Lamb and Vegetable Couscous

On Friday, Khadija cooked delicious couscous with lamb and vegetables, Kuskus ma lahim wa khodar (in Arabic). She used special Moroccan steamer pots called couscousière used for steaming the couscous making it fluffy and light, see above image. Don’t worry, you can still prepare the couscous as directed on the package even if you don’t have these steamer pots. Couscous with lamb, beef or chicken with vegetables is a traditional Moroccan dish usually prepared on Fridays, which is the Muslim holy day. In Meknes, you can be assured that almost all households will serve their own versions of this delightful meal.

Ingredients

1 kilo couscous

500g cubed lamb

4 carrots, cut into 2-inch 1/4 pieces

2 courgettes (zucchini), cut similar to carrots

1 potato, cut into 8 wedges

2 cups of diced butternut squash

1 cup chopped cabbage

2 medium tomatoes

1/2 cup green peas

3/4 cup soaked* chickpeas (or, 1/2 tin chickpeas)

1 medium onion, chopped

100g broad beans

1 cup fresh coriander

5 cm piece of fresh ginger, grated

1 tspn black pepper

1 tspn salt

1 tspn turmeric

1 lamb bouillon cube

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1 liter water

*overnight

1. Place oil, onions and lamb into pressure cooker pot* and sauté for a few seconds.

2. Add salt, black pepper, ginger and turmeric. Stir on medium heat for 15 minutes.

3. Add 3 cups of water.

4. Allow to pressure cook for 30 minutes on medium heat or, until lamb is cooked. If you are using a regular deep cooking pot than, approximately 1 hour on medium-low heat.

5. Add carrots, potato, courgettes, tomatoes, cabbage, broad beans, peas, 1/2 portion of fresh coriander leaves and the remaining water.

6. Allow to pressure cook on low heat for 10 minutes or, 20 minutes in a regular pot.

7. Add chickpeas and sprinkle the lamb bouilon cube and cook without lid for another 10 minutes on medium heat.

*or, use a deep cooking pot instead.

Double-steaming the couscous

1. Put the couscous in a bowl and add 2 cups of water. Set aside until water is absorbed.

2. Steam until fluffy.

3. Set aside for 10 minutes.

4. Pour 1 cup of water over the couscous. Set aside for 5 minutes.

5. Add 1/2 tspn salt and 2 tbsp of olive oil and gently mix together.

6. Steam again another 10 minutes.

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7. Serve on a large serving dish with the couscous on the bottom, place the meat in the middle and distribute the vegetables around the meat.

8. Top with extra sauce and the rest of the fresh coriander.

Serves 4-6 people.

In Morocco, this dish is placed in the middle of the table and everyone eats from the same plate. You may want to try that with your guests, enjoy!

Melwi, traditional Moroccon bread with chicken and vegetable filling

The Moroccon name for this bread pocket* is, Ra'ife or, Melwi. Melwi, is a Moroccon style bread. It is usually prepared during the Islamic holy month of fasting called, Ramadan. It is typically served at every dinner setting to be eaten whole, or together with other dishes. You can prepare them plain or stuffed with chicken, beef or vegetabes. For this recipe, Khadija has prepared chicken melwi.

*It resembles more of a pancake in the end

Ingredients

Filling

2 pieces of chicken breast, chopped into small cubes

2 large onions, chopped small

2 bell peppers, chopped into small cubes

2 large ripe tomatoes, chopped into small cubes

About 5 cm piece of ginger, finely chopped

4 tbsp vegetable oi

Spices

1 tspn chili powder

1 tspn cumin powder

1 tspn paprika

2 small green chillies, chopped small

1 tbsp fresh coriander, finely chopped

*If you have powdered saffron, use 1/2 tspn

or, a few strands. If not, use 1/2 tspn turmeric

1 tspn salt

1 chicken bouillon cube

1. Put oil, onions and chicken in a deep pan on medium heat until onions and chicken are cooked.

2. Add salt, chopped red peppers, tomatoes, ginger, chicken bouillon (dry, sprinkle on top) and spices, stir and cook for about 5 minutes on medium heat.

3. Set aside to cool.

Now, you can start preparing the dough:

Ingredients for dough

900 g. plain flour

350 g. fine semolina flour

600 ml warm water

1 1/2 tspn of salt

2 tbsp of melted butter

1/4 cup of vegetable oil

1. Mix flour and salt together.

2. Mix warm water and knead until you have a solid dough.

3. Cover in plastic foil for 10 minutes, placing a kitchen towel on top.

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4. Break off into small balls, approximately 16 balls.

5. Melt Butter and vegetable oil, mix.

6. Baste balls in butter and vegetable oil mix.

7. cover basted balls with plastic foil for another 10 minutes.

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8. Flatten one ball into a pizza shape.

9. Add approximately 2 full tbspn's of filling and fold close.

10. Wrap this into a second ball that has been flattened into a pizza shape.

11. Continue with the rest until complete. You should have 8 pockets when complete.

(note: you can also prepare these with just one dough ball layer, if you want. Then, batter yields 16 pockets.)

12. Sprinkle with extra semolina

13. Flatten into approximately 5" x 5" pancakes, or similar.

14. Fry in griddle pan, or frying pan, until brown on both sides.

You will have 8 servings. You can place leftovers in the fridge and re-heat the next day as yummy leftovers.