as their favorite method of self-expression; to  be awakened at 3:00AM by a honking contest (when your half-conscious mind is wondering “surely the traffic can’t be bad at this hour?”) is not infrequent for example.

Changing the topic, this is Lebanese comfort food par excellence. Silky and so tender that they dissolve in the mouth, these cabbage rolls will make you forget traffic, honking and other urban annoyances.

The cabbage leaves need to be tender, the rice used in the stuffing needs to be medium-grain rice and the seasoning needs to permeate the dish to avoid blandness.

Stuffed with a  meat and rice combo or a coarse-grain bulgur and split chick-peas for a vegan version.

INGREDIENTS: 6 to 8 servings

• 1 green cabbage, preferably with tender leaves
• 1 pound of ground meat (fatty OK)
• 1 large onion
• 1 cup of rice (sushi, Egyptian, Italian or Turkish, or any medium-grain)
• Spices: 1 head of garlic, 1/4 cup of dried mint, 1 cup of lemon juice, 1 cup of olive oil.
• Spices for the meat: 1 1/2 tsp of salt, 1/2 tsp of white pepper
• 4 cups of meat or chicken stock or water

METHOD:

1. Blanch the cabbage leaves in salted  boiling water for several minutes until very tender. Drain in a colander and then cut them in 5 inch squares. Reserve the thick stalks.
2. Soak the rice for 15 minutes in water, drain and mix with the ground meat, salt and white pepper.
3. Chop the onion fine and fry gently in olive oil till softened; mash 8 cloves of garlic with some salt in a mortar coarsely and add to the chopped onion. Add the dried mint and fry this pesto for a few seconds until fragrant. Transfer to the bottom of the pot in which the cabbage leaves will cook; top with the cabbage stalks spreading them to cover the bottom of the pan.
4. Flatten each cabbage square and place a generous tablespoon of stuffing on the edge of it; roll up like a cigar, leaving the ends open. Try not to place stuffing towards the ends as the stuffing will expand during cooking.
5. Place the cabbage cigars one by one in the pot; place a small plate on top of the cigars to hold them in place if desired. Place the remaining garlic cloves (peeled but whole) in-between the cabbage rolls. Add the meat stock, the lemon juice and the rest of the olive oil as well. Cook for about one hour over low heat at a gentle simmer until the stuffing is thoroughly cooked and the leaves are extra tender. Serve warm.

NOTE: In the olden days, fat was added to the meat for extra flavor and moisture; for expediency, I would simply use a ground meat at 85%.

To call this dish a soup is misleading;  like the Mexican posole it is a grand dish with many components each of which have to be prepared separately.

Mouloukhieh is hugely popular in Lebanon and in Egypt and the exact origin of this dish has not been established yet. Suffice it to say that each region prepares it a bit differently. My Egyptian friend Phoebe who has successfully grown the mouloukhieh plant in her Dallas backyard, never uses any cilantro in hers; omitting cilantro in the Lebanese version would be considered heresy.

This plant is called jew’s mallow in the US and corette in French-speaking countries. It is available frozen in all Middle-Eastern grocers in the US and Canada; it is available fresh in Asian markets in the US, as it is a plant that is consumed in Asian countries.

The method for making mouloukhieh is very simple: Prepare a chicken or beef or lamb broth by boiling the meat with some aromatic spices. Prepare a cilantro pesto using fresh and dried cilantro, garlic and olive oil. Flavor the broth with the cilantro pesto and cook the mouloukhieh leaves in the broth very briefly. Serve the soup with pieces of meat or chicken (or both) over white rice, some toasted pita chips, and ladle some chopped onion and vinegar (or lemon) over the soup when ready to savor it.

For some pointers on how to use the fresh mouloukhieh, click here.

INGREDIENTS: 8 generous servings

• 3-pound whole chicken
• 2 lamb or beef shanks (optional)
• 4  cups of cooked long-grain rice (can use Basmati)
• 3 pita breads, toasted in a 275F oven till golden and dry and crumbled
• Aromatics for the broth (chicken and meat): 1 or 2 carrots, 2 bay leaves, black peppercorns, 1 leek or 1 celery stalk, 1 sprig of thyme, 2 cinnamon sticks, a few sprigs of parsley, any other spice you like to add to your broth.
• 2 packages of frozen mouloukhieh (about 400 g each)
• 3 large onions, chopped fine
• 1 cup of red vinegar or 1 cup of fresh lemon juice
• For the cilantro pesto: 2 bunches of fresh cilantro, 12 cloves of garlic, 1/3 cup of olive oil.
• 1 tbsp of dried  cilantro powder (optional)

