Stuffing meat with rice or grains is very common in the Arab world. It's very common in countries like Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, etc. to find in the plushiest banquets dishes of rice or grains served with meat. There are many rice and meat dishes with different cooking styles and spices.
Biryani is one of the most popular Indian dishes in the gulf as it's a combination of rice and meat or poultry or seafood, and sometimes only vegetables. The dish was known due to the remarkable presence of the Indians in the Arab countries.
This is one of my favorite dishes as it reminds me of my childhood. I lived with my parents in Dubai, and my uncle whom I loved a lot lived in Ras Al Khaimah, also a city in the UAE about 2hours from Dubai by car. We visited my uncle very often and as a child, I really enjoyed staying there. My uncle was a very generous man. His wife excelled in cooking the finest food and used the best of spices. Meat and rice was a very common dish my uncle's wife made and I really enjoyed eating there. These were the good old days!
Lamb Stuffing Ingredients:
1 kg grits (cleaned and soaked in water for 1 hr.)
60 gms chickpeas
60 gms green peas
1 kg minced meat
1 large onion
4 garlic cloves
salt, black pepper and ginger powder according to taste
2 tablespoons ground cardamom
2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
2 Maggie lamb cubes
4 tablespoons sunflower oil
Grits Mixture Ingredients:
This is the mixture that will be served in a dish and the stuffed lamb will be kept on top of it.
1 kg grits
1 kg minced meat
1/2 kg almonds (boiled then peeled and sliced length ways into half)
60 gms chickpeas
60 gms green peas
1 large onion
4 garlic cloves salt, black pepper and ginger powder according to taste
2 tablespoons ground cardamom
2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
2 Maggie lamb cubes
4 tablespoons sunflower oil
Lamb Marination Ingredients:
In this mixture, the lamb will be soaked for 3 hrs.
1 glass olive oil
1 glass lemon juice
1/2 glass garlic vinegar (can be substituted with vinegar)
1 large onion
10 garlic cloves
3 big tablespoons mayonnaise
1 glass yogurt
3 tablespoons ground cardamom
Preparation Method:
1. Wash the lamb well from inside and outside, rub well with salt, minced onion and vinegar. Cover the lamb and refrigerate it overnight. Next day, wash it well from inside and outside and dry it well from inside and outside using a small clean towel. Make holes or long cuts in the lamb to allow marination ingredients to penetrate the meat.
2. Lamb Marination Method: Mix all the lamb marination ingredients in the blender and soak the lamb in the ingredients. Cover and refrigerate for 3 hrs. Later, sprinkle with salt, black pepper, ginger powder and your favorite spices but don't exaggerate because this has a negative opposite effect on the taste.
3. Lamb Stuffing Method: Chop the onions and garlic into very small cubes and stir them in oil until they become tender but not brown. Add the minced meat, spices and Maggie cubes. Cover and cook on very low heat until meat is cooked. Add very little water if required from time to time to prevent the meat from burning (very little water from time to time if required). Add the chickpeas, green peas and grits (grits must be cleaned, washed well and soaked in water for 1 hr before usage, remove grits from soaking water before usage.). Add water to the mixture, cover and cook on low heat. (Don't cover the mixture with water while cooking; this mixture should be semi cooked)
4. Use this mixture to fill the lamb and close the lamb's stomach with sticks or using the cooking string. Wrap the lamb well with several foil layers to prevent it from burning. Maybe four foil layers. Put the lamb wrapped in foil layers in a tray in the oven on very low heat for 3 hrs. and check the lamb from time to time. If the lamb is not yet red in colour even after cooking it, you can remove the foil and expose it to the grill for 5 min.
5. Grits Mixture Method: Meanwhile, let's prepare the grits mixture that the stuffed lamb will be served on. This mixture is cooked the same way the "Lamb Stuffing Method" is cooked. Check point no. 3. The only difference is that the mixture will not be semi cooked, it will be fully cooked so, we'll cover the mixture well with water and cook on low heat. Meanwhile, in a frying pan, fry the almonds until golden. (Almonds should be boiled for 5 min. then peeled and cut length ways as seen in picture first before frying them.)
6. In a big dish spread the grits and Minced meat mixture first and sprinkle with almonds, put on top of it the lamb and again sprinkle with almonds again. Garnish with lemon slices. This dish can be served with yogurt, coleslaw or Fatoush salad. I will mention later in the "salad" section how to make Fatoush salad.
