Javaher Polow (Persian Jeweled Rice)

Few dishes leave me in awe, and Javaher Polow or Persian Jeweled Rice is one of them. My awe manifests itself in a couple of different ways. On the one hand, I marvel at the visual impact of seeing the dish. Studded with fruits and nuts, it truly looks as if jewels are embedded throughout the dish. On the other hand, I am struck by the complexity of preparing the dish: to create this be-jeweled masterpiece requires time, skill and patience. Many times I feel like I lack all three, and, hence, the dish has been an aspiration of mine for quite some time. 

Yet, the dish has been around much longer than any aspiration. Javaher Polow, also known as Morasa Polow, dates back -- at least -- to the 16th or 17th century, when it graced the royal tables at Qazvin, the capital where the Safavid dynasty ruled an empire stretching from the Caucasus mountains to the Persian gulf, and from Hoveyzeh to Qandahar (which is in modern day Afghanistan). The Safavid empire was one of the longest lasting Persian empires, from 1501 C.E. to 1736 C.E.

Many consider the Safavid empire to be the period of time when Persian cuisine truly developed. It may also be due to the fact that much of the history of Persian cuisine traces back to the Safavids, with sources become more scarce prior to that time. Nevertheless, it is beyond dispute that the Safavid court gave rise to many dining traditions and many dishes that remain a fundamental part of Persian cuisine to this day. Maybe someday I will have the time to truly explore that history, which can be found in manuscripts from the chefs of the royal kitchens, like the Matatolhayat, which recounts the lived experience and recipes of Nurollah, the chef to Shah Abbas I. 

Back to Javaher Polow, this dish involves a process that, depending upon the recipe, can take a lot of time and skill. Fortunately, I found a simplified version of the recipe on Milk Street, which is the website for Christopher Kimball's Milk Street cooking school and magazine. This simplified recipe provided a way for me to try to tackle this recipe without having to master the layering of rice, avoiding the over-cooking or under-cooking of the rice, and to focus on the basics. The simplified recipe enabled me to produce a delicious rice dish that probably ranks in the top 5 of most beautiful dishes that I have ever prepared. 

Having prepared a "simplified" version of Javaher Polow, I have begun to build up the confidence to try recipes from Persian chefs. The goal is to produce an authentic version. While I have more of the skill, and while I work on my patience, I still need to find the time.

JAVAHR POLOW (PERSIAN JEWELED RICE)

Recipe adapted from Milk Street

Serves 4

Ingredients:

• 1 teaspoon saffron threads
• 4 tablespoons salted butter
• 2 medium yellow onions, halved and thinly sliced
• Kosher salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 2 cups basmati rice, rinsed and drained
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1 3/4 teaspoons ground cardamom
• 2 medium carrots, peeled and shredded on the large holes of a box grater (about 1 cup)
• 1 cup dried cranberries
• 1 teaspoon finely grated orange zest
• 1/2 cup shelled pistachios, chopped, divided

Directions:

1. Prepare the saffron water. In a small microwave bowl, combine the saffron with 3 2/3 cups of water. Microwave on high until the water has taken on a yellow hue, about 1 minute. Set aside. 

2. Prepare the rice. In a 12-inch skillet over medium, metl the butter. Add the onions and 1 teaspoons salt, then cook, tstirring occasionally until softened and light golden brown, about 10 to 12 minutes. Stir int eh rice, cumin, cardamom 1/2 teaspoons salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Cook, stirring frequently until the grains are light browned and no longer transluscenet, about 4 to 7 minutes. Stir in the saffron water, the carrots and cranberries. Bring to a boil over medium high, then cover, reduce to lw and cook until the rice has absorbed the liquid and the carrots aee tender, 25 to 30 minutes. 

3. Finish the dish. Fluff the rice with a fork, then stir int he orange zest and 1/4 cup of postachios. Taste and season with salt and pepper. transfer to a shallow bowl and sprinkle with the remaining 1/4 cup pistachios. 

PEACE.

Goat Sukha

Whenever I order food from a particular Indian restaurant, I always include an appetizer of goat sukka (or sukha). As an aside, this particular restaurant allows its customers to choose between an American level of spice and an Indian level of spice for their dishes. I like a restaurant that not only caters to the local Indian community in this way, but also offers those options to someone like myself, who is not Indian. Given my love for very spicy foods, I always order my dishes from this restaurant at the Indian spicy or Indian very spicy level. 

Being able to choose spice levels in accordance with the Indian palate is important to me, because I want to experience the foods of southern India as one would prepare them for people who live in that region. Chefs and cooks alike across southern Indian states like Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu have embraced chiles. In so doing, they create dishes that contrast with those from the north of India. 

A sukka (or sukha) is a dry curry dish that originates from the south of India. The word sukha is Hindi and means "dry." Unlike a typical curry, sukhas are not prepared with a yogurt, tomato, or coconut milk base. Instead, recipes typically call for a combination of chiles and spices that, when prepared, cling to the featuerd protein with a paste-like texture. And, as for that protein, it could be just about anything. The most common versions of sukhas feature mutton or lamb, but one can find many recipes for Mangalore Chicken Sukha or even Chana Sukha (for vegetarians).  

For this recipe, I attempted to recreate the goat sukka dish from one of my favorite restaurants. I had some extra goat meat from another recipe that I prepared (which will also be posted on this blog). I encountered some difficulty finding a goat sukha recipe, which I needed to ensure that I prepared the goat properly. I eventually decided to use a mutton sukha recipe, for which there are many, and incorporated the directions for preparing goat from that other recipe I mentioned above. 

In the end, this dish was good, but it was not the goat sukka that I would order from the restaurant. There are two reasons for this conclusion. First, I am not as good at cooking goat as the Indian cook or chef at that restaurant. (Despite my best efforts, the goat was a little overcooked.) Second, the recipe would probably translate to an Indian mild or Indian medium on spice level. As noted above, my minimum threshold is Indian hot. 