METHOD:

1. Place the whole chicken (minus innards) in a pot with cold water to cover and the aromatics; bring to a simmer and let it simmer slowly until cooked, skimming any froth from the surface of the pot. Cool the chicken and debone, reserving large pieces for the mouloukhieh later on. Strain the broth and set aside.
2. If using meat shanks, follow the same procedure; when cooked, set aside and strain the broth. Mix the chicken and meat broth.
3. Wash, dry and chop the cilantro leaves. Peel and chop the garlic and mash in a mortar with a teaspoon of salt. Chop the onions. In a skillet, heat the olive oil and fry the onions till soft and golden then add the mashed garlic and the chopped cilantro as well as the dried cilantro. Stir-fry for a few seconds (till the pesto is fragrant),  then transfer to the broth. Heat the broth and drop the frozen mouloukhieh packages in the broth; bring to a boil and let it simmer for 2 minutes until the mouloukhieh leaves are warmed up.
4. Serve the soup with some cooked white rice, the chicken and meat pieces, a bowl of crumbled toasted pita croutons and a bowl of red vinegar  (or lemon) with a handful of chopped onion.

NOTE: There are  no set rules for how one is supposed to eat the mouloukhieh; growing up, every member of the family had his or her customized way; some people like to fill their bowl with croutons, then rice, then mouloukhieh then chicken and meat, then onion and vinegar. You get to decide!

The tricky part of making this dish is determining the amount of broth versus the amount of mouloukhieh; the soup itself is quite soupy, so if you find your soup thick and muddy add more broth. If on the other hand it looks too watery, add more mouloukhieh.

A mediterranean culture that mainly relies on whole-grains and vegetables is going to take full advantage of the special  day when a lamb is available to feast on; thusly, every part of the animal is cooked in one way or another and intestines are no exception.

Here, they are thoroughly cleaned with lemon, coarse salt and vinegar and stuffed with minced meat, rice and spices.

This is an exquisite dish and one of the most traditional in Lebanese cuisine.

It  was cooked by Asma, a Kurdish lady and one of the finest cooks I know. She carefully and methodically cleaned them, rubbing them with coarse salt, lemon, a few tablespoons of flour and a jiggle of vinegar to rid them of any attached fat, inside and out.

Then she stuffed them with a mixture of rice (medium-grain or sushi), minced meat, chopped onion  and spices. The spices used were allspice, cinnamon, black pepper and salt.

The stuffed intestines are placed in a pot and  covered with water seasoned with two onions studded with cloves, a few bay leaves and some quartered lemons (or the peel of an orange) as well as some black peppercorns. Cooked at a gentle simmer  until the stuffing expands.  (The stock is skimmed of any froth showing up at the surface).

These are often served under a layer of stuffed zucchinis. If cooked alone, they are served with their broth and some yogurt or a teaspoon of mashed garlic mixed with a teaspoon of dried mint.

A magnificent Persian  rice dish called jeweled rice (javaher polow) fit for a wedding banquet or a Thanksgiving table. This rice is studded with slivered pistachios (representing emeralds), almonds, barberries (representing rubies), slivers of sweetened orange and carrot peel and golden raisins.

I used Najmieh Batmanglij’s New Food of Life directions for preparing the ingredients that make up this rice; for the rice however, I opted for Jasmine rice (instead of the traditional Basmati)  and a streamlined preparation that took about 10 minutes.

The orange and carrot slivers were prepared weeks ago and stored in the freezer, as well as the nuts, raisins and barberries.

INGREDIENTS: 6 to 8 servings

• 1 1/2 cups of Jasmine rice
• 3 1/2 cups of water
• 4 tbsp of unsalted butter
• 1/2 tsp of saffron
• Persian spice mix for rice (suggested): a mix of cinnamon, cardamom and rose petals and a pinch of cumin.
• 1 cup of slivered pistachios
• 1/2 cup of golden raisins
• 1 cup of barberries (substitute dried cherries, currants or cranberries)
• 2 cups of slivered carrots and orange peel
• 1/2 cup of sugar
• 1/2 cup of slivered almonds

METHOD:

