Main Ingredients:

See below ingredients and instructions of the recipe

Cooking Preparation of the Recipe:

2 c Lentils
3/4 c Uncooked rice
2 md Onions; chopped
1/2 c Olive oil
1 tb Salt
1/4 ts Cumin
1/2 ts Allspice or bhar

Clean and wash the lentils and boil them until tender. Mash and
strain into a separate pot. Add the rice, salt, and spices, and mix
well. In a pan, saute the chopped onions in oil until golden. Add
them with the frying oil to the lentils and rice. Bring the mixture
to the boil with enough water to cover and simmer over low heat for
about 10 minutes, until the rice is cooked, stirring regularly to
prevent sticking. Serve lukewarm or cold with radishes and spring
onions or a cabbage salad.

That's the recipe straight from the book. I make a couple changes:
first of all, I'm a bit liberal with the cumin and allspice - I don't
use measuring spoons, and I'm sure I get more than the 1/4 or 1/2
teaspoon. Bhar, btw, is described by the book as "a spice blend made
of cloves, cinnamon and nutmeg. It is very similar in flavor to
allspice, which may be substituted for it." I use brown basmati rice,
so I have to boil it for more than 10 minutes; this means I have to
keep adding water to it so it doesn't dry out.

I mean to go back to the restaurant I first had this dish at and ask
them what spices they use, since theirs is both spicier and darker
than mine.

Food For The Vegetarian - Traditional Lebanese Recipes Posted by:
bobp#msi.com (Bob Pitha)

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