GOAT SUKHA

Recipe adapted from Relish the Bite

Serves 2-3

Ingredients:

• 1 pound goat, cubed, bone-in
• 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
• Salt, to taste
• Garlic, 5 cloves minced
• 5 dried chiles (e.g., Kashmiri)
• 1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds
• 1/4 cup onions, sliced thinly
• Few curry leaves
• 4 green chiles (e.g., jalapeno)
• 1 teaspoon chile powder
• 1 teaspoon coriander powder
• 1 teaspoon cumin powder
• Salt, to taste
• 2 teaspoons oil
• Lime juice and coriander (cilantro), chopped, for garnish

Directions:

1. Prepare the goat. Place the goat, turmeric and salt in a sauce pan and cover with water. Bring to a boil and boil until cooked, about 15 to 20 minutes. Remove the goat from the water, strain the water through a fine mesh and reserve. 

2. Prepare the base. While the goat is cooking, combine the garlic, dried chiles and fennel seeds in a mortar and pestle. Grind the ingredients, with a dash of salt, until they become a paste.

3. Prepare the curry. In a pan, heat the oil over medium high heat. Add the onions, green chiles and curry leaves. Saute until the onions become translucent and the chiles become softer. Add the paste, along with the red chile powder, coriander powder and cumin powder. Saute well. 

4. Finish the dish. Add the goat and stir. Add some of the reserved water and let it cook until the water evaporates. Drizzle some lime juice and garnish with the chopped coriander (cilantro). Serve with rice and naan. 

PEACE.

Persian Roast Lamb

Persian cuisine has a very long history and, within that history, there has has been a long tradition of roasting lamb. That tradition has been dated as far back as the Achaemenian dynasty, which rule from approximately 770 B.C.E. to 330 B.C.E. At its height, around 550 B.C.E. to 330 B.C.E., the Achaemenid Empire stretched from southeastern Europe and northeastern Africa all the way to the edges of the Indian subcontinent. This empire encompassed many different groups -- Greeks, Egyptians, Babylonians, Lydians, and others -- who were able to retain their identities and their cultures.

One of the many legacies of the Achaemenid rulers revolves around food. Rather than requiring conquered peoples to assimilate into the empire, the Achaemenid rulers incorporated aspects of their cultures into the empire, especially when it came to food. The empire adopted the Greek methods of producing olive oil, the Egyptian practices of cultivating grain, and the Mesopotamian baking recipes. 

It was during the Achaemenid dynasty that some of the earliest accounts of roasted lamb could be found. The Achaemenid kings were known for their grand feasts and elaborate dining traditions. Claudius Aelianus wrote in his Varia Historia that one would eat with a knife in the right hand and a piecce of bread in the left hand. The food was cut with the knife and then placed on the bread. As for the food itself, another writer -- the Macedonian writer Polyaenus -- wrote in the second century B.C.E. that the ingredients of a dinner featured "sweet grape jelly, candied turnips and radishes prepared with salt, candied capers with salt, from which delicious stuffings weremade, terebinth (from pistachio nuts) oil, Ethiopian cumin and Median saffron." Other fruits and nuts would have graced the tables as well, including dates, pomegranates, figs, apples, raisins and almonds. The main course of the royal feasts featured among other things, roasted lamb and saffron-infused rice. 

By contrast, the masses across the empire generally ate grilled meats, flatbreads and porridge. 

The traditions and cuisine of the Achaemenid empire constitute a noteworthy part of the history of Persian cuisine. The dishes of that time focused on a balance between sweet, sour and savory, which  was achieved through the use of spice mixes, fruit-based sauces and other methods. That balance continues to this day in Persian dishes. 

Drawing from this culinary history, I wanted to prepare a Persian-style roasted lamb. I found a recipe online that tracks the balance of sweet, sour and savory which defined the Achaemenid cuisine. That balance could be found in the marinade, whose ingredients include pomegranate molasses, honey, lemon juice, cumin, saffron, and turmeric. I opted for an overnight marinade given I was woking with a six pound boneless leg of lamb. I have to say that the lamb cooked faster than the times indicated in the recipe, which I think would probably be more accurate for a bone-in leg of lamb. 

In the end, I had my own little Persian feast when the lamb was finished. The table not only featured the sliced leg of lamb, but also jeweled rice and a Shirazi salad. Both of these dishes made excellent sides, adding a lot of colors and flavors to complement the meat. 

PERSIAN ROAST LAMB

Recipe from Lin's Food

Serves 8

Ingredients:

• 1 leg or shoulder of lamb, about 3.5 to 4.5 pounds
• 1 large onion, sliced in rings
• 1 cup chicken stock, vegetable stock or water
• 5 cloves of garlic, finely minced or crushed
• 4 tablespoons pomegranate molasses
• 2 tablespoons honey
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 1 lemon, juiced
• 1 tablespoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon turmeric
• 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 2 strops of fresh rosemary leaves, pounded or finely chopped
• 1 pinch saffron
• 2 tablespoons hot water 
• Pomegranate seeds, for garnish

Directions:

1. Prepare the saffron. Tip the saffron in a mortar with a small pinch of salt. Crush the saffron with the peste, goung round and round. Add the hot water and leave it to soak while you get everything else ready. 

2. Prepare the marinade. Combine the garlic, pomegranate molasses, honey, olive oil, lemon juice, liquid saffron, ground cumin cumin, turmeric, black pepper and rosemary. Mix well. Set aside.

3. Prepare the lamb. With a small knife, make a half dozen small slashes straight down into the lamb, especially around the thicker parts. Rub the marinade all over the lamb, pushing down into the cuts and into the meat folds. Cover the lamb and allow to marinate for at least 2 hours or overnight.

4. Roast the lamb.  Heat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Line the roasting pan or baking dish with the sliced onions. Sit the lamb on the onions. Pour the stock or water in, making sure to pour it on the onions and not the lamb. Cover with foil and roast for 1 hour by which time the lamb should be almost done. Take the cover off and roast for another 30 minutes, so that the meat will be pink. 

5. Finish the dish. When the lamb is done, there will be a little sauce or gravy that can be served separately. You can choose to get separate the excess fat, but that is not required. Slice the roast and serve on a platter with the onions.

PEACE.

Around the World in 80 Dishes: Nepal

For many, the mention of Nepal conjures images of Mount Everest. Known locally as Sagarmatha or Qomolangma, Mount Everest boasts of the highest point above sea level. The thought of the mountain also conjures up images of intrepid mountain climbers moving from base camp to base camp, with their sherpas. Indeed, the mountain casts a long shadow, one that often obscures the tens of millions of Nepali who live not just in the mountains and the valleys, but also the plains below. 

