It's 10.00 pm and I'm still waiting for Mohamed to come home so we can have the final meal of the day. I've been researching Egyptian recipes on the net and decided to try and make hommus. There are many different recipes but I chose one that sounded like it might be what we're used to and gave it a whirl - don't know that it's exactly right but it's OK for me - not sure how Mohamed will like it.
I made fool madammas at lunch today - beans or fool it's usually called. It's very simple, at least the way that Mohamed likes it although there are probably as many recipes as there are houses in Egypt. For Mohamed you just need canned fava beans (although you can buy them dried and cook them), put them into a frying pan with some of the juice, some corn oil and mash the beans as they heat. Once they are mashed and hot add the juice of a lime and a little salt and pepper. It should have the consistency of porridge when made. That's it. He doesn't mind if you add just a little cumin sometimes (or maybe he doesn't notice if I do).
Anyway, I thought you might like to try kosheri. As I've said before it's a street food that's really popular and cheap. There are whole restaurants that serve nothing but - kosheri. It's also quite easy to make.
They say that kosheri is an Egyptian version of the kichri (kitchree, khitcherie) of India, which is always a combination of rice and lentils. Kichri is also the ancestor of the British/Scottish kedgeree which was a culinary by-product of the British-Indian experience.
Anyway, as I said it's quite straight-forward to make and even if you think it sounds a bit strange (yes a total carb feast - Mohamed told me the first time we ate it, in a kosheri restaurant, that they say you don't need to eat again for 3 days once you've had kosheri. You might really enjoy it - I know I do.
Ingredients
- two cups lentils (brown or black)
- one to two cups rice
- one to two cups elbow macaroni (or similar pasta, as long as the macaroni is very small to almost match the lentils and rice and not overpower them) (optional, Mohamed doesn't like to have it and I do, so it's a matter of personal taste)
- one cup vegetable oil (most Egyptians use corn oil) evenly divided into two portions
- one clove garlic, crushed
- one chilli, cleaned and chopped
- three or four ripe tomatoes, peeled and chopped ; or one large tin crushed tomatoes, or you can substitute tomato paste and enough water to make up the volume
- one-half cup water
- two tablespoons vinegar
- one onion, chopped fairly fine
- salt (to taste)
Method
Clean and rinse the lentils and place them in a large pot. Cover them with cold water, so that the water level is one inch above the lentils. Add salt if desired. Bring to a boil then reduce heat. Cover and simmer, stirring occasionally, until lentils are tender and water is almost completely absorbed (approximately 30 minutes). Add additional water if necessary. However, although the lentil should be soft don't let them get mushy.
While lentils are cooking, cook rice in normal manner, so that the grains are cooked but separated, dry not wet. (Egyptians cook it a particular way - I'll put the method at the bottom)
Prepare sauce while lentils and rice are cooking.
Heat oil in saucepan. Sauté garlic and chilli for a few minutes, until onion is clear. Add tomatoes, water, vinegar, and salt. Cook on high heat for a few minutes, then reduce heat and simmer.
While the lentils and rice are cooking and the sauce is simmering, heat the remaining oil in a frying pan. Sauté the onion until it is done to your liking (either lightly golden, or deeply browned and crispy). When done, remove onion from the frying pan and drain on absorbent paper or paper towels. (This makes a topping for the finished dish and is best when dark gold and very crispy)
While lentils and rice are cooking, sauce is simmering, and onion is sautéing, if macaroni is desired, bring a pot of water to a boil and cook macaroni in the normal manner.
When everything is done, assemble each serving of kosheri in a soup bowl. Alternate layers of lentils, rice, and macaroni, then top it all with the fried onions and tomato sauce. Optional additional toppings are more lentils, dry and crispy and chick peas (hommus) dry and cooked.
As I've said before, when you get kosheri in a restaurant you also aget a very hot sauce and a lemon type sauce but I've yet to find the recipes for those. I really love the hot sauce.
Egyptian method of cooking rice - let's say for 2 cups (always the same amount of water as rice and about one quarter of total is cooked in the ghee).
2 cups of rice, washed until water is clear
2 cups of water
about 2 good tablespoons of ghee
Heat ghee and add half a cup of washed rice. Cook until the rice is a darkish gold (don't let it get too brown or burn). Add the rest of the rice and stir until all grains are covered by the butter. Quickly add the water, cover and leave to cook for around 15-20 minutes. Check towards the end and make sure all water is absorbed and the rice has cooked. If more water is needed, add just a little at any time. The aim is to have all the water gone and the rice dry, fluffy and the grains separated. You should have a mixture of dark gold and white grains.
This method is for white short-grained (or basmati) rice, you could use it for other sorts such as brown rice but you would need to experiment with water and cooking times.
I really like it this way now.
So why not give kosheri a try while it's still winter and you need some comfort food occasionally?
Time to go, it's 11.00 now and Mohamed has rung to say he's on his way home and there's food to get ready.
Take care, enjoy
lots of lvoe
Lyndall
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