1. Place the slivered orange peel  in a saucepan and cover with water. Boil and drain once (or twice) to remove any bitterness. Place in the saucepan with the shredded carrots and 1/2 cup of sugar and cover with water. Simmer for about 10 minutes and drain. (This step can be done weeks ahead and the slivers kept in a plastic bag in the freezer). Clean the barberries by stemming them (if they have a stem) and soaking them in cold water for 15 minutes. Drain and pat dry. They can be frozen at this point and used up later.
2. Cook the rice according to package directions (keeping it on the firm side). When cooked, empty the pot and melt the butter in the pot with the saffron and 1/2 cup of water. Add the rice and mix with all the ingredients: pistachios, almonds, raisins, carrots, orange peel and barberries. Cover and let the rice steam (on low heat) for about 30 to 40 minutes. Serve.

NOTE: If you wish to make a crust for the rice, let it cook over medium heat for 20 minutes at first (after it has cooked, when the pot has some butter and water at the bottom); you can also mix a few tablespoons of yogurt with the rice and pat it at the bottom, which helps give it a thick crust. Be sure to use a non-stick pot or the crust will not release easily.

A dish  in Nawal Nasrallah’s Delights from the Garden of Eden listed as an Iraqi-Jewish traditional meal served on the Sabbath in Baghdad and cooked in a tannour. The tannour was a wood-fired  communal oven; it is still being used in some rural areas in Lebanon today to make bread.

The chicken and rice would bake  in a pot in the tannour for a long time, allowing the rice to develop a delicious crust.

Well, there are no tannour here in Dallas so this was made in an electric oven by  modifying  and streamlining  the recipe to achieve the same results.

This dish can be extraordinarily good if one uses a free-range organic chicken, some homemade tomato sauce, Basmati rice and a cast-iron pan.

I modified Mrs. Nasrallah’s recipe but I will indicate her method as well.

INGREDIENTS: up to 6 servings

• 1 free-range chicken weighing about 4 pounds
• 1 lemon
• 2 cups of Basmati rice
• 2 large eggs
• 2 large onions
• 4 large tomatoes, or a 14 oz  can of good-quality tomatoes such as San Marzano
• Olive oil, as needed
• Spices: 1 tablespoon of seven-spice or 1 tsp of cinnamon, 1 tsp of allspice, 1/4 tsp of black pepper, 1 tsp of salt, 1/4 tsp of white pepper, 1 tsp of cardamom

METHOD:

1. Place the rice in a bowl and cover with water and a dash of salt. Soak the rice for 30 minutes or longer.
2. Rub the chicken with cut chunks of lemon and sprinkle with the spices (minus the cardamom). Heat 1/4 cup of olive oil in a large (I used a 10 inch) cast iron pan (with 4 inch edges all around) and brown the chicken on both sides for about 30 minutes over medium-low heat.
3. For the tomato sauce: The sauce can be done ahead and frozen. Chop the onions and fry in olive oil till golden; add the tomatoes, peeled and cut in small dice, and stew the mixture for about 30 minutes, adding a teaspoon of sugar if desired. You should have 2 cups of tomato mixture; you may also add tomato paste and some water to the stew while simmering to increase its volume.
4. Remove the chicken from the pan and set is aside; heat the pot, scraping the chicken bits. Drain the rice and add it to the pot. Stir the rice to coat all the rice in oil. Preheat the oven to 375F. Add the tomato stew to the rice and the cardamom and let the stew simmer  for a few minutes until the rice absorbs the tomato liquid. Place the chicken in the middle of the rice mixture, add about 3 cups of water and place the chicken in the oven, covering it with a piece of foil; let it bake for 15 minutes then lower the heat and bake it at 350F for about 45 minutes, until the rice has absorbed all the stock and the chicken is cooked. You may add the eggs 20 minutes before the end of baking with their shell, but I preferred to boil them separately.

Mrs. Nasrallah adds coriander to the spices (1 tsp); she also fries the chicken gizzards with an onion beforehand and adds some spices to them, one cup of tomato sauce and half the rice; she stuffs the chicken with this mixture and sews up the bird. She then browns the chicken and onion in a little oil and adds a cup of tomato sauce simmering the chicken for about 15 minutes. She then adds 4 cups of water and the eggs and simmers the mixture, covered, for about 45 minutes. She then removes the chicken and adds the remaining rice in the pot and cooks the rice 15 minutes; then the chicken and eggs are added back and the dish is left to simmer for one hour or longer until a crust forms.

