Arabic Food

Bamiya [Okra Stew]

categories: Arabic Food Made Easy, Lamb, Posts, Recipes, Stews

bamiya_3

I always feel an immense sense of accomplishment when I make Arabic food and it tastes like my mom’s cooking. Likely because Arabic food only tastes good when my mom or tayta make it, in my personal opinion. So when I realized we had some fresh okra hanging out in the fridge, I decided to try a very well known Arabic dish; Bamiya. Bamiya is basically okra stew.

Don’t let the okra deter you. Most people don’t like it because it can get pretty slimy. But if you prepare the okra properly, I promise you a slime-free meal. (more…)

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Kubbeh Bel Sineyeh

categories: Arabic Food Made Easy, Beef, Posts, Recipes

kubbeh_2

 

Arabic food is tough. It may partially be because I psych myself out before cooking. I know there’s rarely such thing as a 30-minute meal and so I reserve cooking it to the weekends – if that.

My parents have instituted a once a week rule. That is, I’m required to contribute to the weekly cooking at least once a week. In theory, it’s a brilliant idea! In practice, it’s a bit more tricky. Especially since the days I pick, usually don’t work for the family. This last weekend, I decided to reserve Sunday lunch. I refused to discuss the menu with my mom ahead of time so that I could surprise her with my Arabic cooking abilities. (more…)

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Arabic Food Made Easy Series: Imnazzaleh

categories: 500 Calories or Less, Arabic Food Made Easy, Posts, Recipes, Vegetables & Sides

 

Let’s face it, Arabic food takes forever to make. There are lots of steps and long cooking times, time I don’t have when I’m working full time and trying to conserve my culture simultaneously. That’s why I’ve decided to start a recipe series featuring traditional Arabic dishes, made much easier for those of us that have full time jobs and prefer to keep weekday cooking to 30 minutes or less. This is the fourth installment of the series. Don’t forget to check out previous posts in the Arabic Food Made Easy Series.

I’ve mentioned before my love for eggplant. I know for most it’s an acquired taste, but it’s a truly delicious veggie. A few months ago, I spent some time at my Tayta’s. My last night over, she asked me to come back the following night just for dinner. She was making a dish she had been craving for a while – Imnazzaleh (pronounced em-naza-lee). Well, she never got around to making it because she caught a bad case of pneumonia. I did, however, get her recipe and several weeks later I decided to try it out and bring her the dish she was craving.

Tayta’s Imnazzaleh Recipe

Ingredients

2 large Eggplants
1 can Diced Tomatoes
2 cloves Garlic (whole)
1 medium onion, chopped
1 tablespoon Seven Spice
Sea Salt, to taste
Olive Oil
 

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Cut the eggplant into 1-inch cubes.
Coat the eggplant with olive oil and place on a baking dish (or two).
Bake for 40 minutes.
In a large skillet, over high heat sauté onions until translucent.
Add Eggplant, diced tomatoes, and garlic.
Add seven spice, and sea salt. Mix well.
Bring to a boil, then simmer on low for 15 minutes.
 

Serve with Arabic Bread.

Servings: 6

Nutrition Information: Cals 157. Carbs 13g. Fat 12g. Protein 2g.

Stuffed Green Peppers

categories: Posts, Recipes, Vegetables & Sides

 

Stuffed-Green-Peppers

I found out that the trick to Arabic food, and stuffing specifically is that you can pretty much stuff anything using the same simple stuffing recipe – tomatoes, peppers, grape leaves, cabbage, potatoes – you name it, we stuff it.

Stuffed-Green-Peppers

And you won’t believe how easy it is to make this all-purpose stuffing. So, how does it work exactly? Well, basically it means that everything you stuff has an Arabic taste to it. Which in my opinion is delicious. Stuffed Green Peppers are super easy to make – done in under an hour.

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Stuffed Green Peppers

Ingredients

  • 2 Green Peppers
  • ½ lb Ground Lean Beef
  • ½ Onion, chopped
  • ½ teaspoon Allspice
  • Salt
  • Pepper
  • Lemon Juice
  • ½ can Tomato Paste
  • 1 espresso-sized cup Lemon Juice
  • Olive Oil
  • Water to taste

Instructions

  1. Heat oil in a medium-sized pan, add onion and cook until translucent.
  2. Add ground beef.
  3. Add Allspice, salt and pepper and brown the meat.
  4. In the meantime, cut open two green peppers, removing the seeds. You can discard the tops.
  5. Once the meat is browned, spoon the mixture into each green pepper.
  6. Mix together tomato paste, lemon juice and water and pour into a baking dish.
  7. Carefully place each stuffed pepper into the baking dish and cover with aluminum foil.
  8. Bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes.

Notes

Nutrition Information: Cals 371. Carbs 11g. Fat 28g. Protein 24g. Sodium 60mg. Sugar 5g.

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