Machboos
This beautifully aromatic rice dish, Machboos, is Bahrain's national dish. Noor Murad's version is vegetarian or vegan and is packed with spices, herbs, nuts, and dried fruit. It's a show-stealing side dish, but will also work just as well as a main dish and is perfect for Eid or other celebrations.
From the book
Lugma
Over 100 beautiful Middle Eastern recipes
From former Ottolenghi Test Kitchen lead chef, Noor Murad
Recipes with big, bold flavours that are as perfect for midweek cooking as they are for hosting
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Introduction
Machboos is Bahrain’s national dish, a spiced rice that will often contain chicken, meat, fish or prawns. This ‘base’ recipe can be made with any protein you choose, but I also like to have it as is and instead take liberties with the toppings. The split pea and onion topping is often seen at special occasions, for instance during Eid, when you’ll have a whole lamb over rice (called ghouzi).
Ingredients
| For the rice: | |
|---|---|
| 55g (2oz) | ghee (use olive oil if vegan) |
| 1 (180g/6¼oz) | onion, finely chopped |
| 1 stick | cinnamon |
| 1 | dried lime (black or regular), pierced a couple of times with a sharp knife (optional) |
| 1 | green (bell) pepper, cut into 3–4cm (about 1½in) cubes |
| 4 cloves | garlic, finely grated |
| 30g (1oz) | fresh ginger, peeled and finely grated |
| 1-2 | green chillies, finely chopped, seeds and all |
| 1½ tsp | cumin seeds, finely crushed using a pestle and mortar |
| 1½ tsp | coriander seeds, finely crushed using a pestle and mortar |
| 4 | cloves, finely crushed using a pestle and mortar |
| 8 pods | cardamom, roughly bashed open |
| ½ tsp | ground turmeric |
| 200g (7oz) | tomatoes, finely chopped (about 2 small ones) |
| 10g (¼oz) | dill fronds, finely chopped |
| 10g (¼oz) | coriander (cilantro) leaves and soft stems, finely chopped |
| 300g (10½oz) | basmati rice, washed until the water runs clear, then soaked for at least 20 minutes and up to 2 hours, then drained |
| fine sea salt and ground black pepper | |
| For the topping: | |
| 75g (2½oz) | yellow split peas, soaked in boiling water for 2 hours |
| 3 medium | eggs, boiled to your liking, then peeled (omit if vegan) |
| 25g (1oz) | golden raisins |
| 1 tbsp | apple cider vinegar |
| 1 large | onion, finely chopped |
| 35g (1¼oz) | raw cashews |
| 40g (1½oz) | ghee (use olive oil if vegan) |
| ½ tsp | ground cinnamon |
| 5g (1⁄8oz) | coriander (cilantro), leaves and soft stems picked |
| 5g (1⁄8oz) | dill fronds, picked |
Method
Soaking time: 20 minutes–2 hours
Melt 40g (1½oz) of the ghee in a large, lidded saucepan over a medium-high heat. Once hot, add the onion, cinnamon stick and dried lime and fry for 4 minutes, stirring occasionally, until softened and starting to colour. Add the green pepper and continue cooking for 3 minutes, stirring occasionally, then add the garlic, ginger, chillies and spices and fry for a minute more, until fragrant. Stir in the tomatoes and herbs and cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the tomatoes have completely broken down. Stir in the rice, 1¼ teaspoons of salt and a generous grind of black pepper, then pour in 500ml (17fl oz) of hot water. Bring to a simmer and dot with the remaining 15g (½oz) of ghee. Cover the pan with a clean tea towel followed by the lid, bringing the ends of the towel up and over the lid and securing them with a rubber band or by tying them together. Turn down the heat to medium-low and leave to cook, undisturbed, for 20 minutes. Once ready, turn off the heat and, without removing the lid, leave to steam for a further 20 minutes.
Meanwhile, prepare the topping. Three-quarters fill a medium saucepan with water and bring to the boil. Add the drained split peas to the pan and boil for 15–20 minutes, or until they are cooked through but still hold their shape. Drain well and set aside. Refill the saucepan with water and use it to boil your eggs at this point. Cool, peel and set aside.
Add the golden raisins and apple cider vinegar to a small bowl and set aside.
Place a medium frying pan (skillet) over a medium-high heat. Once hot, add the onion and the cashews (without any fat at this point) and fry for 6 minutes, stirring occasionally, until nicely browned. Add the ghee and cinnamon, stirring to melt the ghee, then stir in the split peas, 1⁄3 teaspoon of salt and a good grind of pepper. Fry for a further 4 minutes, stirring occasionally, then add the golden raisins and vinegar and remove from the heat.
Uncover the rice, remove the towel and place a large, round platter over the pan. In one swift movement, invert the whole thing onto the platter, gently shaking the platter and using a spoon to spread everything nicely. Spoon over the split pea mixture, then halve the eggs, seasoning them with a pinch of salt and pepper, and arrange these on the rice too. Lastly, top with the picked herbs.
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