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Saudi Arabia (Saudi Arabian Recipes)
For the past many centuries, spices from the Mediterranean region have been brought to the coastal cities of Jeddah and other neighboring areas and have enriched the flavor of the region. The pilgrims to Mecca and Medina have further brought excellent recipes to the region.
Spices have always been an important part of Saudi Arabian dishes. Some of the popular and commonly used spices include cloves, cardamom, saffron, shaybah, cinnamon, tamarind, sumac and dried limes. Cardamom is the most widely used spice and is also a quite common ingredient of Arabian coffee.
Some of the popular dishes of the Saudi Arabian people are Al-Kabsa, Al-Mathbi, Harisah, Al-Motubug, Al-Roaz Al-Zirbeyan, Salata Khadra, Ghorrayeba, Sharab Al-Na’na, Looqemat, Fakhitha Bel Laban, Sidreyat Al Dajaj, Leek Samboosak, Kofta bel Baqdoonis, Gereesh Bel Laban, Dajaj Mahshy, Dajaj Bel Laban and Aml Al Sheera among many others. All of these traditional dishes have different and unique recipes, which are known to most native Saudi Arabians.
Ingredients:
1 cup dried ful, small-size bean, rinsed and drained
8 cups water
1 medium ripe tomato, chopped
1 clove garlic, peeled and crushed
1/4 cup chopped parsley
1 cup peeled and thinly sliced yellow onion
Dressing:
1/2 cup olive oil
Juice of 1 lemon
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Cooking Instructions:
Place the beans (ful) in a medium pot and add 4 cups of water. Bring to a boil, turn off the heat, and let stand 1 hour, covered. Drain.Return the ful to the pot and add 4 cups of fresh water. Bring to a boil, covered, and reduce to a simmer. Cook 15 minutes or until the beans are tender. Drain. Mix the beans with the tomato, garlic, parsley, and onion. Prepare the dressing and toss with the vegetables. Chill before serving.
Ingredients:
1 15-lb. kid or baby lamb
4 cups cooked rice
2 cups chopped pistachio nuts
1/2 cup chopped almonds
1 1/2 cups sultana raisins
1 cup ghee or butter
2 cups sliced onions
3 1/2 tsp. salt
2 Tbsp. kizbara (coriander)
1/2 tsp coarsely ground pepper
1 tsp. candied ginger, ground
Cooking Instructions:
Have butcher prepare kid for roasting. Rinse inside and out. Wipe dry. Rub carcass both inside and out with mixture of 1/2 a cup of the onions and the seasonings. Mix rice with nuts, raisins, 1 1/2 cups onions, and stuff the animal. Sew the opening. Put the stuffed kid in a large pan. Pour melted fat over it and roast in a slow oven until meat is very tender and outside well browned. Baste frequently with pan drippings. Or, roast outdoors on a rotisserie over charcoal for best flavor.