I find the stories of the Nepali people far more interesting and compelling than those any person -- such as Sir Edmund Hillary or  George Mallory -- who ascended Mount Everest. Their stories told by the Nepalis are ones of struggle, resilience, and hope. Unlike those of Hillary or Mallory, these stories recount lived experiences that span three hundred and sixty-five days per year, each and every year.  

Many of those stories can be found on a website, Stories of Nepal. The website curates the short stories of everyday Nepalis by subject and by cmmunity. The subjects that got my attention had names such as A Right to Earn a Living, Of Hope and Resilience, Strive Struggle Trive, and The Future I Want. I also browsed the stories by communities, looking at the stories from each of Nepal's three ecological regions: the mountains, the hills and the terai (or plains). 

As I read through these stories, I began to notice the common threads: the poverty at home, the desire to have a better life, the paths that they took to achieve that goal, and the obstacles that they had to overcome. There are two measures of poverty: income poverty and human poverty. The former measures whether a person has enough income to meet basic needs, while the latter has a broader focus on whether a person has access to essential resources and opportunities necessary for a decent life. Significant portions of Nepalis across all regions suffer from both types of poverty: in the mountains, 38% suffer from human poverty and 42 percent suffer from income poverty; in the hills, 24% suffer from human poverty while 29% suffer from income poverty; and, in the terai, 33% suffer from human poverty while only 23% suffer from income poverty.

But, as they say, numbers don't tell the whole story. That is where the Nepalis themselves come in. Their contribution demonstrates the hard work that they endure, but the hope that they have for either themselves or their children. For example, Beyond these Mountains tells the story of one Nepali woman, Bhomo Karto Tamang, in Gatang, which is high up in the mountains. She was born in a relatively well-to-do family whose father herded 18 yaks, 200 sheep, and, in her words, "I did not count the goats." She talked about how strong her mother was and how she helped her mother prepare the barley flour. That flour was payment to her father's shepherds. When she grew up, she got married and her life continued much like her mother. However, unlike her mother, this woman decided with her husband to send their children to school. She wanted her children to experience what lies beyond the mountains, something that she never had.

Then there is the story of Hiralel Rai, who lives in Khotang, which is firmly nestled in the hills of Nepal. Rai loved to sing and dance as a kid. His conduct was frowned upon in school, as it was deemed the type of activity inappropriate for boys. That led to corporal punishment by teachers. Rai persevered and, eventually, became a teacher himself. In his own words: 

I am aware that the choices I make as a teacher, inside the classroom, will have a great impact on the lives of these children. Of what they will do and who they will become. So I am always careful as to what I do and what I say in class. I am not a strict teacher who only disciplines students. We all know we get bored in class so I make things fun. I tell stories. While I teach English, I also dance with them. I also sing with them. And everyone sings and dances with me. Freely, without any fear.

There are many more stories that are illuminating and inspiring about how people overcome their circumstances for the betterment of not just themselves but others. When one can see that in people, they are seeing the innate dignity that lies within all of us and that we all deserve. 

I strongly recommend reading Stories of Nepal, where the above stories and pictures come from. They provide a very good starting point to learn about the people. Now, it is time to learn about their cuisine, which is the focus of my personal culinary challenge, Around the World in 80 Dishes. The main course, Bhuketo Maso, and the side dish, Piro Alu Dum, have their own stories to tell.

MAIN COURSE

My love for eating goat meat has made its appearance in my culinary challenge on more than one occasion, with Goat Curry from Guyana and two dishes -- Chichinga and Jollof Rice with Goat -- from Ghana. In preparing those dishes, I only tangentially touched, at best, or completely missed, at worst, an important subject: the role that goats play to help lift the poor out of poverty. That subject is harder to miss when one looks at Nepal, because quite a few non-governmental organizations have pursued initiatives to introduce goat farming to those who have little, and researchers followed behind to measure the impact. 

Goats are often referred to as the "poor man's cow." Like cows, goats produce milk and meat, but at a cheaper price to purchase and at a lower cost to maintain. One study estimated that a person could maintain four goats at the same cost as one cow. In addition, one can raise goats in areas where, due to lack of substantial vegetation, it would be harder to raise cows or other animals.  

There are many organizations that have worked to provide goats to poor Nepalis, to provide them with a means through which they can earn money through the sale of goat milk, or, over time, goat meat. Those programs were, in turn, monitored through research, including efforts that were funded by the United States Agency of International Development or USAID. One such research effort found that the provision of goats by Heifer International to poor Nepali women, along with training in animal husbandry, had positive outcomes on the living standards of those women. (I had to look for sources other than those of USAID because the current American administration has taken down EVERYTHING that USAID has done to help the poor around the world.)

For my main challenge, I decided to prepare Bhuketo Maso, which is a dry curry. The dish could be prepared with any kind of protein, such as chicken or lamb. However, I decided to use goat as a nod to the importance that this particular protein has in lifting many Nepalis of poverty. 

BHUKETO MASO

Recipe from Nepali Tummy

Serves 4

Ingredients:

• 1 pound goat meat (clean and cut in 2 inch cubes)
• 1/2 tablespoon of cumin seeds or 1/2 tablespoon cumin powder
• 1/2 tablespoon coriander seeds or 1/2 tablespoon coriander powder
• 1 cinnamon stick or 1/2 tablespoon cinnamon powder
• 3-4 dried red chiles or 1/2 tablespoon red chile powder
• 1 teaspoon turmeric powder
• 1 tablespoon ginger-garlic paste
• Salt
• 4 tablespoons oil

Directions:

1. Prepare the spice mix. Add the cinnamon stick, cumin seeds, coriander seeds, and dried red chiles in a spice grinder. (If you are using ground spices, just combine). Grind until the spices are a powder. Remove to a small bowl. Add 2 tablespoons of water to make a thick paste.

2. Boil the meat. In a deep pan, add the meat, water (to cover) and 2 pinches of salt. Boil the meat until it is cooked, approximately 20 minutes.  Be careful not to overcook. 

3. Finish the dish. Heart the oil in a separate pan. Add the boiled meat and the spice paste, stir over medium heat and cook for 10-12 minutes. 

SIDE DISH

While Bhuketo Maso may be a dry curry, I prepared a side dish that did have a curry-like sauce. Piro alu dum is a potato curry that has a tomato base.  This provided a little contrast to the overall meal. 

