Articles
General · 20th December 2011
I am now called 'Thorn'
Hi Lorna,
I am procrastinating – I have lots to do but decided to take a break and send along a recipe for your new recipe collection. My wife and a group of her friends occasionally bring a chef in to provide them with a cooking class and dinner. On one occasion my wife mentioned that the owner of the Mediterranean Specialty Foods shop in Victoria (Yasser) was going to teach them how to prepare some Lebanese dishes. Upon seeing my enthusiasm she contacted the powers that be and they broke with tradition and invited me to join them – the lone male – I am now known to this group as Thorn, as in thorn amidst the roses but heh I got invited! So while the women drank wine I made notes as Yasser prepared a variety of dishes and have been reproducing them ever since – they are easy to make and taste great. I suppose it would be more accurate to say that while the women drank wine I made notes and drank wine! Here is one of my favourites.
FASOLIA
1 kilo Stewing meat (cut in small pieces) of creature of choice (beef short ribs, lamb, ...) – this recipe is also very nice when made vegetarian by substituting a couple of vegetables, such as carrots and celery, in place of the meat
2 cups of the largest dried lima beans you can find
4 cloves of garlic
2 large onions
1 Bay leaf
1 Cinnamon stick
3 or 4 tablespoons of Lebanese tomato paste (this tomato paste is worth looking around for – much better than typical tomato paste – it will come in a medium sized jar – when you have used some of it cover the top of the remaining paste in the jar with olive oil and this will ensure that the unused paste remains fresh and doesn’t oxidize).
Olive oil
Butter
Sea salt
Pepper
Cover meat or vegetables with water in a saucepan, add bay leaf, a cinnamon stick and half an onion and bring to the boil. Boil until tender then drain, retaining the liquid for use later, and remove the bay leaf and cinnamon stick.
Soak lima beans for 2 to 3 hours. Drain and bring to the boil. Cook the beans for about 30 minutes or until done.
Sauté the onions and garlic in olive oil over medium heat until golden.
When the beans are cooked, drain them, add sea salt and pepper. Combine the beans, the cooked and drained meat and the sautéed onions and garlic. Add ¼ cup of butter, some olive oil, 1 ½ cup water or juice from the stewing meat or vegetables and the tomato paste. Stir until fully combined. Simmer for 35 minutes. Serve. Should feed 4.
All the best,
Thorn
I am procrastinating – I have lots to do but decided to take a break and send along a recipe for your new recipe collection. My wife and a group of her friends occasionally bring a chef in to provide them with a cooking class and dinner. On one occasion my wife mentioned that the owner of the Mediterranean Specialty Foods shop in Victoria (Yasser) was going to teach them how to prepare some Lebanese dishes. Upon seeing my enthusiasm she contacted the powers that be and they broke with tradition and invited me to join them – the lone male – I am now known to this group as Thorn, as in thorn amidst the roses but heh I got invited! So while the women drank wine I made notes as Yasser prepared a variety of dishes and have been reproducing them ever since – they are easy to make and taste great. I suppose it would be more accurate to say that while the women drank wine I made notes and drank wine! Here is one of my favourites.
FASOLIA
1 kilo Stewing meat (cut in small pieces) of creature of choice (beef short ribs, lamb, ...) – this recipe is also very nice when made vegetarian by substituting a couple of vegetables, such as carrots and celery, in place of the meat
2 cups of the largest dried lima beans you can find
4 cloves of garlic
2 large onions
1 Bay leaf
1 Cinnamon stick
3 or 4 tablespoons of Lebanese tomato paste (this tomato paste is worth looking around for – much better than typical tomato paste – it will come in a medium sized jar – when you have used some of it cover the top of the remaining paste in the jar with olive oil and this will ensure that the unused paste remains fresh and doesn’t oxidize).
Olive oil
Butter
Sea salt
Pepper
Cover meat or vegetables with water in a saucepan, add bay leaf, a cinnamon stick and half an onion and bring to the boil. Boil until tender then drain, retaining the liquid for use later, and remove the bay leaf and cinnamon stick.
Soak lima beans for 2 to 3 hours. Drain and bring to the boil. Cook the beans for about 30 minutes or until done.
Sauté the onions and garlic in olive oil over medium heat until golden.
When the beans are cooked, drain them, add sea salt and pepper. Combine the beans, the cooked and drained meat and the sautéed onions and garlic. Add ¼ cup of butter, some olive oil, 1 ½ cup water or juice from the stewing meat or vegetables and the tomato paste. Stir until fully combined. Simmer for 35 minutes. Serve. Should feed 4.
All the best,
Thorn