Dubai: Lamb mansaf, cooked in fermented yoghurt called jameed, always garnished with pine seeds and almonds, is a popular Jordanian delicacy. Traditionally served on flat bread with rice, mansaf is eaten collectively from a large platter only using the right hand without utensils - the Bedouin style.
Mansaf is served during special occasions and festivals for which the entire family comes together to enjoy a meal.
One important thing to remember while cooking mansaf is that only the best quality lamb should be used. With the recipe consisting of very few ingredients, the ones that are used should be of top quality for the jameed and the lamb to shine.
The lamb mansaf recipe is courtesy of Seven Sands, an authentic Emirati restaurant that recently opened in JBR to rave reviews.
Ingredients
3 cups rice
1 kg lamb meat
1 litre yoghurt, from hard yoghurt ball
6 cups water
2 table spoon vegetable oil
1/2 tea spoon cardamom
2 nos cinnamon sticks
1/2 tea spoon ground cinnamon
1/4 tea spoon ground black pepper
1/5 tea spoon saffron
2 nos bay leaves
1 table spoon flour
1 no egg
1 no medium onion, sliced
1 piece red chilli
to taste salt
to garnish pine seeds, roasted
to garnish almonds, roasted
Method
1. In a large pot, heat oil and then add lamb, onions, cinnamon sticks, salt, cardamom, black pepper and bay leaves. Cook over moderate heat until the meat is tender.
2. Soak rice for 20 minutes in a bowl.
3. To prepare mansaf soup, mix yoghurt, salt, oil, ground cinnamon powder, saffron, flour and egg in a blender. In a cooking pot, bring mixture to boil.
4. In a pot, heat oil. Drain the soaked rice and cook on low heat.
5. Add 3 cups of lamb broth to the rice and bring the broth to boil.
6. Add a cup of lamb broth and the cooked lamb meat to the mansaf soup. Bring the mixture to boil.
7. Place a piece of flat bread on the serving plate and add the rice with the meat on top.
8. Garnish with roasted pine seeds and almonds.