Potatoes were actually introduced into Nepal back in the mid-19th century, when a British naturalist, Sir Joseph Dalton Hooker, during an expedition to that country. While Hooker ultimately left, the tubers remained and became a vital crop across the country. They have an adaptability that works well in a country with differing regions, soils and climates. Nepalis are able to grow potatoes in areas where other crops could not thrive, thereby enabling them to produce a commodity that has taken a featured spot in their cuisine.

PIRO ALU DUM

Recipe from Cookpad

Serves 2

Ingredients:

• 4 medium sized potatoes, cut into 4 pieces
• 10 cloves garlic
• 2 whole red chiles
• 1 medium sized tomato paste
• Salt, to taste
• 1 teaspoon turmeric powder
• 1 teaspoon Kashmiri red chile powder
• 3 tablespoons mustard oil
• 1/2 teaspoon kalonji
• 1/4 teaspoon fenugreek seeds
• 2 tablespoons cilantro (coriander leaves)

Directions:

1. Boil the potatoes. Peel the potatoes. Heat a pot of water to boiling. Add potatoes and boil until tender. Remove from heat and drain the potatoes. While the potatoes are boiling, mince the garlic cloves and chiles, and then combine the two into a paste. 

2. Prepare the tomato-spice paste. In a bowl, add the garlic-chile paste, tomato paste, salt, turmeric powder and Kashmiri chile powder. Mix well. 

3. Finish the dish. Heat the oil in the pan on medium heat. Add kalonji and fenugreek seeds. Add potatoes and stir, mixing well. Add the tomato-spice paste and mix well. Add hot water and continue to cook, while the sauce thickens. Once the sauce is at the desired consistency, add coriander leaves and serve hot. 

*    *    *

In the end, I am grateful for having the opportunity to prepare this meal. I am much more grateful for taking the time to learn about the roles that the primary ingredients -- goat meat and potatoes -- has had in Nepali life and cuisine. Not everything that I read is reflected in this post. But, I wanted to make sure one thing is prominently set forth here ... the importance of development programs to help the poor lift themselves out of their poverty, and the critical work of those who oversee and implement those programs. Their work takes on moral and ethical obligations, which are gravely under threat. That is best saved for another post. Until then ... 

PEACE.

Advieh

Longtime followers of this blog may (or may not) remember a dish that I prepared 11 years ago -- Advieh-e Spiced Chicken Kebabs. That dish was my attempt to use an iconic spice mix from Iran in one of my favorite preparations, namely, kebabs. In that effort, I talked about the spice mix. I also ended my post by noting one truly special ingredient: dried rose petals. At the time, I did not have that ingredient and I decided to substitute a few drops of rose water. Improvisation that worked, but it was not truly Advieh. 

Time has passed and I now have dried rose petals among the many herbs and spices at my disposal. So, it was time to return to Advieh, to prepare it properly and to learn more about its place in Persian cuisine. 

Although no one has been able to trace the history of advieh to its origin, the use of this spice mix, or one very similar to it, can be found in recipes that can be dated as far back as 2,000 years ago. It should be noted that the history of the spice trade routes dates back as far as 1,000 B.C.E. One of the routes of the spice trace wound its way through what is now northern Iran. That trade route most likely provided the cinnamon, coriander, nutmeg, and cardamom used to prepare advieh. Over time, this spice mix has become what one described as a "cornerstone" or a "bridge" for Persian cuisine. 

As for the ingredients used to prepare advieh, there is no one definitive recipe. Like most recipes, there are variations that have developed over time and with different cooks. I tried to find a typical advieh recipe that includes the most commonly used ingredients. Each ingredient has a purpose: cinnamon, for its "sweet warmth"; cardamom, for its "minty undertones"; cumin, which adds earthiness; coriander, which supplies citrus notes; nutmeg, which gives a "spicy sweetness"; and, of course, rose petals, which provide a floral scent to the mix. Other recipes may add ingredients such as black pepper, cardamom or even saffron. 

I used this spice mix to prepare some roasted halibut for my beautiful Angel. Fortunately, because I had rose petals, she was able to experience advieh as it truly should be made. She loved the dish very much; and, I have some leftover mix to use on something more traditional, like chicken kebabs.

ADVIEH

Recipe from Meljoulwan

Ingredients:

• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 geaspoon ground coriander
• 1 teaspoon grond nutmeg
• 1 teaspoon ground cardamom
• 1 teaspoon ground rose petals
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

Instructions:

Combine all of the spices in a small bowl and mix well. 

PEACE.

Around the World in 80 Dishes: Afghanistan

I find myself challenged in more ways than one. My Around the World in 80 Dishes takes me to Afghanistan, which is also known as the "Graveyard of Empires." One foreign power after another -- the Greeks, Persians, Arabs, Mongols, Mughals, British, Soviets, and, most recently, Americans -- sought to dominate the country, from the southwestern plateau to the northern plains, and from the central highlands to the Hindu Kush.  Yet, if one were to go to Afghanistan, any tombstones that they would find will not have the names of empires. Rather, they would bear the names of the Afghans who have been victims of those empires. 

Today, a more appropriate name for Afghanistan would be the "Graveyard of Rights." In recent years, as the Taliban reasserted its control over the country, the extremist Muslim leadership have imposed restriction after restriction upon women and girls. The Taliban first limited the educational and employment opportunities for women. It then sought to limit their voice, imposing oppressive restrictions upon women raising their voice in public. The restrictions even prohibit women from signing or laughing in public. The Taliban are literally oppressing the voice of women and girls. 

Hence, the challenge. Typically, I spend time researching the post, delving  not only into cooking, but the cuisine and culture of those who prepare the food. I could write a post about the Pashtun people, who constitute a plurality of "Afghans," and their cuisine. I could also write about the other "Afghans" -- such as the Tajiks, Hazaras, Uzbeks, Aimaks, Turkmen, Balochs, Nuristanis and Pamiris -- and their cuisine. But, how can I ignore the plight of women in Afghanistan, a plight that crosses ethnic lines. 

Afghan women (Source: Wikipedia)

The answer is that I don't. This post will feature a challenge to prepare a main course of Afghan cuisine, but I will do so while explaining the plight of women, contrasted with their undeniable contribution to Afghan society and their unquestionable right to be free from arbitrary and capricious legal restrictions.

I want the women of my country to know that they are equal to men in the eyes of religion, of civil laws, and humanity. God created them equal."