Biryani is one of the most popular Indian dishes in the gulf as it's a combination of rice and meat or poultry or seafood, and sometimes only vegetables. The dish was known due to the remarkable presence of the Indians in the Arab countries.
This is one of my favorite dishes as it reminds me of my childhood. I lived with my parents in Dubai, and my uncle whom I loved a lot lived in Ras Al Khaimah, also a city in the UAE about 2hours from Dubai by car. We visited my uncle very often and as a child, I really enjoyed staying there. My uncle was a very generous man. His wife excelled in cooking the finest food and used the best of spices. Meat and rice was a very common dish my uncle's wife made and I really enjoyed eating there. These were the good old days!
Lamb Stuffing Ingredients:
1 kg grits (cleaned and soaked in water for 1 hr.)
60 gms chickpeas
60 gms green peas
1 kg minced meat
1 large onion
4 garlic cloves
salt, black pepper and ginger powder according to taste
2 tablespoons ground cardamom
2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
2 Maggie lamb cubes
4 tablespoons sunflower oil
Grits Mixture Ingredients:
This is the mixture that will be served in a dish and the stuffed lamb will be kept on top of it.
1 kg grits
1 kg minced meat
1/2 kg almonds (boiled then peeled and sliced length ways into half)
60 gms chickpeas
60 gms green peas
1 large onion
4 garlic cloves salt, black pepper and ginger powder according to taste
2 tablespoons ground cardamom
2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
2 Maggie lamb cubes
4 tablespoons sunflower oil
Lamb Marination Ingredients:
In this mixture, the lamb will be soaked for 3 hrs.
1 glass olive oil
1 glass lemon juice
1/2 glass garlic vinegar (can be substituted with vinegar)
1 large onion
10 garlic cloves
3 big tablespoons mayonnaise
1 glass yogurt
3 tablespoons ground cardamom
Preparation Method:
1. Wash the lamb well from inside and outside, rub well with salt, minced onion and vinegar. Cover the lamb and refrigerate it overnight. Next day, wash it well from inside and outside and dry it well from inside and outside using a small clean towel. Make holes or long cuts in the lamb to allow marination ingredients to penetrate the meat.
2. Lamb Marination Method: Mix all the lamb marination ingredients in the blender and soak the lamb in the ingredients. Cover and refrigerate for 3 hrs. Later, sprinkle with salt, black pepper, ginger powder and your favorite spices but don't exaggerate because this has a negative opposite effect on the taste.
3. Lamb Stuffing Method: Chop the onions and garlic into very small cubes and stir them in oil until they become tender but not brown. Add the minced meat, spices and Maggie cubes. Cover and cook on very low heat until meat is cooked. Add very little water if required from time to time to prevent the meat from burning (very little water from time to time if required). Add the chickpeas, green peas and grits (grits must be cleaned, washed well and soaked in water for 1 hr before usage, remove grits from soaking water before usage.). Add water to the mixture, cover and cook on low heat. (Don't cover the mixture with water while cooking; this mixture should be semi cooked)
4. Use this mixture to fill the lamb and close the lamb's stomach with sticks or using the cooking string. Wrap the lamb well with several foil layers to prevent it from burning. Maybe four foil layers. Put the lamb wrapped in foil layers in a tray in the oven on very low heat for 3 hrs. and check the lamb from time to time. If the lamb is not yet red in colour even after cooking it, you can remove the foil and expose it to the grill for 5 min.
5. Grits Mixture Method: Meanwhile, let's prepare the grits mixture that the stuffed lamb will be served on. This mixture is cooked the same way the "Lamb Stuffing Method" is cooked. Check point no. 3. The only difference is that the mixture will not be semi cooked, it will be fully cooked so, we'll cover the mixture well with water and cook on low heat. Meanwhile, in a frying pan, fry the almonds until golden. (Almonds should be boiled for 5 min. then peeled and cut length ways as seen in picture first before frying them.)
6. In a big dish spread the grits and Minced meat mixture first and sprinkle with almonds, put on top of it the lamb and again sprinkle with almonds again. Garnish with lemon slices. This dish can be served with yogurt, coleslaw or Fatoush salad. I will mention later in the "salad" section how to make Fatoush salad.
