Bulgur Pilaf with Ground Beef

Tags

burgol, cracked wheat, ground beef, middle eastern, pilaf, برغل مفلفل

For a hearty main meal, accompany your meat or chicken dish, with a side of bulgur pilaf.

Ramadan is here. For me, it’s the most beloved month of the year, a very special month. We as Muslims, celebrate it in every way possible. Thus, there is a lot of things that makes it special. Ramadan is great because you will experience the hospitable and spiritual acts of our culture, a blissful month, the family gathering. A lot of memories about Ramadan are engraved in our hearts, and will be from year to year. I would like to share with you why is it special for me, one for every post through the end of the month, beginning with childhood memories.

I now believe that the more technological the world becomes, the greater the nostalgia for the days when life was simple. When those past never return days became the sweetest things in your life, where I have fond memories for charming Ramadan nights. Every night we agreed to meet after Iftar (the meal eaten by muslims after sunset), me and my best girlfriends. Celebrating Ramadan nights on our way, making fireworks from some kind of kitchen scrupping sponge and Not like todays fireworks.
How many times we burned our hair, our clothes…
Yes, but it has special kind of happiness, not even my kids nowadays will feel it, may be because it related with the past simple life we had.

If you’re looking for something lighter, healthier than rice, this will be perfect. This pilaf makes a delightfully different accompaniment to my roasted chicken. Nutty and little spicy but not hot. The ground meat adds more value to the pilaf, make it perfect for family gatherings, but you can make it with the meat too. I used the extra coarse grains, first pick it from any possible stones or dirts, then wash and soak for about 5-10 minutes. Sauté the grains first in olive oil for couple of minutes to add a toasty nutty flavors, then add the water. Continue with cooking like you cook rice.

What is Bulgur?
Bulgur is a kind of cracked wheat that is first boiled and then dried and roughly ground to produce the semi processed wheat known as bulgur.
It comes in different colors and grades. Fine, medium, course, and extra coarse. It can be bleached or unbleached.
Bulgur can be steamed or boiled, moistened with butter or oil. It’s texture is a little like brown rice, and it has a nutty, earthy favor.

How to use Bulgur?
The bulgur carries a lot of traditional Arabic flavors and makes an exciting change from your average rice dish. It can be almost as versatile as rice. Its high nutritional value makes it a good substitute for rice or couscous, too. It features in everything from pilafs to stuffings. The coarsest grade is usually cooked like rice and used to make pilafs and stuffings. The finest grade is used in salads such as Tabbouleh, as well as being a key ingredient in the Lebanese national dish, Kibbeh.

Where to find bulgur in U.S.?
It can be found in natural food stores, Middle Eastern specialty grocers, and some traditional grocery stores. In large stores, like Wal-Mart, it can be found in specialty grain sections.

Bulgur Pilaf

Ingredients

•  1 cup course bulgur soaked in water for 5 minutes
• 3 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 cup ground be
• 1/2 cup chopped onion
• 1/3 cup pine nut, toasted
• Salt and pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon allspice
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
• 1/4 teaspoon sumac
• 2 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley

Instructions

Rinse the Bulgur well in cold water and then put it in a heavy pot with 1 1/2 times it’s volume of fresh water and 1 tablespoon oil. Season with salt and pepper. Bring to boil and then simmer, covered, on low heat for 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, in a skillet, add 2 tablespoon oil then the ground meat and onion, sauté on medium heat, cook for 10 minutes, add salt and pepper and the rest of spices, toasted pine nuts and chopped parsley.
Add the meat mixer to the cooked wheat pilaf, stir gently to mix together, serve warm.
Serve with cardamom and oregano roasted chicken

البرغل المفلفل بخلطة اللحمه المفرومه
١ كوب من البرغل الخشن منقوع بالماء لمدة ٥ دقائق
٣ ملاعق كبيره زيت زيتون
١ كوب لحمه مفرومه
١/٢ كوب بصل مفروم
ملح وفلفل
١/٢ ملعقه صغيره بهار حلو
١/٤ ملعقه صغيره هيل مطحون
١/٤ ملعقه صغيره سماق
١/٣ كوب صنوبر محمص
٢ ملعقه كبيره بقدونس مفروم ناعم