-- Lina Rozbih, Journalist and Poet

Unlike most of the empires that passed through, the United States engaged in nation building, with a focus on establishing governmental institutions. In 2004, Afghanistan adopted a new constitution. A product of 500 delegates representing Afghan men and women who met at the Constitutional Loya Jira, Article Twenty-Two declares "[a]ny kind of discrimination and distinction between citizens of Afghanistan shall be forbidden. The article further provides, "[t]he citizens of Afghanistan, man and woman, shall have equal rights and duties under the law. 

During the twenty or so years that the United States worked in Afghanistan, opportunities opened for women. Indeed, at the time the Constitution was adopted, women constituted twenty-seven percent (27%) of the lower legislative house (compared to women constituting only 25% of the U.S. House of Representatives). Those women, along with their male counterparts, enacted laws prohibiting a range of crimes against women, including domestic violence and forced marriage, as well as established other prohibitions, such as preventing women or girls from going to school or preventing women to own property. 

Female students (Source: United Nations)

By 2020, women made substantial strides in Afghanistan. Over three million girls attend school, and, at the university level, girls are 25% of the students. The literacy rate had tripled for women (although even with that progress, it was only 30%). Women were 19% of the doctors, 40% of the nurses, 35% of the public school teachers, 27% of the government employees, 12% of judges, 10% of attorneys and 20% of provincial council members. Considering that women had been persecuted for years and decades prior to 2001, the gains over the two decades marked considerable progress. 

"Because of the Taliban, Afghanistan has become a jail for women. We haven't got any human rights. We haven't got the right to go outside, to go to work, to look after our children."

-- Faranos Nazir, 34 year old woman in Kabul

In 2021, the United States withdrew from Afghanistan, creating a power vacuum that the Taliban quickly filled with the Second Islamic Emirate. Much like the First Islamic Emirate, which was the Taliban's rule between 1996 and 2001, the government moved quickly to strip women of not only the progress they made over the previous two decades, but also of their fundamental rights.  The damage is substantial. The Taliban have banned girls from attending secondary school (that is, up to Grade 7), thereby significantly limiting their educational opportunities. For those women attending universities, the Taliban has imposed numerous restrictions upon them and their education. The government first banned women from pursuing certain degrees, such as agriculture, mining, civil engineering and journalism. Thereafter, the Taliban banned women from universities altogether.

The loss of rights extends beyond the educational system, it includes stripping women of their legal rights. The Taliban went so far as to invalidate thousands of divorces that had been decreed between 2001 and 2020.  It dissolved the Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission, but established a female moral police department. 

Afghan women after 2021. (Source: United Nations)

The Taliban also stripped women of employment opportunities, ordering women to stay home rather than go to work. It also banned women from many occupations in the legal system, government, and private sector. 

Finally,  the Taliban issued a series of decrees that greatly restricted the movement of women outside of their homes. Indeed, women cannot leave their home without a mahram, which is a close relative. Even if a woman went out on her own, the Taliban imposed rules prohibiting many -- from health centers to coffee shops -- from providing goods and services to them. 

MAIN COURSE

For this particular challenge, I wanted to focus on a particular ingredient ... the tomato. While the tomato may be native to South America, it has its place in Afghan cuisine. This main course -- Kofta Challow -- features lamb or beef meatballs cooked in an onion-spiked tomato sauce. 

KOFTA CHALLOW

Recipe adapted from Afghan Yummy Food

Serves 4

Ingredients (for the rice):

• 3 cups basmati rice
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 1 tablespoon cumin seeds
•  2 tablespoons salt
• 1 tablespoon black pepper, freshly ground
• 1 teaspoon cardamom

Ingredients (for the meatballs):

• 2 cups coriander (cilantro), minced
• 1 green pepper, minced
• 3 cloves of garlic, minced
• 2 onions minced
• 1 pound ground beef or veal
• 1 egg
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper 
• 1.5 tablespoon coriander powder
• 1 tablespoon salt
• 1/2 cup oil
• 1 cup tomato sauce

Directions:

1. Prepare the rice. Rinse the rice and set aside for a few hours before cooking. Boil water in a pot. Add the rice and boil for a few minutes or until the rice is soft and long. Drain the water from the rice.

2. Continue preparing the rice. Heat a pan on high heat and add vegetable oil, boiled rice, salt dissolved in warm water and the spices. Mix well. Make holes with the back of the spatula. Cover the lid with a kitchen towel and place it on the pot. Cook on low heat for at least 25 to 30 minutes. 

3. Prepare the meatballs.  Add coriander, green pepper, one onion, garlic and mince in a food processor. In a big bowl, add the meat and spices. In a large saucepan, add the oil and heat on high heat. Add the second onion (minced), and sauté. Add the tomato sauce. Add water and leave on high heat until it comes to a boil. Make small balls form the meat mixture and add to the sauce. Leave it on low for 30 minutes to cook. 

4. Finish the dish. Serve with basmati rice or naan bread.

SIDE DISH

The tomato sauce continues onto the side dish, Banjan Salat. This dish is a simple one, consisting of eggplant, tomato sauce, and some spices. It is also different in terms of presentation insofar as it is served either at room temperature or cold. As I am not a very big fan of eggplant, I was a little apprehensive about a cold dish. I did like the spiced tomato sauce, but I still need to work on my liking of eggplant.

BONJUN SALAT

Recipe from Recipeland

Serves 8

Ingredients:

• 3 medium eggplants
• 2.5 teaspoons kosher salt
• 1/4 cup corn oil
• 1.5 cups tomato sauce
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes or minced fresh chiles
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1 tablespoon mint leaves

Directions:

1. Prepare the eggplant. Slice the eggplants crosswise into 1.5 inch thick pieces.  Sprinkle them with 2 teaspoons of coarse salt and let stand for 15 minutes. Rinse the eggplants under cold water, which removes the bitter taste. Rinse and dry well on a towel. 

2. Brown the eggplants. Heat the oil in a skillet and lightly brown the eggplant slices over moderate heat for 5 minutes.  Remove and put in a serving bowl to cool. 

3. Prepare the sauce. Put the tomato sauce, pepper, chile, cinnamon, mint and 1/4 teaspoon of salt in a pan. Simmer over low heat for 10 minutes, which is long enough to integrate the flavors.

4. Finish the dish.  Pour the sauce over the eggplant, refrigerate until ready to use. The salad can remain in the refrigerator for several days. Serve cold or at room temperature. 