NOTE: I used a cast-iron pot which gave the rice a crust after 40 minutes of baking in the oven.

Lebanon (and the rest of the Levant) was under Ottoman rule until the end of WWI and back then high-ranking officers were called basha; hence the name of this dish, after an Armenian governor or pasha (basha is the Arabic pronounciation since p as a sound does not exist in Arabic) who was appointed to govern the Lebanese territory.

My grandmother lived through this period of history and passed on many tales to me, the eager listener, while she was busy preparing dumplings in the kitchen or embroidering in her bedroom.

This dish is a homey dish and one that can be found with slight variations all over the Levant. Some people like to make it with lamb and omit the tomato paste so the sauce is just a dark, meaty sauce. It is easy to make, relatively fast  and popular.

INGREDIENTS: 4 servings

• 1/2 pound of beef, 96% lean
• 1 small onion+ 2 large onions
• 1 egg yolk (optional)
• 1/3 cup of pine nuts
• 3 tbsp. of tomato paste
• 2 cups of beef stock or chicken stock (can use a cube)
• 1 1/4 cup of Basmati rice
• 1/2 lemon, juiced
• 3 tbsp. of butter (for the rice)
• Spices: 1 1/2 tsp. of salt, 1 tsp of cinnamon and 1/2 tsp. of allspice or 1 1/2 tsp. of seven-spice

METHOD:

1. Soak the rice in warm water with a dash of salt for 30 minutes or longer (after rinsing it a few times under running water)
2. Chop the small onion and douse it in salt and let it spit out its water for a few minutes. Place the meat in the food processor, add the spices, egg yolk, drained onion and process until smooth. Form marble-sized balls and either bake them in the oven for 5 minutes at 350F or pan-fry them.
3. Slice the large onions in rings and pan-fry them in some olive oil until translucent and golden; add the meatballs and 2 cups of beef stock along with the tomato paste (if desired). Let the mixture simmer gently for 25 minutes until the liquid is reduced and thickened and the meatballs are thoroughly cooked.
4. Pan-fry some pine nuts in a little butter and add to the meatballs at the end.
5. Drain the rice and boil in several cups of water till tender. Drain and rinse the rice. Place 2 tablespoons of butter in the pan and let the butter melt, add 1/4 cup of water to the butter. Place the rice over the butter and water and with the handle of a wooden spoon, dig holes in the rice in 3 places; cover the pan and let the rice steam for 30 minutes, first on medium-high heat, then on very low heat. Uncover after 30 minutes to check and add more butter to the rice if desired. Serve with the meatballs.

Obviously, this salad can be presented in a bowl; in Texas, corn husks are sold everywhere (for folks to make tamales with) and I wanted to use them for fun. You could easily use the fresh husks from the corn after pulling it out.

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 cup of rice
• 2 cups of water or broth
• 1 small onion, chopped
• Olive oil as needed
• 1/4 cup of rice vinegar or fresh lemon juice
• 1 pepper, diced
• 4 ears  of corn
• 1 cup of soft cheese like feta
• 1/4 cup of chopped herbs like dill or parsley or basil
• 1 tablespoon of red pepper paste
• 1/2 cup of green olives

METHOD:

1. Cook the rice by boiling the broth and throwing the rice in it; cool. Chop the onion and the herbs.
2. Wet the corn and cook in the microwave for 2 minutes for each ear. Cool and peel.
3. Place the rice, chopped onion, herb, diced pepper, pepper paste, corn and olives in a bowl; mix gently to combine.
4. Mix 1/4 cup of rice vinegar and 1/2 cup of olive oil. Add to the salad and combine. Serve the salad at room temperature.

This is the quintessential comfort dish, which can be served  with rice or  bulgur (coarse bulgur) or  roasted green wheat (freekeh).

Lamb shanks and chickpeas are  slowly simmered in a lightly spiced broth; rice is then cooked in that broth with pearl onions.

I added some craisins and nuts  to make it more festive.

It is served with a bowl of yogurt on the side.

It can be prepared ahead, which makes it ideal for a party. It can also be made simply with lamb pieces, minus the bones; bones however add flavor to the broth and by extension to the rice.

