Prawns in Spicy Tomato Sauce
Prawns in Spicy Tomato Sauce The first time I had Prawns in Spicy Tomato Sauce was in a fish restaurant in Fayid, a small fishing town half way up the Suez Canal. It was a side dish as part of a fish mezze. I must …
Tag: rich tomato sauce
Fettah
Fettah
Fettah is one of the signature dishes of Egypt.
So, what is Fettah?
Fettah is a rice dish that has bread at its base which is soaked in a really good, tasty stock. The rice is piled high over the bread and then drizzled with a wonderful rich garlicky tomato sauce.
The dish is then usually crowned with a really good stewed lamb, that has been cooked to perfection.
Lamb Fettah is a favourite dish in Egypt, especially for Eid.
It’s also reported that the Lamb Fettah, cooked by his mother, was the favourite food of Omar Sharif (the original ‘Doctor Zhivago’ & also starred in ‘Laurence of Arabia’) .
Even without the meat topping, this is an incredibly tasty dish.
If you use vegetable stock cubes it is a great option for vegetarian.
The quantities used for this recipe are enough for 4 people.
Ingredients
- 4 slices of pitta bread
- ½ pint of good rich stock (if you’re making Lamb Fettah then the stock from the stew would be perfect. If you use stock cubes, then adding a couple of knobs of butter will enrich the flavour.
For the Egyptian Rice
- 2 cups Egyptian rice
- 3 tbsp oil
- 3 stock cubes grated
- 3 cups boiling water
For the tomato sauce
- 2 tbsp oil
- 4 cloves of garlic
- 4 tomatoes – peeled seeded and chopped or 1 can chopped tomatoes
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 stock cube grated
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
- juice of a lemon
- 1 tbsp butter
- a handful of fresh coriander – chopped
The bread used for this needs to be very dry so break the pita bread into pieces and put them on a baking tray, place this in an oven on its lowest setting temperature for about 20 – 30 minutes to allow it to crisp up.
Meanwhile make the tomato sauce for the fettah
First heat the oil in a medium size pan over a medium heat.
Add the garlic, tomatoes, cumin, grated stock cube, salt and pepper.
Bring to the boil and then reduce the heat down to a gentle simmer.
Cook for about 10- 15 minutes stirring occasionally.
The sauce will become a rich red colour and reduce slightly. Add the lemon juice and butter and cook for 2 more minutes.
Stir in the chopped coriander just before serving.
Whilst your sauce is cooking, cook the rice for your fettah
Boil a kettle of water ready to use later.
Heat the oil in a large pan. Add the rice to the oil in the pan and keep stirring until the grains of rice turn first white and then begin to turn slightly golden.
Add the grated stock cube.
Warning – it’s best to wear an oven glove !
Then CAREFULLY add the boiling water – WARNING when the water hits the hot oil it will send up clouds of very hot steam so wear an oven glove.
Once the water is added give the rice a quick stir and then put the lid on the pan and reduce the heat down to the lowest setting it can go to and cook for 12 minutes. Then turn the heat off and allow the rice to cook in its own steam for about another 6 minutes.
Time to start building
Now all the components of your fettah are ready, so now it’s time to bring them all together on a large serving dish or tray.
First spread the broken pieces of crispy pitta bread over the bottom of your serving dish and pour the hot stock over it. Drench it thoroughly. Allow a few minutes for the stock to soak into the bread.
Next spoon the steaming hot rice over the pita bread and smooth it over to form a level surface.
Now drizzle the rich garlicy tomato sauce over the rice.
If you are making Lamb Fettah, then now is the time to crown your fettah with the fabulous stewed Lamb.
This dish has so many wonderful flavours and aromas to savour I’m sure you’ll love it.
Lamb Fettah
Lamb Fettah Lamb Fettah : Beautifully tender, succulent chunks of meat are laid over Egyptian rice which has been cooked in tasty stock. At its base are pieces of crispy bread. These have been soaked in a wonderfully rich gravy which the bread sucks up …
Koshery
Koshery
Koshery – the rice and pasta dish with a delicious tomato sauce
Koshery is a wonderful dish. It’s one of Egypt’s most popular street foods; a good, filling meal which tastes delicious. And you can prepare it at very little expense with ingredients you probably already have in your store cupboard.
Koshery combines rice, macaroni and lentils, which is then topped with a gloriously rich tomato sauce, laced with garlic and cumin. The resulting dish is not only a substantial meal but more importantly it tastes fantastic and it’s a guaranteed crowd pleaser.
If Koshery is on the menu, then this is the recipe you want to use. Every time it’s made, it gets rave reviews.
It’s a brilliant option for our Vegetarian friends
Everyone loves Koshery and it’s a brilliant option for Vegetarians and with minor adaptations it’s also great for Vegans.
