Recipe : Hamli / Gomen - Eritrean / Ethiopian Greens - Vegetarian - (Vegan Option)

I first tasted Hamli at Mosob in London - we have eaten so many meals here and taken so many friends to this place to introduce them to Eritrean food.

Hamli and Gomen (the Ethiopian version) are on the menu of most Eritrean and Ethiopian restaurants in London.

When I visited Ethiopia last year, I also got to taste a few versions made with niter kibbeh or tesmi - a spiced clarified butter, which obviously adds layers to the taste. I make it with regular ghee (Indian clarified butter) which is a mild cop-out but still very very flavourful.

Given the fantastic 3 day workshop on Desi Cultures that I attended last weekend, I may just venture to make ghee at home myself and if I can find the spices, I'll try making a bit of niter kibbeh too.

Mosob makes their hamli with spinach as it is easily available in the UK, however the traditional recipe calls for something closer to collard greens.

The last packet of spinach I bought at the grocery seemed more collard greens in texture and smell than what we commonly know as spinach, which is when I remembered this recipe that I hadn't cooked in a while. 

Collard greens give you a much more substantial texture without any slipperiness, kale works well too. But I've cooked it with regular spinach in London and that is also good. 

Ghee is low in lactose and milk solids, hence keto friendly, so this recipe works for a keto diet too. 

Vegan Version:

A lot of the flavour of this dish comes from the niter kibbeh or ghee, but if you want to keep it vegan, use any suitable cooking oil

 

Ingredients: 

2 tbsps niter kibbeh or ghee 

1 onion - chopped

2-4 cloves garlic - chopped

1.5 tsp minced ginger 

1 tsp jeera powder (cumin) 

1 tsp dhaniya powder (corriander) 

1 bunch collard greens / kale (about 350-400 gms) (If using regular spinach - 500 gms because this wilts much more) - roughly chopped. 

 - if you have very thick hard stems, remove them and use them in stock or tehri or any dish that gets cooked for a longer period of time. 

Salt to taste 

a little squeeze of lemon - optional 

 

Method: 

Heat 1 tbsp niter kibbeh / ghee in a pan. 

Add chopped onions, cook for 2-3 minutes until transluscent. 

Add, garlic, ginger, cumin and corriander, saute for 2-3 minutes. 

Now add your greens (collard / kale / spinach) with another tbsp of niter kibbeh / ghee. 

As it cooks down, add salt to taste. (remember greens wilt and hence the volume once cooked, will be much lower than what you start with - salt accordingly) 

Cook to your level of doneness - with kale and collard greens, I let it get a bit crispy, with regular spinach crispiness doesn't work as well. 

 

Traditional preparation does not include a squeeze of lemon, but:  

Kim's Nana's Tip: Lemon helps the body absorb iron from the greens more easily, something about Vitamin C making the soluble iron absorption into the body easier, so I always add a squeeze of lemon whenever I'm cooking green leaves. 

 

In the picture above, I've served it with rice, moong dhal and pork chidkan. This recipe pairs well with rotis and dhal too.

Recipe : Maffe Tiga / Tiga Degae / African Chicken Peanut Butter Soup

I'd seen the recipe for African Chicken Peanut Butter Soup on Kadi's African Recipes, a couple of months ago and thought that it would be fun to make, so I'd bookmarked it.

Today, I was looking to make something "different" and remembered this recipe and since I had an open jar of peanut butter in my cupboard, our meal tonight had an African twist, which we quite enjoyed.

In her introduction, Kadi says "African peanut soup is enjoyed in many West African countries including Senegal, Guinea and Mali. The soup is also known as Maffe Tiga or Tiga Degae, there are a lot of varieties of peanut butter soup, it can be made with beef, fish, chicken or completely vegetarian."

While Kadi calls it a soup, it has the consistency of a curry / gravy and goes well with rotis and rice. Kadi also has a step by step video to make this dish uploaded on youtube. If African food interests you, do follow Kadi's Channel on youtube.

I have tweaked Kadi's recipe to adjust for our own tastes and to accommodate the ingredients that I had on hand.

Ingredients :
1kg chicken legs
2 tsp oil (and some leftover pork fat from some chops I fried the other day)

3 fresh tomatoes chopped
2 tbsp tomato sauce
2 onions chopped
6 garlic cloves chopped
8 green chillies - 4 chopped & 4 split
1 tbsp black pepper coarsely pounded
1 bouillon/soup cube
4 tbsp creamy peanut butter (not chunky)
3 cups (750ml) water
salt to taste

Method : 
Warm a wide mouthed pan and heat the oil in it.