*    *    *

In doing a challenge to prepare a main course from Afghanistan, it is impossible to ignore the plight of women in that country. Extremist religions of every kind often subordinate (or subjugate) women, depriving them of important and necessary opportunities to learn and seek better lives. The Taliban is depriving women of their fundamental rights, as well as denying the undeniable: namely, women have a lot to contribute to the political, economic and social success of Afghanistan. While I think I succeeded in making Kofta Challow, my mind will always look to a possible future where women could once again contribute to the future of the country.

PEACE.

Jira Alu

I had a lot of red potatoes; and I really needed a recipe. When I had this realization, I was sitting in front of my laptop. I did a search for global potato recipes. I found a recipe for Jeera Aloo.

The name, Jeera Aloo, provides some insight into the two principal ingredients of this recipe. Jeera is the Hindi word for cumin. Aloo is the Hindi word for potatoes. That's it: cumin potatoes.

The recipe says that it comes from Bangladesh, so it should actually take its Bengali or Bangla title, Jira Alu. (I can't find the appropriate symbols or the Eastern Nagari script on Blogger, so I can't do justice for the name). Yet, this recipe incorporates spices that easily telegraph its origin. Not only the use of cumin, but also mustard, turmeric and ground chiles. Taken together, this dish reminds me of the aromas and flavors of the subcontinent.  Those aromas and flavors are some of the reasons why the cuisines of Southern Asia - from Bangladesh to Pakistan, from India to Sri Lanka - are some of my favorite cuisines to cook and eat. 

Apart from the aromas and flavors, the other key feature of this recipe is that it is really easy to make. There are only a handful of ingredients needed to make the dish. There are a couple of different ways to make it. One way would be to boil the potatoes first and then cook them in a pan. Another way is to just simply cook them in a pan. In the end, I decided that boiling the potatoes first would be best, because that would help to cook them through, especially since I decided to have larger pieces. It would also help when they are roasted in the pan because the outsides could crisp up while the interiors remain softer. 

So, in the end, this recipe does what many cooks do ... improvise with the ingredients (that is, use what is on hand) and the cooking methods. The end result is a very delicious side dish that could be part of of any meal. 

JIRA ALU

Recipe adapted from The Foreign Fork

Serves 4

Ingredients:

• 5 small potatoes, large dice
• 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
• 1/2 teaspoon black mustard seeds (substitute brown mustard seeds)
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

Directions:

1.    Boil the potatoes. Bring a pot of water to a boil and add the potatoes. Boil for about 10 minutes until a fork can be inserted into the potatoes but they are not too tender. Drain and leave to dry.

2.    Fry the spices. Heat the oil in the frying pan until it almost reaches its smoking point. Add the cumin. When the cumin seeds begin to pop, remove the pan from the fire and add the mustard seeds until they begin to pop as well. 

3.    Add the potatoes. Add the potatoes to the pan and the remaining seasonings. Cook over low heat until the potatoes are done. 

PEACE.

Rohingyan Beef Curry

We all miss home, but we cannot go back to the same fear. -- Nur Anya 

For decades, the Rohingyans -- a Muslim minority group --  have suffered under dehumanizing discrimination in Myanmar. The government refused to grant citizenship to the Rohingyan people, denying legal status to an entire ethnic group. Yet, the government passed laws that placed significant restrictions upon the Rohingya. For example, in the northern towns of Mungdaw and Buthidaugn, the authorities limited Rohingyan couples to two children. The government also requires Rohingyans to get approval before they can marry, as well as to travel or move outside of their home towns. These conditions are exacerbated by the fact that the area where most Rohingyans call "home," the Rakine State, is the least developed of Myanmar's states and has a poverty rate of 78%, which is more than double the national rate of 37.5% percent. 

The discrimination and repression led to violence in 2017, after a militant group known as the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army attacked police and army posts. The military cracked down on the Rohingyan people. As the United Nations would later find in an after-the-fact investigation, the Myanmar military showed "genocidal intent" and, in a 2018 report, the UN determined that Myanmar found that the military engaged in "clear patterns of abuse" that included, among other things, the systematic targeting of civilians, promoting discriminatory rhetoric against the Rohingya and establishing a "climate of impunity" for the government's security forces. After approximately one year, it is estimated that the Myanmar military and security forces killed nearly 24,000 Rohingyans.

Fleeing Death and Destruction

The violence and death led to mass displacement of Rohingyans, significant numbers of whom fled as refugees to other countries. I previously touched upon the Rohingyan refugee crisis as part of my culinary challenge involving Myanmar. Approximately 740,000 Rohingyans fled into neighboring Bangladesh. Many more fled to Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia. It was, at the time, the world's fastest growing humanitarian crisis.

Rohingyan refugees. Source: UNHR Australia

The stories of those who became refugees is heart-wrenching. As Nur Anya recounted from a refugee camp in Bangladesh: 

In Myanmar, we had our lands where we grew flowers, vegetables and many plants. We had a big house where all the family members lived together. The violence and the killing drove us to leave our homes. They brunt houses in my neighbourhood. They shot and killed a lot of people in my village. We were living with fear every day.  When we decided to leave, we had no other option.

It was the most difficult journey of my life. We walked 13 days and nights. To cross the river, my family used a handmade bamboo raft. There were a lot of people with us -- I could not say what the number was, it was so huge. 

As Rohingyans became refugees, many of their villages were abandoned and even more were distroyed. At one point, 176 of 471 Rohingyan villages -- or more than 1/3 of the villages -- had been abandoned.  The Myanmar government cleared entire Rohingyan villages and farms. The government then built homes, infrastructure and military bases in their place. 

Preserving the Rohingyan Culture

The end result, and perhaps the government's objective, was to eliminate the Rohingya people from Myanmar.  The government sought to take the legal status of the people -- that is, no recognition of the Rohingyans -- and make that a factual reality. This creates a clear and present danger to the Rohingyan identity and their culture, including their cuisine. The stories from the refugees include accounts where they had to leave everything behind, including all of their cooking utensils, which makes it harder for them to prepare food for themselves and their families. This leaves the people dependent upon food aid, which has become more difficult to obtain, leading to smaller meals or even skipped meals.