Koshery is one of the most popular street foods in Egypt
Yes, Koshery is most definitely a signature dish of Egypt. You see Koshery shops all over Cairo (and of course the rest of Egypt) with their mountains of rice and macaroni. The wonderful smell of the delicious tomato sauce with its garlic and cumin filling the air. The glorious smell tempts the crowds who then queue outside waiting for their turn to enjoy this savoury delight.
The origins of Koshery
Was it British occupation?
There are several stories about the origins of Koshery. One is that it was introduced during British occupation in Egypt. Having previously spent time in India during the British Raj they had become accustomed to eating Kedgeree with rice, onions, smoked fish, spices and wonderful flavours and when they came to Egypt, they looked to develop something similar and Koshery was created.
The Italian influence ?
Another story tells of how it was Italian influences from just across the Mediterranean that brought about its creation.
Or was it a creative chef with a near empty pantry ?
The last story is much more of a ‘Ready, Steady Cook’ scenario, where it was invented by a chef who was in a situation where there was very little of anything left in the pantry; well not enough of any one thing to prepare a meal. So instead, a meal was prepared bringing together lots of odds and ends to concoct a new dish which was apparently so popular that it went on to become one of the most popular street foods in Egypt today.
It’s all about layering it up
There are several components to this dish, so it’s good if you’re good at multi-tasking. Having said that everything is incredibly easy to make.
There is a traditional format to plate this up. First on the plate you have a layer of Egyptian rice. On top of this is a layer of macaroni. This then has lentils scattered over it, followed by the rich, tasty tomato sauce. The chickpeas are spread around the edge of the plate and the delicious, dark brown crispy onions then crown this masterpiece. The garlic and lemon sauce is served in a bowl with a spoon for people to drizzle over the top.
When I cook Koshery for a large crowd, I’m afraid tradition goes out of the window
On the many occasions that I have cooked this for large groups of people (i.e., more than a dozen at a time) I broke with convention, and I found it easier to mix the rice, macaroni, and lentils together. It was then possible to serve this onto plates from just one pan rather than from 3 separate pans.
I also heated the chickpeas in the tomato sauce which I think made them even more tasty and as a result I do it this way every time now.
The crispy onions, and garlic and lemon sauce were then served in separate bowls, for people to help themselves.
If you’re cooking for a crowd you could always cook the tomato sauce the day before, or even the week before and put it in the freezer and take it out the night before to defrost. That could take a bit of pressure off on the day.
So, how long does it take to make everything for Koshery?
The tomato sauce takes about 45 minutes in total to cook.
Egyptian Rice cooks in about 25 minutes.
This macaroni takes around 25 minutes to cook.
Brown Lentils -15 – 20 minutes cooking time.
10 minutes to fry up the onions.
Garlic & Lemon Butter – 5 – 10 minutes to prepare.
5 minutes to warm the chickpeas.
Of course all these components are cooked up simultaneously so the whole dish can be cooked in under an hour.
To serve 6 people
Ingredients
Ingredients for Tomato Sauce for Koshery
- Vegetable oil for frying
- 2 large onions finely chopped
- 5 cloves garlic grated or 3 heaped tsp garlic puree
- 3 tins of chopped tomatoes or 8 large ripe tomatoes – finely chopped
- 2 stock cubes grated or crumbled
- ½ pt water
- 2 tbsp ground cumin
- the leaves of a small bunch of fresh coriander – finely chopped (optional)
- freshly ground black pepper
- a pinch of chilli flakes (optional)
Ingredients for Egyptian Rice for Koshery
- Oil for frying
- 2 mugs Egyptian short grain rice or normal long grain rice
- 3 mugs stock – heated to near boiling temperature
- 2 tbsp ghee (clarified butter) (optional)
Ingredients for Macaroni for Koshery
- 600g macaroni
- a little cooking oil
- 750ml stock made from 3 stock cubes dissolved in 3 mugs of boiling water
Ingredients for Brown Lentils for Koshery
- 1/2 cup brown Lentils
Ingredients for Garlic & Lemon Sauce
- 6 tbsp Ghee or you could use butter
- 4 tbsp garlic puree
- juice of 3 lemon
- salt and freshly ground pepper
Additional Ingredients
- 1 can chickpeas
- 2 onions finely sliced – for frying crispy onions for your topping
Method
Method to cook your Tomato sauce
Blitz your tomatoes
If you’re using using fresh tomatoes, put them into a blender and blitz them for a few seconds until they are completely blended. Alternatively you could grate them.
Fry up your onions for your tomato sauce
Pour enough oil into a large frying pan to cover the bottom.
Put this over a medium heat and add the onions. Fry them until they begin to take on a golden-brown colour and soften.
Add the garlic and cook for just 1 minute.