Brown the chicken on all sides in this oil (fry in batches if necessary, but don't overcrowd the pan) Be careful, the oil will splatter, when the chicken releases its juices.

Remove the browned chicken and in the same pan and oil, add the tomatoes, tomato sauce, onions, garlic, the 4 chopped green chillies, black pepper and soup cube.

Fry it for about 10 minutes until the mixture becomes mushy.

Now, add the water and peanut butter and simmer on a low flame, stirring well until all the peanut butter is dissolved. Let it cook for about 15-20 minutes on a low flame, keep stirring to prevent the peanut butter from sticking and burning.

Add the 4 slit green chillies and salt to taste and simmer for another 5-10 minutes till it smells cooked.

Now add the fried chicken and simmer the mixture until the chicken is completely cooked, stirring frequently.

Serve hot with rice or rotis.

I loved the curry with plain rice, but my husband found it a little sweet with the rice, he preferred it with phulkas.

Recipe : Moroccan Cumin Spiced Chickpeas - Vegan

These spiced Chickpeas (channa / chhole) are often sold as street food in newspaper cones, the way jhalmuri / charmuri used to be served in India. Its very easy to make and can be served as a starter with drinks, an evening snack or a side with rotis.

If you would like them crisper, then use more oil and fry them crisp and drain on paper towels. I use less oil in this recipe, than is normally used in Morocco.

Ingredients:
1 cup cooked & drained White Chickpeas (safed channa / chhole) - see tips below
1 tsp olive oil
1 tbsp fresh coriander (dhaniya) - finely chopped
1/2- 1 tbsp cumin (jeera) powder
salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Method:
Heat the oil in a wide frying pan.
On low heat, add the chickpeas, coriander and cumin and toss well to coat. Toss, rather than stir, to prevent breakage or smashing of the chickpeas.
Season with salt and pepper.
Serve hot or at room temperature.

Kim's Tips:
- If you have dried channa, soak them for 8 hours or overnight and then pressure cook them for 3-4 whistles.
- Adding a pinch of soda bicarb while cooking the channa, makes it fluffier and softer, but it also increases the feeling of fullness when eating. Too much soda bicarb will ruin the taste, so be judicious in its use.
- I like to add 1/2 tsp methi (fenugreek) seeds and a pinch of hing (asafoetida) while pressure cooking the chhole to reduce the gassy side effects of chhanna.
- If you are using a peppermill to grind the pepper, don't hold the pepper mill directly above a hot cooking pan/pot, the steam will introduce moisture into your mill and cause clumping. Grind the pepper into a cold plate and then add it to your cooking pot.

Book Review : 1001 Foods - The Greatest Gastronomic Sensations on Earth

The Covers of "1001 Foods - The Greatest Gastronomic Sensations on Earth" and "1001 Foods to Die For" look remarkably similar (as you can see in the picture above) However, the introduction for the first is written by Terry Durack and the second one by Corby Kummer. The publisher for the first is Pavilion and the Publishers for the second are Andrews McMeel Publishing and Madison Books. So I'm not sure if they are the same or just share a common topic and cover page.

The book that I own and have reviewed in this post is the 1st one - "1001 Foods - The Greatest Gastronomic Sensations on Earth"

The Editor of this compendium - Terry Durack is Australia's top food writer and restaurant reviewer and also a regular contributor to the UK's Independent on Sunday.

"1001 Foods - The Greatest Gastronomic Sensations on Earth" is divided into 11 chapters following the general courses of a classic dinner. Appetizers & Small Food, Soups & Salads, Noodles & Rice, Fish & Seafood, Poultry & Game, Meats, Beans Cheese & Eggs (a surprise chapter), Fruits Nuts & Vegetables, Desserts, Breads Cookies & Pastries and Beverages. This makes the book a quick and easy reference when you are searching for inspiration. There is also a detailed index at the back if you are searching for something in particular.

Do note, that not all 1001 foods have recipes provided. About 25% of the dishes have detailed recipes, the remaining 75% have general descriptions on what the dish looks and tastes like and a bit about its cultural heritage. If you are comfortable cooking without measurements, these descriptions may be enough for you. But even if you can't do that, you can always run an online search for a recipe of a dish that interests you.There are plenty of full colour photographs that will help you visualise what the finished product should look like.

The recipes have been compiled from a number of well known chefs including Julia Child, Heston Blumenthal, Mario Batali, Nigella Lawson, Madhur Jaffrey, Jamie Oliver, Delia Smith, Ina Garten, Rick Stein, Claudia Roden, Nigel Slater, Gary Rhodes and Donna Hay among others.