Servings: 3
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups White Basmati Rice-cleaned & rinsed
Water
1 Tomato cut up in small pieces
1 small to medium onion chopped
2 heaping teaspoons of Baharat spice ground
3 heaping teaspoons of cardomon ground
3/4 can of tomato paste
6 teaspoons of olive oil
1 small snack box of raisins
1 small chicken cut in sections (a frying chicken will do)
Salt to taste
1 cinnamon stick
2 packets (.19 oz each) of "Wyler's instant beef broth, optional
1 dried black lemon
2 heaping teaspoons powdered garlic
Cooking Instructions:
Thaw chicken according to meat packing directions, wash chicken thoroughly and take the skin off the chicken. Set aside skinned chicken, but nolonger than a few minutes so as not to promote bacterial growth. In a large boiler-pot add oil, chopped onions and 1 heaping teaspoon of cardomon stirring until browned on medium high heat. Add boiling water to the boiler-pot until half full. Add salt accoriding to your own taste, 2 heaping tablespoons of cardomon, 2 heaping teaspoons of garlic powder, the cut tomato, 3/4 can of tomato paste, 1 black lemon and the raisins to the already browned onions. (adding the 2 packets of "Wyler's instant beef broth at this time is optional). Stir on medium heat and try a little of the broth (add spices to suit your own taste). Add chicken to the broth and keep at medium heat. Cover with aluminum foil and then the pot lid. Boil chicken on medium high for approximately 30 minutes. Turn down heat to medium temperature and take the chicken out of the broth and place in an oven baking dish into a preheated oven at 300 degrees F. & bake. Strain the broth. Keep the strained ingredients in one bowl and the broth in another bowl. Put the ingredients (e.g. onions, tomato, black lemon, etc.) back into the boiler-pot. Add the 1 1/2 cups of Basmati rice along with 3 measured cups of the kapsa broth that you had previously set aside in a bowl. Bring the Basmati rice, the Kapsa broth and all the ingredients to a boil, then immedietly turn down heat to low and cover sealing tightly again with aluminum foil. Cover with a lid over the aluminum foil. Do not open or peek at it for atleast 10 minutes. Then periodically check to see if rice is light and fluffy, but do not stir rice. The Kapsa rice is done when all the broth has been absorbed. Remember to check on the chicken in the oven every so often to make sure that it doesn't overcook and become dry. The chicken should be moist. Turn off the heat and take off the aluminum foil and allow the extra steam to escape. If the Basmati rice appears dry and not completely cooked add a little bit of the extra broth and recover until finished. Do not mix the water and rice, just add over the top.
Pour rice on to a large circular platter. Place the chicken from the oven in the middle and on top of the rice. Serve with shattah (hot sauce).
Servings: 4-6
Ingredients:
3/4 lb. meat
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 cup cracked wheat
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
6 tomatoes
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 onions
2 tablespoons corn oil
4 cinnamon sticks
5 cups water
Cooking Instructions:
Peel and finely chop the onions. Heat the oil in a sauce pan. Lightly fry the onions. Add the meat and fry on all sides. Cover the meat with water and cook until almost tender. Pur'e the tomatoes and season with salt, pepper and cinnamon sticks. Add the cracked wheat to the soup. Cover the pot and simmer, checking the water level occasionally. Pour soup into tureen. Sprinkle the cinnamon on top. Serve hot.
Servings: 2-4
Ingredients:
6 cucumbers
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
4 tomatoes
Salt
1/2 bundle fresh parsley
Juice of 1 lemon
Cooking Instructions:
Wash the cucumbers. Peel and slice crosswise. Wash and chop the tomatoes. Wash and chop the parsley. Add to the tomatoes and cucumbers. Add the lemon juice and pepper. Salt to taste. Can be served as a side with most dishes.
Servings: 10-12
Ingredients:
4 cups flour
1 tablespoon ground cardamom
1 cup confectioner's sugar
1/3 lb. almonds
1 cup vegetable shortening
Cooking Instructions:
Heat the shortening in a pan. Add the sugar and stir until the sugar dissolves completely. Remove from heat. Add the cardamom and flour. Mix thoroughly. Shape the dough into circles. Grease a cookie sheet and arrange dough circles on it. Blanch and skin the almonds. Split in two length-wise. Place half an almond on top of each circle of dough. Bake in a moderately hot oven until the tops are brown.
Servings: 6-8
Ingredients:
1 1/2 lb. lamb
1/2 tablespoon tomato paste
6 tablespoons corn oil
3 dried limes
4 onions
2 green chili peppers
6 tomatoes, pur'ed
1 package macaroni
1/4 teaspoon of each of the following spices (ground):
Black pepper, cumin, cinnamon, cardamom, saffron
Salt to taste
2 sticks of cinnamon
8 cardamom seeds
Cooking Instructions:
Wash meat and chop into large pieces. Peel onions and chop. Heat oil and fry onions until golden brown, stirring occasionally. Add meat and stir until meat is browned on all sides. Add tomato pur'e, tomato paste, spices and water. When meat is almost cooked, add chili peppers and dried limes. Let simmer. When meat is cooked, remove it along with the peppers and limes. Set aside. Add macaroni to broth (add water if necessary). When macaroni is almost cooked, add meat, peppers and limes. Leave on low heat to finish cooking. Add water if liquid is insufficient. Remove meat, limes and peppers. Place macaroni in a dish. Decorate with meat, limes and peppers. Serve hot.