Add your tomatoes
Then add the blitzed tomatoes to the onions and continue cooking the sauce until it goes from being a pinkish red colour and takes on a much richer red colour and begins to thicken.
Add the stock cubes, water, cumin and chilli flakes (if you are using them).
Turn down the heat & simmer for 15 minutes
Reduce the heat down to a gentle simmer.
Season well with the black pepper and continue simmering for a further 20 – 25 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Check your tomato sauce doesn’t dry out add a little extra water if necessary.
By this time your kitchen will be full of such goods aromas
Take the pan off the heat.
Add your herbs just before serving
Add the chopped coriander leaves (if you are using them) just before serving to ensure they don’t lose their colour.
Your delightfully rich tomato sauce is now ready to ladle over your koshery mix, and to be enjoyed by all!
Method to cook the Egyptian Rice
First fry up the rice
Put a good drizzle of oil into a large pan. Put the pan over a high flame to heat up.
When the oil is sizzling add the rice and fry it until it begins to brown – stirring continuously.
Add the stock – CAREFULLY
For the next stage PLEASE BE VERY CAREFUL – I would advise you to wear an oven glove on the hand you are pouring from and keep your face well back – the first lot of liquid you add to the hot rice and oil will shoot hot steam up like a full-blown volcano so be warned. The first time I did it I had the scare of my life.
So now carefully pour the hot stock into the rice. As I said be careful.
Reduce the heat and simmer for 12 minutes
Stir the rice to make sure it doesn’t clump together Add the ghee then reduce the heat down to the lowest heat possible and cook for 12 more minutes.
Let it steam for another 6 minutes
Turn the heat off but keep the lid firmly in place so that the rice can finish off cooking in the steam for a further 6 minutes.
Fluff it up and the rice is ready
Remove the pan from the heat and using a fork fluff up the rice.
Now it’s ready to serve.
Keep the lid on the rice to keep it hot, it will stay hot for over 1/2 hour if you do this.
Method to cook your Macaroni for koshery
Put a little oil into a saucepan and add your macaroni.
Heat the pan over a medium to high flame, stirring constantly until the macaroni begins to toast slightly.
Add the hot stock. Bring to the boil and then reduce the heat to a simmer stirring occasionally.
Simmer for about 12 minutes until the macaroni softens. By this time quite a lot of the stock will have been absorbed. Any remaining liquid will continue to be absorbed so no need to drain.
Once the macaroni is cooked take it off the heat. Cover with a lid and keep warm until everything is ready.
Method to cook your Brown lentils
Rinse the lentils thoroughly then put them in a small pan and boil them in plain unsalted water for about 15 minutes until they begin to soften.
How to cook your Crispy onions
Heat a deep frying pan (I use a wok) over a high flame.
When its well heated add some vegetable oil and allow that to get really hot before adding the onions. Fry the onions until they become very crispy and browned.
Sprinkle with a little salt once they are cooked.
How to to cook your Chickpeas
Simply open the can, warm the chickpeas in a pan over a medium heat and drain – you can drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle lemon juice and chilli flakes over them if you choose.
Or you could simply drain them and add them to your tomato sauce to heat through – it’s less traditional but in my opinion its quicker, and it creates less pans to wash up.
Plus, I think it adds to the flavour of the chickpeas.
Method to prepare Garlic and Lemon sauce
Using a small pan, start to melt the ghee over only a medium heat.
- Don’t fry the garlic, just allow it to bathe in the warm butter to release its gorgeous flavours
Add the garlic to the ghee straight away before it starts to get too hot, that way the garlic will cook slowly and release all its gorgeous flavours without starting to brown or char which can make it bitter.
As the ghee heats through, the wonderful rich aroma of the garlic is released into the air.
Once the butter is melted remove the pan from the heat.
Now it’s time to add the lemon juice. Add it very gradually and beat the butter as you do.
Season well with the salt and freshly ground pepper.
Your garlic and lemon sauce is now ready to serve.
How to serve your delicious Koshery
As I said, start with a layer of rice. Over the rice lay a layer of macaroni. And on top of the macaroni sprinkle the lentils. Follow this with the glorious tomato sauce which will drizzle down and add flavour to everything. Crown your koshery with the chickpeas and wonderfully crispy onions to complete your masterpiece..
- Serve the garlic and lemon sauce separately for people to add as they will.
* A couple of years ago, my daughter and her husband visited Khan Al-Khalili, the famous bazaar in Cairo. When it was time to eat they chose Koshery. It was served with a drizzle of chilli oil over it, which they thought just took it to the next level. So you might like to try that as well and see what you think. Let me know.
- This is a fantastic recipe to try.
- Great if you want to feed a crowd on a tight budget
- Yet it’s still packed with flavour.
Let me know how you get on. I love seeing your photos.