1001 Foods also has some single page features like : 25 Best Nibbles to Eat with Champagne, 25 Favourite Poultry & Game Dishes, 20 Superb Sausages, Smoked Foods, Best Barbecued Meats, Salumi (Cured Meats), 4 Strong Cheeses, 4 Sheep Milk Cheeses, 4 Children's Favourites - eggs, 15 Apple Desserts, 20 Chocolate Treats

The book covers recipes from India, USA, France, China, Japan, South East Asia (Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand), UK, Jamaica, Mexico, Spain, Italy, Greece, Middle East, Lebanon, Morocco and Germany for the most part.

A couple of recipes from Russia, Ireland, Scotland, Korea, Belgium, Sweden, Mauritius, New Zealand, Israel, Iran, South Africa, Canada, Australia, Portugal, Cuba, Turkey, Balkans, North Africa, Hungary, Poland, Peru, Egypt, Denmark, Nethrlands, Switzerland, Cyprus, Austria, Scandinavia, Balkans and Eastern Europe also make an appearance.

And some recipes whose origins can't really be conclusively traced are classified as European or International.

As you can see, not all countries are covered. I for one would have loved to have seen some SriLankan & Ethiopian dishes in the book and more recipes from South Africa and South America.

But it would be difficult to create a truly comprehensive book on world cuisine that will satisfy everyone.

Rating : 4 / 5

Recipe : Moroccan Almond and Harissa Couscous - Vegan

Couscous is often called the staple dish of North Africa. However, in Egypt, the only place I saw couscous on the menu was in Siwa which is close to the Libyan border. We did have couscous for almost every meal that we ate in Morocco and its also popular in Algeria, Tunisia and Libya.

Couscous was originally made from millet, but now its mostly made from wheat, although it is also made from barley, cornmeal and pearl millet in some parts of the world.

Ingredients:
500 gms pre-steamed couscous
750ml of thin salted stock (meat or vegetable depending on your personal choice)
1 tsp olive oil
4 tbsp harissa (a Moroccan red chilli paste with a few other spices -adjust this to your taste)
100 gms almonds

Method:
Boil the stock.
Take it off the fire, add olive oil and let it cool a little.
Once the stock is slightly above room temperature, add the pre-steamed couscous and stir well.
Cover and let it sit for 5 minutes, fluff the mixture with a fork 2-3 times so the grains stay seperate and fluffy.
Slowly fork in the harissa paste.
Roast the almonds and cut into slivers.
Mix the slivered almonds into the couscous leaving some for garnishing.

Serve hot with a thin stew like Mqualli or a Peasant Stew.

Kim's Tips:
1. If you don't have ready stock, use 1 soup cube in 750ml water and adjust salt to taste
2. Don't add couscous to boiling stock, it will turn pasty and sticky.
3. The stew/curry you serve with a couscous needs to be on the thinner side as the couscous will keep absorbing liquid on your plate.
4. Be careful how much water you drink when eating couscous, the couscous will soak up the water in your tummy and leave you feeling very full and unable to finish all that is on your plate.
5. Be careful about how much salt is in your stock, some varieties of store bought stock tends to be salty, so water it down if its too salty.
6. Couscous is easily available at Godrej Nature Basket in Delhi/Gurgaon/Bombay/Pune and in some food specialty shops. In Ahmedabad, you can pick up couscous at Hypercity (the Waitrose section) or Icy Pik / Magsons

Recipe: Mqualli - Moroccan Chicken Tajine with Preserved Lemon & Olives

This dish is called a tajine, because it is traditionally cooked in a vessel called a tajine (similar concept as paella). The tajine is an earthenware (mitti) dish comprised of 2 parts. The bottom is circular and flattish with slightly raised edges and it has a conical cover that sits on this base.

The concept of cooking in a tajine is that the earthenware adds some amount of flavour to the dish (like mud pots used in Indian cooking) and the conical top, captures the condensation and returns the moisture to the dish cooking below.

The dish is typically cooked on low heat and ends up being really moist and tender. The advantage of cooking in a tagine is that you can always lift the lid to adjust spices or add vegetables in installments. However, you can still cook this dish, even if you don't have a tajine.