Servings: 8-10
Ingredients:
2 chickens
5 onions
1 cup yogurt
3 cups tomato juice
5 cups rice
1 cup corn oil
Salt
1 teaspoon turmeric
Ground Spices:
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon cardamom
2 hot peppers or green chili
Peppers, optional
Cooking Instructions:
Slice the onions in rings, fry and drain. Clean the chicken and cut into 4 quarters. Brown in the same oil as the onions. Finely chop the onions and place in a pan with the yogurt, tomato juice, spices (except turmeric) and salt. Mix well. Add the mixture to the chicken. Add the peppers, if desired, and simmer on low heat until the chicken is cooked through. Wash the rice and partially cook it in a small amount of water in a separate pan. Add salt and strain. Place 1/2 the rice in a pan. Add the turmeric. Mix well. Add the chicken and then the onion and spice mixture. Place the remaining rice on top with a spoonful of corn oil. Simmer on medium heat for half an hour, or until rice and chicken are cooked through. Serve hot.
Servings: 4-6
Ingredients:
3/4 lb meat with bone
Spices:
1 cup vermicelli 10
Black peppercorns
4 tomatoes
5 cardamom seeds
3 green chili peppers
2 pieces of chaiba
Cooking Instructions:
The above spices, in their original form, should be made into a spice bundle using a cheese cloth. Wash the meat and place in a saucepan with enough water to cover. Cook over high heat, skimming the fat as it rises. Add the spice bundle, the chili pepper and salt. Purée the tomatoes and add to the meat when almost cooked. Break the vermicelli into small pieces and place in saucepan. Simmer gently until the meat is tender. Remove the spices. Serve very hot.
Servings: 4
Ingredients:
1 chicken (3 lbs)
1/4 cup blanched almonds, skinned and roasted
1/2 lb ground beef
12 tablespoons of oil
1 onion, grated
1 cup cooked white rice
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon cloves
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon cardamom
1 teaspoon saffron
1 tomato puréed
1/4 cup raisins
Flour
Cooking Instructions:
Thoroughly clean the chicken inside and out. Rub with flour and salt. Fry the ground meat, onion and black pepper; add to the cooked rice. Add the almonds, raisins and spices to the above and mix well. Stuff the chicken with the mixture and truss. Fry the chicken in a large pan. Pour the tomato purée on top, add salt and cook over medium heat until done.
Servings: 2-4
Ingredients:
2 medium tomatoes
Juice of two lemons
2 green chili peppers
Salt to taste
1/2 bunch chopped coriander
Cooking Instructions:
Wash the tomatoes and grill over a low heat. Peel and purée them. Set aside. Wash the coriander and chili peppers; chop both, then grind using pestle and mortar. Add this mixture to the tomatoes, plus salt and lemon juice. Mix and serve.
Servings: 10-12
Ingredients:
6 cups flour
2 eggs beaten with 1/2 cup corn oil
2 bundles leeks, medium sized
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 1/2 lbs ground beef
Water
3 eggs, beaten
Salt
3 onions, finely chopped
Cooking Instructions:
Sift flour, add the water and salt a little at a time, mixing dough until it becomes soft but pliable. Divide the dough into ten pieces, knead each piece well. Place on a tray sprinkled with a little water and let rise for at least one hour. Put ground beef in a saucepan with chopped onion, black pepper and salt. Stir over medium heat until cooked. Set aside until cool. Chop leeks and wash several times through a strainer; drain and put on a paper towel until excess water is absorbed. Add to ground beef.Take a piece of dough and cover in flour, roll out, place over back of hands and stretch until dough becomes quite thin. Place dough on worktop and trim uneven edges. Brush two tablespoons of egg and oil mixture over dough surface. Fold to form smaller squares. Place in frying pan or griddle over medium heat with one tablespoon of oil. Place pastry squares in pan and fry on both sides until golden brown. Repeat above method using five of the remaining pieces. With piece number six repeat as above to the folding stage. Place one fried pastry square in the center of the unfolded piece, cover generously with ground beef and three tablespoons of beaten egg. Fold into a square. Remember to sprinkle oil and egg mixture between layers. Fry in 3 tablespoons of oil over medium heat until both sides are golden brown. Repeat using remaining four pieces of dough. Serve hot.