INGREDIENTS: 8 servings

• 1 1/2 pound of lamb shanks, either with the bone or boneless (adding bones to the dish gives more flavor to the broth)
• 1 pound of pearl or cibollini onions
• 1 Large yellow onion, chopped
• 1 1/2 cups of basmati or long-grain rice
• Spices: 1 tablespoon of cumin, 1 1/2 teaspoon of salt, 1/2 teaspoon of white pepper (can substitute 1 1/2 teaspoon of seven-spice, 1 teaspoon of allspice, 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon)
• 1 can of chickpeas (or 1/2 cup of dry chickpeas, soaked in water overnight with 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda)
• 1/2 cup of craisins (optional)
• 1/4 cup of pine nuts (optional)
• 1/4 cup of slivered almonds (optional)
• Clarified butter or olive oil, as needed
• 6 cups of water

METHOD: Equipment needed: 1 large pot to cook shanks and rice. 1 skillet to brown the pearl onions and nuts. 1 bowl to soak the chickpeas in overnight. 1 serving platter.

1. Sprinkle the lamb shanks with the spices; heat a few tablespoons of oil (or clarified butter)and brown the shanks from all sides. Remove the shanks to a plate. Fry the chopped onions until golden in the same pot.
2. Add to the pot 4 cups of boiling water and place the shanks back in the pot and  simmer gently until tender. If you are using dry chickpeas that have soaked overnight, rinse them and drain them and add them to the shanks  now. The chickpeas will cook with the meat.
3. In a skillet, heat some oil and brown the pearl or cipollini onions. Remove the onions and set aside. Add the almonds and pine nuts and toast them in the same skillet. Set aside.

To cook the rice: measure the broth, if you have too much, let it boil down, if too little, add some water. (just empty the broth into a measuring cup). You need no more than 3 cups of broth for rice and about 2 cups for bulgur and freekeh,

1. Add the rice to the lamb shanks in the pot and simmer for another 30 minutes until rice and lamb are thoroughly cooked and tender. If using canned chickpeas, add them along with the rice.
2. Ten minutes before the end of cooking, add the craisins (if using) and the pearl onions to the pot. Serve the dish with a garnish of toasted nuts and a bowl of yogurt.

The challenge with these fritters is to infuse them with flavor as they tend to be bland on their own; so go ahead and add all the spices that your little heart desires and you will be rewarded with a delicious appetizer. Squeeze some citrus juice on the fritters before inhaling them, it will enhance their flavor and help with the absorption of the iron in the lentils.

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 cup of red lentils, cooked in 2 cups of water for 30 minutes till soft.
• 1/2 cup of bulgur (#1), soaked in water 10 minutes, then drained and squeezed of the extra water.
• 3/4 cup of rice, cooked.
• 1 large egg
• 1/2 cup of flour
• 1 teaspoon of ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon of ground coriander
• 1 teaspoon of sumac (optional)
• 2 tablespoon of harissa (can substitute red pepper paste of your choice or chili paste)
• 4 cloves of garlic, mashed with salt in a mortar till pasty
• 2 scallions, minced (can substitute shallot) (optional)
• Rind of an orange or a lemon or a lime
• 1/2 cup of minced cilantro
• 1 cup of minced Italian parsley
• 2 Tablespoons of powdered dried mint
• 1/4 teaspoon of white pepper, 1 teaspoon of salt (to taste)
• 1 cup of  sesame seeds (can substitute pistachios, pecans or walnuts, chopped fine)
• 1 or 2 lemons, quartered
• oil for frying, as needed

These are served with a quick salad of diced tomatoes, diced feta and minced parsley dressed in lemon juice and olive oil, with a touch of sumac if desired.

NOTE: I made the effort to buy a feta with a Greek origin and was rewarded with a creamy smooth-tasting cheese, far superior to the other varieties I used to buy. I soaked the feta in water to make it a bit less salty.

For extra flavor, fry the minced herbs and garlic in a little olive oil for no more than 10 seconds, then add to the lentil mixture.

METHOD:

1. Place the cooked (and drained) lentils in a large bowl. Add the drained bulgur, rice, egg, flour, minced scallions, harissa and other spices, rind of a citrus and toss well to combine. Heat a little olive oil in a small skillet, throw the minced herbs and mashed garlic and stir to combine the mixture for no more than 10 seconds. Remove and add to the lentil mixture and toss.
2. Shape the fritters with  an ice-cream scoop and dip in the sesame seeds or other nuts.
3. Heat some oil in a pan (about one inch) and when hot (at 350F to 375F), drop the fritters and cook about 3 minutes on one side and one minute on the other. Place on a plate lined with paper towels.
4. Serve with the salad and some quartered lemon or limes.