Ingredients:
1kg chicken - curry cut (preferably with bones, they add flavour to the stew)
2 cups (500 ml) water / stock
2 tsps olive oil
1 large onion sliced
6 cloves garlic chopped
2 tsp ginger paste
1 tsp cumin powder
2 tsp fresh ground black pepper
pinch of saffron
2 preserved lemons
1/2 cup green olives (canned)
2 tbsp chopped parsley
2 tbsp chopped corriander
salt to taste

Method:
In the tajine/heavy bottomed dish, heat the olive oil
Add the onions and garlic and saute lightly until they start to soften.
Add ginger paste, cumin powder, salt and pepper powder and sir till well mixed.
Add chicken pieces and brown on both sides.
If using dried lemon - wash well, pierce a couple of times with a fork/knife and add at this stage.
Add 1 cup stock/water, bring to a boil, then cover, lower the heat and cook for 15-20 minutes.
If you are using preserved lemons - rinse, discard the flesh, slice the skin and add it at this stage.
If you used dehdrated lemons, then add the juice of 1 fresh lemon at this stage.
If you don't have preserved or dehydrated lemons, add the juice of 2-3 lemons at this stage with some lemon rind.
Mix well
Add the olives, saffron and the remaining water / stock and give it a swirl.
Sprinkle the chopped parsley and corriander on top.
Cover and cook on low heat for another 20 minutes until done.

If you are serving this tajine with bread or rice, then you will want a slightly thicker curry.
If you are serving it with couscous, you will want a slightly thinner curry.

Serve hot with rice, couscous or bread.

Kim's Tips:
1. All you need is a heavy bottomed pan with a tight fitting lid that won't let the steam escape, if you don't have access to a tajine.

2. This particular recipe calls for preserved lemons (typical in Moroccan cuisine), but I didn't have them in stock, I only had dried lemons (used in Middle Eastern cooking), so I substituted the preserved lemons with dehydrated lemons and the juice of 1 fresh lemon. If you can't find preserved/dehydrated lemons, you can make the dish with juice from 2-3 lemons and some lemon rind. It won't taste as good as the original, but it will still be tasty.

3. Preserved lemons and bottled olives have some salt in them, remember to adjust for this when salting the dish.

Recipe: Preserved Lemons (Morocco)

Preserved Lemons are an essential ingredient in Moroccan cooking and widely available in most Middle Eastern and North African Bazaars.

Like garam masala powder, jeera powder, chilli powder etc are widely used in Indian cooking, but rarely made at home in India, similarly most families in MENA (Middle East North Africa) buy their preserved lemons from the market.

This recipe is from a friends mother. I haven't tried making it at home yet, but a friend who saw my recipe for Mqualli - Moroccan Chicken Tajine with Preserved Lemon & Olives asked for a recipe that she could make at home, so I'm sharing it here.

I've approximated weights and measures a bit to compensate for aunty's eyeballing it version.

This is one of my bookmarked projects for the coming summer when the days are drier and hotter (the best time to make pickles). I'll add pictures at that time.

Ingredients:
10-12 lemons (not the tiny Indian limes, you want the larger ones closer in size to lemons)
3/4 cup (150-175 gms)of coarse sea salt
1/2 tsp black peppercorns
2 bay leaves
1/4 cup (50-60ml) lemon juice
boiling water to cover the lemons in the jar

Method:
Scrub the lemons and rinse well in running water.
Cut the lemons in quarters lengthways but leave a bit of the base at the bottom, so they continue to be held together like petals of a flower.
Seperate the quarters slightly (without breaking off) and salt the inside of the lemons.
Stack the lemons, base first (to prevent salt falling out) in a sterilised jar.
Sprinkle the peppercorns and insert the bay leaves between the salted lemons and pour in the lemon juice.
Add enough boiling water to submerge the lemons and almost fill the jar
Place a weight on the lemons to keep them submerged.
Seal the jar and store in a dark place for 1-4 months.

When ready to use, remove the weight and discard any white film that may have formed on the surface of the liquid.

If you are very careful with your handling, you can store the preserved lemons outside, but it may be safer to store in the refrigerator.

When cooking with preserved lemons, normally the flesh, seeds and membranes are scooped out and discarded. The skin is rinsed and cut to use in dishes. (Personally, I like using the flesh too, it reminds me of the taste & texture of Indian achaars.)


Kim's Tips:
Remember, if you are preserving skins of any fruit/vegetable (in jams or pickles) and live in Europe/North America, you need to be careful and consciously choose unwaxed fruit.

Since you are preserving lemons with salt (acid & salt) be sure to use a glass or ceramic jar ONLY for storing, preferably with a non metallic lid.

Since you have to add boiling water to the lemons, it needs to be a thicker glass jar/bottle to handle the heat without cracking.

The weight would be a stone of some kind, it needs to be non-organic and non-metallic.

The preserving liquid can be boiled and reused for the next batch to make it more intense, but it depends on how well the liquid has kept

Recipe: North African Meal - Peasant Stew, Grilled Lamb Merguez and Lemon Cous Cous

This is a post that has been in my drafts for quite awhile. Finally got around to getting it together.