2 lb ground beef or lamb
1/2 bundle parsley or dill (finely chopped)
1 teaspoon ground cumin
3 tablespoons corn oil
2 medium sized onions
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 cup yogurt
Salt
Cooking Instructions:
Peel and finely grate the onion; add it to the meat with the parsley, half the salt and the pepper. With wet hands mix thoroughly and shape into small balls. Heat the oil in a pan, add the kebab balls and place over a low heat. Cover the pan and leave for fifteen minutes until the meat juices have reduced, leaving only oil. Mix the yogurt with the remaining salt and pepper. Arrange the kebabs on a serving dish, pour yogurt on top and serve hot.
Ingredients:
3 cups white flour
2 teaspoons yeast with a pinch of sugar
2/3 cup yogurt
1/2 cup warm water water
oil for frying
Cooking Instructions:
Add to flour a little salt, water and the yogurt, and mix to a thick batter. Leave aside for six (6) hours. Mix the yeast with the sugar and warm water, leave to ferment. Add the yeast to the batter and mix until batter peaks; leave aside for a further three hours. Method of Frying: Heat the oil. Shape batter into little balls, and put them a few at a time in the hot deep oil and fry until golden brown. Dumplings should be entirely covered with oil during frying. Take great care as the oil will splash during the course of frying. When frying is complete soak the dumplings in syrup and serve hot.
Servings: 4-6
Ingredients:
2 bundles spinach
For the meat:
2 onions
1/2 lb. ground meat
1/2 cup finely chopped fresh coriander
1/2 tsp. ground black pepper
1/2 cup finely chopped fresh parsley
1/2 tsp. ground cumin
3 tomatoes
1 grated onion
1 tsp. ground black pepper
Salt
1 tsp. ground cumin
12 tbsp. corn oil
Juice of one lemon
Cooking Instructions:
Wash spinach thoroughly, drain and finely chop, then set aside. Finely chop the onion and fry in oil until golden brown. Finely chop the tomatoes and add to the onion along with the spices and the lemon juice. Cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Place the minced meat in a pan, add the pepper, cumin, salt and onion; cook over medium heat until the meat juices are absorbed. Add the meat to the onion and tomato mixture, then add the spinach, coriander and parsley. Stir for 10 minutes or until well cooked.
Servings: 6-8
Ingredients:
1 leg of lamb
1 cup of yogurt
5 garlic cloves
10 cardamom seeds
5 sticks cinnamon
2 dried lemons
1/2 tsp. ground mixed spices
1 tsp. saffron
1 lemon
6 cups hot water
1/2 tsp. ground black pepper
12 tbsp. corn oil
1 cup flour
1/2 tbsp. salt
1/2 cup raisins, cooked in a little oil
1/2 cup almonds; blanched, skinned and roasted
Cooking Instructions:
Wash the meat and make small cuts in several places; stuff cuts with the cardamom, cinnamon and three cloves of garlic. Soak the saffron in lemon juice and set aside. Grind the dried lemons with the remaining garlic, mixed spices and salt. Add the saffron with the lemon juice and mix well. Lightly whisk the yogurt and add the whole spices. Coat the meat with the yogurt mixture and set aside for a half hour. Cover the bottom of a dish with foil, pour in the oil and hot water. Put the meat in the dish. Make a soft dough with the flour and water. Cover the pan with the dough. Seal the edges securely to act as a cover, and place in the oven for two and a half hours, at 350 degrees, or until cooked. Remove dough covering and return the meat to the oven to brown. Arrange on a serving dish and decorate with boiled vegetables or french fries. If preferred, place on a bed of spaghetti or rice and sprinkle the almonds and raisins on top.
