Tuesday, April 2, 2013

346. Mujaddara: Rice Lentil Pilaf


Mujaddara (مجدرة) is, quite simply, cooked lentils, combined with cooked grain (usually rice), combined with a fairly large quantity of caramelized onions. It is the latter which lends the high-impact flavor of the mujaddara. Today, it is commonly attributed to Lebanese cuisine, but in fact the first recorded recipe of mujaddara comes from a Baghdadi cookbook, and is hence of Iraqi origins.

Mujaddara is a very economical dish to prepare, and would satisfy and provide nutrition enough for a soldier. It is very similar to the Egyptian koushari, only it lacks the pasta and tomato sauce to qualify. I personally prefer mujaddara to koushari, though both are magnificent dishes.
I highly recommend this dish along with some simple grilled meat and Nadia's cabbage salad.
Adapted from Lebanese Recipes.


Ingredients:

3/4 cup long-grain white rice
1 cup brown lentils, rinsed
3 cups onions, roughly chopped
1/3 cup olive oil
1/4 tsp ground cumin
salt and pepper


Method:

Cook rice by sauteeing in a teaspoon of oil, adding a teaspoon of salt, then just covering with boiled water.
Bring to the boil, immediately cover the pot and reduce heat to low and let simmer 20 minutes until cooked.
When rice is done, cover and keep warm until you add it to the lentils.

While the rice is cooking, rinse lentils, then place in heavy pot with a tight fitting lid, cover with three times the volume of water, and let lentils simmer over very low heat uncovered until they are soft about 20-30 minutes.
When lentils are cooked, remove from heat, cover and set aside to let them absorb any leftover water.

While lentils cook, chop onions roughly.
Heat olive oil in heavy frying pan, then add onions, reduce heat to medium-low and start to brown onions, stirring every few minutes.
Continue to cook onions, stirring often, until they are deeply browned and caramelized, about 20-25 minutes.
Don't rush this step; the onions will be bitter if they're cooked at high heat.

When onions are browned, remove half the onions to drain on a paper towel to crisp.
Sprinkle 1/4 tsp cumin into the rest of the onions in the pan and saute 1-2 minutes.

Use a slotted spoon to transfer the cooked lentils to the pan with the onions, leaving behind any water that's not absorbed.
Gently mix cooked rice into the lentils and caramelized onions, heating for a minute or two if the rice is not hot.
Adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper, if necessary.
Put Mujadarra on a serving dish, top with crispy caramelized onions, and serve hot or warm.



 صحة و عافية

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Thank you so much Maryam for posting this recipe. I made it for tonight's dinner and it came out great, although I did overcook the rice so it was a little softer than it was suppose to be but it was still very tasty. I will just note that my lentils took longer than 20 min to cook for future reference for other people but that all depends on the stove you have ofcourse, and also please do not ommit the onions because it really adds an important dimension to the rice. I made some kebab on the side to go along with the meal. Thank you, Sarah.

Maryam said...

I'm so glad you liked it and found success, Sarah! It's amazing to me how simple and humble ingredients can be transformed into the most delectable of dishes. I personally love having this rice with either a salad or some simple roasted chicken, but I'm sure it was fantastic with kebabs. Thank you for your always lovely comments!

Anonymous said...

dear maryam,

first of all youre the best and thank u for this lovely recipe
i want to make this tomorrow
but with what could i serve this?

Only rice is not enough for my husband haha

i thought of a salad ofcourse but i mean what kind of meat?

thank u so much

Maryam said...

Thank you for your kind words!
I love serving this rice with a roast chicken because the gravy adds a welcome moist component to the meal, but you can also serve aome form of grilled meat such as sheesh tawooq or kebab (see index for ideas) and a salad of course.
Saha!