Rohingyan refugees eating a meal. Source: UNHCR

There are efforts to preserve that culture and its cuisine. One example involves the Endangered Material Knowledge Program (EDKM), which provides grants to conduct research on critically endangered knowledge. One project that was under consideration in 2023 was entitled, Rohingya Recipes and Food Practices of stateless Rohingya Community in Camps of Bangladesh. The project description noted the historical difficulty of the Rohingyan people when it came to food: they struggled to maintain the needed nutritional demands, whether it was at their homes in Myanmar or in the refugee camps in Bangladesh. The objective of this project is, among other things, to document recipes and practices of the Rohingyan people. 

This research is sorely needed, as there are few resources and research available on the Internet about the Rohingyan people, their culture and their cuisine. I was able to find a few recipes (which was more than my previous research when I was working on my Around the World challenge). I found a couple of recipes, including one for Rohingyan beef curry.

This recipe is a very interesting one. It calls for beef with bones. When I went to the grocery store, I had to improvise: I purchased some stew meat and some marrow bones. The "masala" for this curry -- turmeric, red chile powder, coriander, cumin, and garam masala -- provided for an aromatic cooking experience and a lot of flavor to build upon the garlic/ginger paste. 

The end result is a delicious beef curry with a slight kick. (I used Kashmiri chiles for the ground red chile powder.) I could not escape the thoughts about how this dish is just a memory for nearly a million Rohingyan refugees who have been forced from their homes and subjected to even greater poverty than what they previously experienced. I feel incredibly fortunate to be able to prepare this dish and prepare this post, as my effort to help publicize the Rohingyan culture and cuisine. More of this is needed so that the world does not forget the tragedies that unfolded over six years ago. 

ROHINGYAN BEEF CURRY

Recipe from SBS Food

Serves 4

Ingredients:

• 2 large onions, diced
• 1 kg diced beef, with bones
• 1 large tomato, diced
• 2 potatoes, diced
• 1 tablespoon garlic paste
• 2 tablespoons ginger paste
• 1 teaspoon turmeric powder
• 1 tablespoon red chile powder
• 1 tablespoon coriander powder
• 1/2 tablespoon cumin powder
• 3 teaspoons garam masala powder
• 4 tablespoons cooking oil
• Coriander, as garnish
• Green chiles, as garnish

Directions:

1.    Saute the vegetables and brown the meat. Heat oil on high heat in a large pot. Add onions, garlic paste and ginger paste. Stir for 2 to 3 minutes until brown. Add diced beef and bones and stir-fry for 2 minutes. Add turmeric powder, red chile powder, coriander and cumin. Stir-fry for 2 more minutes. Add the garam masala and stir-fry for another 2 minutes. 

2. Add the liquid and tomatoes. Add 1 cup of water and diced tomatoes and cook on high heat for 5 minutes. Add the potatoes in the last half an hour. 

3. Finish the dish. Garnish with coriander (cilantro) and green chiles. Serve with hot steamed rice.

PEACE.

Qidreh

"Under international law, the responsibility for protecting civilians in conflict falls on the belligerents. Under military occupation, the responsibility for the welfare of the population falls upon the occupiers." -- Kofi Annan

In the days and weeks following the October 7, 2023 barbaric attacks by Hamas against Israelis and foreigners, Israel proceeded to impose a complete blockade and then inflict a relentless military campaign upon the Gaza strip. Israel directed its self defense not simply toward Hamas, but also at more than two million Palestinians who live in Gaza. 

Israel's response has resulted in unimaginable suffering for those innocent people, who saw food stores run out, clean water run dry, and medical supplies become scarce. Supporters of Israel's strategy blamed all of the Palestinians' suffering on Hamas (or worse, they equated innocent Palestinian people with Hamas). The terrorist organization had control over Gaza since 2006 and which, during that time, entrenched itself amongst the civilians. The innocent Palestinians became the human shield of Hamas. Yet, Israel nevertheless chose to drop bombs and shoot missiles at that shield. The Palestinian people are caught between two warring sides, with indefensible losses of life and indescribable suffering. 

As I watched the unfolding events, a profound sadness overwhelmed me for the everyday Palestinian people. Those individuals who were just trying to make a life for themselves and their families, overcoming obstacles and shouldering burdens imposed upon them because of who they are and where they lived, not for what they have done. I have explored Palestinian culture and cuisine, with its ties to the sea and its roots in the ground. Now, in this post, I take a step back, because the situation has become much more dire for the everyday Palestinian people and their future in Gaza.

While everyone focuses upon the savagery of Hamas' central tenet (that is, the eradication of the Jewish people living in Israel or Palestine), there have been many statements by officials of the Israeli government that suggest the same outcome for the Palestinian people living in Gaza. These statements include, but are not limited to: 

• October 9, 2023: Israel's Defense Minister, Yoav Gallant, stated, "we are fighting human animals and we will act accordingly."
• October 10, 2023: Israeli Army spokesperson says the emphasis is on damage, not precision.
• October 28, 2023: Israel's Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu invokes the biblical passages about Amalek, in which the prophet Samuel conveys God's command to King Saul that the Hebrew people "punish the Amalekites and totally destroy all that belongs to them," adding "do not spare them; put to death men and women, children and infants, cattle and sheep, camels and donkeys." 
• November 13, 2023: Israel's Agricultural Minister, Avi Dichter, described the current war as "Gaza's Nakba," which is a reference to the original Nakba that resulted in the displacement of over 700,000 Palestinians when the State of Israel was created in 1948 (many of whom fled to Gaza).
• November 14, 2023: Israel's Finance Minister, Bezalel Smotrich, called for the voluntary migration of the Palestinian people out of Gaza, claiming it was the right humanitarian solution to do (it is also the first and principal step toward ethnic cleansing). 
• November 17, 2023: The Deputy Speaker of Israel's Knesset, Nissim Vaturi, stated that, "We are too humane. Burn Gaza now no less."

Statements like those set forth above suggest an objective that involves far more than simply eradicating Hamas. They are opening a door to take action against the Palestinian people who live in Gaza, forcing them to flee their homes in what could become another Nakba. (The original Nakba refers to the dislocation of Palestinians when Israel was established.) Israel's "self-defense" appears to involve little differentiation between everyday Palestinians and Hamas fighters, as evidenced by block after block of destroyed buildings, the targeting and destroying of civilian infrastructure, and the devastating boycott, denying the people of Gaza the very things they need to survive (like food, water, medical supplies, and fuel).