Servings: 2-4
Ingredients:
2 cups yogurt
2 cloves garlic, optional
4 cucumbers
1 tablespoon dried mint
Salt to taste
Cooking Instructions:
Wash and peel the cucumbers. Cut in two, lengthwise, then chop in pieces, then add to the yogurt. Mash the garlic. Add it and the salt to the yogurt, mixing well. Sprinkle the salad with dried mint. Chill and serve.
Ingredients:
2 chicken breasts (skinned)
2 tablespoons rice flour
1 teaspoon ground cardamom
5 cups milk
ground cinnamon for decoration
1 cup sugar
2 tablespoons rose water
Cooking Instructions:
Boil the chicken breasts until well-cooked. Remove the bones from the chicken. Put the chicken in a food blender with 1 1/2 cups of milk and the cardamom. Blend thoroughly then strain through a fine mesh metal sieve. Sweeten the remaining milk. Add the rose water and bring to a boil over low heat. Add the blended chicken to the milk and stir. Add the rice flour, stirring constantly until the mixture thickens. Pour the mixture into a dish and leave aside to thicken. Sprinkle with ground cinnamon, and place in the refrigerator to cool.
Ingredients:
1 1/2 pounds ground beef or lamb
4 onions
1/2 bundle parsley
3 tablespoons corn oil
1 teaspoon each of:
Round black pepper
Cumin
Salt
Cooking Instructions:
Chop the onion finely and mix with the meat, parsley, spices and salt in a bowl. Shape the meat into oval patties and put in a baking pan. Place the pan over low heat until the patties are cooked. Before serving, pour the oil into the pan and turn the patties to coat them, taking care not to break them. Serve hot or cold.
Ingredients:
1 chicken or 1 lb. meat
1/2 cup of small macaroni
2 zucchini
6 cardamom seeds
4 carrots
3 pieces of musk
2 potatoes
Salt
Cooking Instructions:
Chop the vegetables into medium sized pieces. Wash the chicken (or meat) well and place in sauce pan with enough water to cover. Bring to a boil, then let simmer, removing the froth from the surface as it appears. Add the spices and salt.When the meat is almost cooked, add the vegetables and macaroni and continue to simmer until thoroughly cooked. Pour into a tureen and serve. If chicken is used, it may be removed from the soup when cooked, and then fried. Serve along with soup.
Ingredients:
4 eggplants
4 tomatoes (cut in rings)
3 green chili peppers
1/2 cup white vinegar
1/2 cup corn oil
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
Salt
Cooking Instructions:
Wash, peel, and cut the eggplant into medium sized rings. Put in a sieve, sprinkle with salt. Leave for half an hour, then wash off the salt and drain. Dry with towel and fry each piece on both sides until golden brown. Place on paper towels to soak up the excess oil. Fry the tomato rings. Place the eggplant, followed by tomato rings on a plate. Clean the chili peppers by cutting off the stalk and removing the seeds, Wash, dry, cut into rings and fry. Place on top of the tomato rings. Mix the vinegar, salt and pepper together and pour over the vegetable rings. Serve chilled.
Servings: 6-8
Ingredients:
1/2 roll apricot preserve
1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
1/2 cup sugar
4 cups water
2 tablespoons cornstarch
Cooking Instructions:
Cut the apricot preserve into small pieces and soak with the sugar in the water. Set aside till dissolved. Put through a fine metal sieve or food blender to liquify. Put in a pan with the cardamom and bring to a boil. Mix the cornstarch with half a cup of water and add to the apricot juice stirring constantly, until thick. Pour into individual pudding dishes, cool, then refrigerate. Serve chilled.
