Gulf Kitchen

Gulf Kitchen 

1-Saudi Kabsa Spice Mix 

Ingredients : 

1 teaspoon turmeric
1 teaspoon coriander seed
1 teaspoon black peppercorns (1/2 tbs if you don't want it hot)
1 teaspoon black cardamom pod (I left this out, they are not to be substituted with green cardomom)
1 teaspoon ginger
1 teaspoon fennel seed

Directions :

Blend until crushed and Use as required.

2- Saudi Kabsa 

Ingredients : 

1 2/12 - 3 pound chicken, cut into eight pieces

1/4 cup vegetable oil

2 medium onions, sliced

1 (12 ounce) can tomato puree

2 medium tomatoes, chopped

4 cloves garlic, crushed

2 medium carrots, grated

Grated rind of one orange

4 cloves

4 cardamom pods

3 sticks cinnamon

Sale and pepper to taste

1 pound long grain rice

1/4 cup raisins

1/4 cup sliced almonds

Directions : 

Saute onion in oil until it begins to brown. Add chicken pieces, tomato puree, chopped tomatoes and garlic and stir for about five minutes over low heat. Stir in three cups hot water, grated carrot, orange rind, spices, salt and pepper to taste. Cook over medium heat, covered, about 20-25 minutes, until chicken is done.

Remove chicken. Set aside to keep warm. Stir rice into the liquid in the pan, and cook, covered over low heat for about 35 - 40 minutes, or until liquid is absorbed.

Put rice on a serving platter with chicken pieces arranged around the circumference. Toss raisins and almonds over all.

3- Chicken Biryani 

Ingredients : 

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

500g chicken thigh fillets, trimmed, quartered
1 medium brown onion, halved, thinly sliced
1 garlic clove, crushed
2cm piece ginger, peeled, finely grated
1/3 cup balti curry paste
1 1/2 cups basmati rice
1 cinnamon stick
2 cups  Real chicken stock
1 cup thick plain yogurt
1 Lebanese cucumber, deseeded, grated
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
Toasted flaked almonds and fresh coriander leaves, to serve

Directions :

 Heat oil in a heavy-based saucepan over medium-high heat. Cook chicken, turning, for 5 minutes or until browned. Transfer to a plate. Cook onion, garlic and ginger for 2 to 3 minutes or until onion has softened. Add curry paste. Cook for 1 minute or until fragrant. Add rice. Stir to coat.

 Add cinnamon, stock and 1 cup cold water. Bring to the boil. Return chicken to pan. Reduce heat to low. Cover. Cook for 20 minutes or until rice is tender and chicken cooked through. Remove cinnamon. Discard.
Combine yogurt, cucumber and cumin in a bowl. Sprinkle biriyani with almonds and coriander. Serve with yoghurt mixture.

4- Chicken Makboos 

Ingredients : 

2 chickens about (1 ½ kilo)

2 tablespoon mix ground spices (coriander, cumin, cinnamon, cloves, cardamom, peppercorn, loomi (dried lime)
2 garlic cloves, chopped
¼ cup lemon juice
½ cup oil
2 large onions, chopped
6 cups water
3 cups basmati rice, washed and socked
Salt
2 each (cinnamon sticks, loomi. cardamom, peppercorn)
½ tablespoon turmeric
3 boiled eggs
½ teaspoon saffron socked in 1 tablespoon rose water
Coriander leaves for garnish 

Directions :

-Wash chicken under running water, pat dry.

-Mix half the ground spices with garlic, lemon juice and 2 tablespoon oil in a bowl.
-Rub chicken inside out with the mixture, marinate for half an hour.
-Heat ¼ cup oil in a large sautéing-pan over medium high heat, add onion.
-Saute onion, stir from time to time until for about 10 minutes or until translucent.
-Stir in the rest of the ground spices, mix well.
-Stuff the chicken with ¼ cup of the onion mixture, tie the legs and tuck the wings.
-Stir the chicken with the rest of the onion over medium high heat, until golden brown.
-Add water and let boil, reduce heat cover and simmer for about 45 minutes.
-Lift the chicken and keep aside.
-Drain rice and add to chicken broth, season with salt and whole spices, until boiling.
-Reduce heat, cover and simmer for about 25 – 30 minutes.
-Preheat oven to 180 degrees C.
-Sprinkle saffron mixture over rice.
-Brush oven dish with the rest of the oil.
-Spread a rice layer, put chicken and boiled eggs on top, cover with the rest of the rice.
-Cover with foil lightly, bake for about 20 minutes.
-Sprinkle with chopped coriander serve warm. 

5- Tashreeb Dajaj 

Ingredients

3 tablespoons vegetable oil

1½ kg whole chicken, cut into pieces

3 tablespoons tomato paste

3 medium tomatoes or 450 g, peeled and pureed

4 cloves garlic, peeled

3 dried limes

2 cubes  Chicken stock

3½ cups water or 875 ml

8 baby onions, peeled

1 medium potato or 300 g, cut into large cubes

1 cup canned chickpeas or 160 g

2 loaves iranian bread, cut into medium pieces

Directions :

Heat vegetable oil in a large non-stick saucepan, add and cook chicken pieces for 8-10 minutes from all sides until chicken changes to golden brown. Add tomato paste and stir for 3 minutes.

Add tomato pureed, garlic cloves, dried lime, Chicken stock cubes, baby onion and water. Bring to boil and simmer uncovered for 10 minutes over a low heat.

Add potato and chickpeas and simmer for 20 minutes or until vegetables and chicken are cooked.