I'd just come home after a 10 day trip. And normally when I take long trips I use up all the fresh ingredients in my pantry that won't last the duration, like tomatoes, fresh veggies and herbs. Onions, garlic, carrots and potatoes last reasonably well, so I leave a few of them for a meal when I return. And I head to the markets the day I get back to re-stock.

However when I returned from this trip, the cat was so excited to see me back, that I didn't have the heart to leave her to visit the market that day and had to make do with whatever I had at home.

There were some Lamb Merguez sausages in the freezer and this prompted me to cook a North African influenced meal. Fortunately, I had some instant Zesty Lemon couscous that had been gifted to me and I knew that would be a great combination. Now Couscous is a dish which can absorb huge quantities of liquid, so I knew I wanted a stew rather than a curry.

For inspiration, I remembered the lovely, simple yet homely stews we ate at Berber run outlets in Siwa on the edge of the Great Sand Sea in Egypt and while we were in Morocco. I knew I wanted a simpler style rather than a restaurant dish. So the best option was a peasant stew. With a base of onions and tomatoes and then, whatever other vegetables were in season. I've had stews with cauliflowers and beans and radishes and turnips, so you can add just about any vegetable you like. It can be completely vegetarian if you like. But since I was grilling the Merguez sausages, I used the fat from the pan roasted sausages as a starter and chopped up 2 of them and put them back into the stew

I had potatoes and carrots and onions, no tomatoes and no tomato paste either. So I used ketchup. I would really prefer to use fresh tomatoes though.

Ingredients:

3 medium onions quarterd and then into half, so it forms little triangles
3 medium tomatoes chopped  like the onions(or a few tbsps of tomato ketchup or 2 tbsp tomato paste)
6-12 cloves garlic sliced (depending on your taste)
3 medium potatoes cubed
2 carrots chopped to the same size as the potatoes
(Kim's Note: You can use any combination of vegetables to form the volume equal to 3 potatoes and 2 carrots)
2 tsps Harissa (increase or decrease according to taste)
Salt to taste
A few pieces of meat or chopped up sausages (optional) - 100-200gms
1 tsp olive oil

Method:
Since I had the sausages, I first pan fried the sausages in the same pan that I planned to make the stew in.

After taking out the sausages, I used that fat to fry the garlic.
You can just start with the olive oil and fry the garlic in that.
Add the onions and the tomatoes and fry for a few minutes till the onions turn transluscent.
Add salt and harissa.
If using meat, add it at this stage and fry till the meat is semi cooked. Deglazing with water when necesarry.
Add potatoes and enough water to boil in and simmer till almost cooked.
Add carrots and stew some more, adding more water if required.
(Kim's Note: Remember every vegetable has its own cooking time, so add them in decreasing order of time needed to cook)
Bring to a boil.

The stew is now ready to be served into bowls and can be mopped up with Eish, pita bread, injeera or any of the other types of breads eaten in Africa. You can even eat it with a baguette or Italian bread, but they don't soak up as much liquid.Indian rotis are not a good combination for the same reason. It can be eaten with steamed rice, idiappams, dosas or appams though.

Since the couscous I had was of the instant variety, I just had to pour hot water and wait for a few minutes before I could plate it.

It already had a few herbs in it, so I hadn't added any herbs into the stew, allowing the spicing to come from the harissa. All that was left, was to plate up and serve.

The combination of the slightly tart couscous, the smoky flavour of the sausages and the sweet and spicy stew was awesome. I would also serve some harissa on the side for those who would like to make their stew spicier.

Variations:
If you don't have access to Merguez sausages, don't use regular cocktail or frankfurter sausages, they just won't work. You need a sausage that has a smoked herby flavouring. Chorizo could work, but its spices could clash with the harissa. So taste them individually before pairing them.
Don't use the cheesy varieties, you want a more down to earth, smoky sausage.
You actually don't need sausages, but they do go well with this combination.
You can use any regular plain couscous and cook it with herbs of your choice. If you don't add lemon to your couscous, add a little to the stew for a bit of tartness in the combination.

Book Review: Street Cafe Morocco

The colours used in this book are what first attracted me to pick it up. The photography by Jeremy Hopley is very captivating.

The book covers recipes for street food in Morocco. So the foods themselves are easy to prepare. Most recipes have less than 6 ingredients, so its easy to throw a dish together with ingredients in your grocery cupboard or refrigerator.

Primarily targetted at a British audience, I find myself being more generous with the chilli powder than recommended in the book. But its been great at getting me to use some of the spice mixes I picked up on a recent trip to Morocco.

Do not let that fact scare you. A majority of the recipes can be prepared without searching for exotic ingredients.