Two pictures: (L) Palestinians fleeing during the Nakba in 1948 and
(R) Palestinians fleeing the current conflict. 

Accountability for the above is deflected by a range of defenses. For example, the death toll of Gazans is often discounted as Hamas propaganda. More disturbingly, those who challenge Israel's "self-defense," are labelled as anti-Semitic. The calls upon Israel to international law and refrain from imposing collective punishment upon the Gazan people supposedly become anti-Semitic because it is believed that the challengers have not held other countries to such standards (regardless of whether that is true or not). Simply put, it is not anti-Semitic at this present moment in time to call upon people to be not only human, but humane. Our history should shape our future, where everyone on both sides learns from our prior failings and mistakes in order to prevent us from repeating them, time and again. One should not use the failings of the past as a defense to the failures of the present. We need to call out violations of human rights and international, calling for their cessation and remediation. 

I have been doing so in my own small way, by focusing on the Palestinians as a people. I wanted to do what I could to restore their humanity by recognizing their struggles while learning about their culture and cuisine. That cuisine can be best summarized by a headline to an article that I read: Dill, Fish and Resilience: The Holy Trinity of Gazan Cuisine.  To be honest, I don't cook with a lot of dill because it is not my favorite herb. Yet, many of the recipes that I reviewed included dill, and a lot of it. Dill can be found in salads, seafood dishes, soups and stews. As one put it, dill "is the smell of Gaza." Where the French have mirepoix and the Spanish have sofrito, the use of dill, in combination with chiles and garlic, provides a base for much of Gazan cooking. The other key element of Gazan cuisine, as it is for all Palestinian cuisine, is olive oil. The olive tree has an especially important place in Palestinian cooking. 

Yet, Palestinian cuisine also includes some more intangible ingredients. One of which is generosity. It features itself not only in the dishes, but also in the offering of food to others, especially those who are less fortunate. (Given the Palestinians' plight, that is really saying something.)

Whalid Al-Hattab serves Jarisha to his poor neighbors. Source: Arab News

The other intangible ingredient to Gazan cuisine is resilience. When one talks of food in Gaza, the discussion often gets intertwined is Israel's blockade of the territory. This blockade predated the events of October 7, 2023; and, its imposition has bordered on not just inhumane, but also irrational. At various points in time, basic food items -- such as pasta, lentil and coffee -- have been denied to the Gazan people by Israel. Indeed, even crayons were once blocked from entry into Gaza. The arbitrary denial of food and ingredients has had a negative impact upon not just the cuisine, but the every day meals for Gazans. Yet, Gazans continue to prepare dishes with what they have, and continue to share those dishes with the have-nots. 

The dish of Qidreh is not Gazan in origin, unlike Zibdiyet Gambari or Gazan Dagga. Its origins lie in the West Bank city of Hebron. Qidreh actually refers to the copper pot used to prepare the meal.  However, like most recipes, there are regional versions of Qidreh. For example, cooks in Jerusalem add chickpeas to the rice. Gazan cooks use much more garlic and a range of spices. I selected a recipe that draws not only from the traditional Hebron dish, but includes the chickpeas from Jerusalem and enough spices to make me believe that there is a nod to Gaza in the meal. The one variation on the recipe is that, rather than using a seven spice blend like Baharat, I used the Palestinian Nine Spice blend. 

I don't know what the future holds for Palestinians in Gaza (or the West Bank), but, if the past is any indication, it is not a good one. As long as far-right governments control the Israeli government, as long as extremist settlers wage violence upon Palestinian communities in the name of a greater Israel, the risk that a people, along with its culture and cuisine, may become endangered. All because of an inability or unwillingness to differentiate between those who wage terror and those who face terror.

QIDREH

Recipe from Fufu's Kitchen

Serves 5

Ingredients (for the lamb):

• 12 cuts of medium sized lamb (preferably lamb shoulder)
• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tablespoons salt
• 1 tablespoon ground allspice
• Boiling water
• 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder 
• 1 onion, quartered
• 4 bay leaves
• 4 cardamom pods
• 2 garlic cloves
• 1 cinnamon stick

Ingredients (for the rice):

• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 1 yellow onion, chopped
• 20 garlic cloves, halved
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/4 teaspoon turmeric powder
• 1 teaspoon seven spice (or Palestinian Nine Spice)
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 cups basmati rice
• 15 ounces chickpeas, drained

Ingredients (for the garnish):

• 1/3 cup slivered almonds or pine nuts
• 1 tablespoon ghee

Directions:

1. Brown the lamb. Rinse the lamb pieces thoroughly under cold water and trim excess fat if necessary. Pat the lamb dry.  In a large pot, add the olive oil on medium heat allowing for it to warm up. Once the oil is hot, add the lamb pieces and sear for 4 minutes each side to achieve a light browning. Season with half of the salt, pepper, and all spice from the ingredient list. 

2. Prepare to stew the lamb. Add enough boiling water to cover 2 inches over the lamb. Let this simmer covered for about 30 minutes. If residue rises to the top, skim it off. At this point add the rest of the seasonings and components on the ingredient list for the lamb. Allow to simmer for another 1.5 hours on low to medium heat. Once the time has passed, check the tenderness of the meat. Depending on cut and size, it may need more time but should be ready. take out the lamb pieces through a strainer on top of a bowl and reserve the lamb broth.

3. Prepare the rice. Wipe the same pot used to cook the lamb and add the olive oil with the onions. Sauté until fragrant, which is about 5 to 8 minutes and then add the garlic and saute for another 5 minutes. Season with all of the spices in the rice list and add the rice and chickpeas to this as well. Give it a nice stir so that everything is coated. Take a majority of the rice out and put on a plate to the side. Leave a layer of rice in the pot and top it with half of the lamb pieces and then add the remaining rice and top of the remaining lamb. Add enough lamb broth to cover the rice 1 inch over. Put a heat proof plate that fits on top of the pot. Store extra broth in a container to use for other purposes.

4. Cook the rice. Cook the rice covered with a lid for about 20 to 25 minutes on low to medium heat making sure not to scorch the bottom of the pot. Once the liquid is evaporated and the rice is cooked through, turn off the heat. allow for the rice to stay in the steam for another 5-10 minutes before serving on a platter of your choice.

5. Finish the dish. Top with toasted slivered almonds and/or pine nuts in ghee. Enjoy with a refreshing salad and plain yogurt. 

PEACE.