Place the bread pieces over a large serving plate and pour on the stew sauce to soak the bread then place the remaining of the stew on top.

6- Sabb elGafsha (Desserts ) 

Ingredients : 

1 Tablespoon yeast

1 Teaspoon sugar
1 Cup warm water
2 Cup all-purpose flour
1 Cup chickpeas flour
1 Egg, beaten
1/4 Teaspoon ground cardamom
1/2 Teaspoon saffron
1/2 Teaspoon rose water
Vegetable oil for frying
Sugar syrup, for serving
Pistachio, for garnish

Directions : 

 In a bowl, dissolve yeast and sugar in water and leave for 5 minutes, or until foamy.

 In a large bowl, mix 2 types of flour, eggs, cardamom, saffron and rose water. Add yeast mixture and stir until blended.
Cover with a kitchen towel and let rise in a warm place for 45 minutes.

 Heat oil to 160 Celsius degrees in a frying pan. Alongside the pan, have ready the bowl of dough and a small bowl of vegetable oil.

Dip tips of your fingers in the oil. Take some batter (the size of pistachio) with the tip of your fingers, carefully slip batter from your fingers into hot oil. (it will puff into a larger ball).
Fry fritters, turning to brown evenly for 4 minutes or until golden.
Take it off with a slotted spoon into a serving plate. Drizzle with sugar syrup and garnish with pistachios. 

7-Lentils With Lemon Juice

Ingredients : 

1 1/2 lbs black lentils, about 3 cups (a good substitution is French green lentils)
1 quart water
2 peeled chopped potatoes
2 tablespoons flour
6 crushed garlic cloves
1/4 cup chopped coriander
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 dash salt
1 dash pepper

Directions :

Boil lentils in water for 15 minutes. Add the potatoes and continue cooking till lentils are tender, approximately 15 more minutes stirring occasionally.
Fry garlic, coriander with tablespoon olive oil until slightly tender. Add to lentils.
Mix flour with 2TB water & add to lentils.
Cook 15 minutes more on medium-low heat, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking/burning. Before serving add lemon juice.
Serve hot or cold with pita bread as an appetizer.

8-Rice with Tomato 

Ingredients : 

2 tablespoons vegetable oil, or ghee
2 medium onions or 300 g, finely chopped
4 small tomatoes or 400 g, peeled and chopped
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
1 bay leaf
4 whole cardamom pods
1 teaspoon coriander seeds, dried
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
2 cloves garlic, peeled
4 cubes Chicken stock 
3 cups basmati rice or 600 g
5 cups water or 1250 ml

Directions : 

Heat oil in a pot and sauté onions for 6 minutes.
Add tomatoes, turmeric powder, bay leave, cardamom pods, coriander seeds, black pepper, garlic gloves, Chicken stock cubes, and Basmati rice. Mix well and cook for 3 minutes.
Pour water and cover the pot. Cook rice for 20 minutes or until it is well done.


9- Quails with Spicy Red Sauce and Cumin Rice

Ingredients : 

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

8 quails, washed and cut into halves lengthwise

For the rice:

2 tablespoons ghee
2 medium onions or 250 g, sliced
1 medium carrot or 150 g, cut into small cubes
2 tablespoons cumin seeds
3 cubes Chicken stock
4½ cups water or 1125 ml
2½ cups basmati rice or 500 g
For the spicy red sauce:

2 medium tomatoes or 300 g, peeled and pureed

2 tablespoons tomato paste
2 cloves garlic , crushed
1 teaspoon white vinegar
1 cube Chicken stock
¼ teaspoon chili powder

Directions :

Heat oil in a large pan and fry quail pieces from both sides until they are golden brown in color from outside and cooked from inside (season quail with salt and black pepper before frying). Remove from oil and set aside.

Heat ghee in a pot and sauté onion slices until they become tender. Add carrot and cumin seeds and stir for seconds.
Add Chicken stock cubes and water. Bring to boil with occasional stirring.
Add the rice and stir occasionally to boil again then cover and let it cook on low heat for 15-20 minutes or until rice is cooked.
Meanwhile, combine all sauce ingredients in a medium saucepan, stir to boil then simmer over low heat for 3-4 minutes or until sauce is slightly thickens. Add the fried quail to the sauce and simmer for few minutes.
Place rice in a serving plate and the quails with the sauce on top.


10- Samak Quwarmah (Fish curry)

Ingredients : 

1 1/2 lbs white fish steaks or 1 1/2 lbs fillets
sea salt
2 tablespoons ghee (butter or oil)
2 medium size onions, chopped
1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger 
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1/2 teaspoon hot chili pepper
1 teaspoon baharat mixed spice 
1 teaspoon turmeric
1 small piece cinnamon bark 
1 cup chopped peeled tomato 
two dried black lime 
1/2 cup water

Directions : 

Wipe fish dry with paper towels, cut into serving pieces and sprinkle lightly with salt. Cover and leave aside in a cool place.
Heat ghee (oil or butter) in a heavy pan, add onion and fry gently until transparent. Add ginger if using, garlic, chili, baharat, turmeric and cinnamon bark and stir over heat for 2 minutes.
Add tomato, pierced loomi, and water. Add salt to taste and bring to a slow simmer. Cover and simmer gently for 15 minutes.
Place fish pieces in sauce, cover and simmer gently for 15-20 minutes until fish is cooked through. 
Lift fish onto prepared Bahraini Sweet Rice  or Rice With Onion. Remove loomi and cinnamon bark from sauce and spoon sauce over fish.