نغسل البرغل جيدا وننقيه من الحصى والاتربه. في طنجره نضيف البرغل و مقدار مره ونص من الماء ونتركه يغلي، اي الكوب يحتاج ١ ١/٢ كوب ماء، نضيف ملعقه من الزيت والملح والفلفل . على نار هادئه ، نغطي الطنجره ونتركه ينضج، يحتاج ١٠ دقائق تقريبا
في مقلاه نضيف باقي الزيت واللحمه والبصل ونقلب ونتركه ينضج على نار متوسطه مع التقليب بين الحين والاخر، تحتاج لعشر دقائق لتنضج تماما، نضيف البهارات الباقيه
نضيف على خليط اللحمه الصنوبر والبقدونس المفروم، نخلط المقادير مع بعضها
ونضيفها الى البرغل المفلفل ونخلطها
تقدم وهي ساخنه

Tagine of Meatballs in Tomato Sauce

Tags

Comfort food, dawood basha, dinner meals, ground beef, Healthy meals, kids friendly, lunch meal, meatball stew, meatballs, middle eastern, Soups and Stews, tomato sauce, Turkish, vegetable meatbals

Adding vegetables to your meatballs to enhance the flavor and add a nutritional boost to your hearty comfort meal.

Getting your kids to eat their vegetable is a challengeable mission lots of moms have.
How many time I forced them to eat veggies?
How many hours spent lecturing on how veggies are good for their health and bodies?
I asked myself if there is a way to end this dilemma?
So why not to make tricks and think out of the box?

Sneaking some vegetable into their favourite food is a good way to start with.
Why not to add some cauliflower, or spinach to the meatballs! Some carrots is  good too!

Tagine of Meatballs in Tomato Sauce – a well known dish called Dawood Basha, it has been told that it’s originally from turkey and where it took it’s name – is one of the classic comfort foods that enjoyed all over the levant countries. The basic recipe is only meatballs with pine nuts fried then simmered in the oven with tomato sauce.

Nothing Better Than a comfort hearty meal to enjoy in weekdays also to gather the whole family at weekends, baking the meatballs instead of frying make it light and fresh, adding the vegetable to the meatballs was a great idea to boost up more nutrient to the meal. Any vegetable available is very welcome, I tried to add spinach, cauliflower, and carrots. Make sure to shred or chop them very fine so they can mix in easily with the ground meat.  The vegetable wasn’t noticeable though, it’s all blended in with the herbs and spices that added to make it more flavorful, tender, and juicy. For a bonus, I like to add potato to the stew, since the original recipe can be served along with mashed potato instead of the rice.

Serve with rice pilaf.

 

Tagine of Meatballs in Tomato Sauce

To make the meatballs:

1 pound ground beef
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
1/2 cup shredded carrots
1/2 cup chopped spinach
1/4 cup chopped cauliflower
1/4 cup minced parsley
Salt and pepper
1/2 teaspoon of each: dried coriander, cinnamon, all spice
1 tablespoon olive oil

For the tomato sauce:

4-5 ripened tomato
1/2 cup chopped onion
2-3 garlic Cloves
1/2 teaspoon allspice
Salt and pepper
1 teaspoon dried basil leaves
1 tablespoon tomato paste

To make the stew:

2-3 potato cut into medium cubes
Cooked rice pilaf to serve

Preheat the oven to 400 f.
In a bowl, mix the ground beef lump with the vegetable add the onion, parsley, spices and oil, and work with your hands, don’t over mix. Roll into a small ball the size of walnuts.
Arrange the meatball in an oven tray, bake for 15-20 min until little browned.

Meanwhile, cut the tomato, add onion, garlic and liquidate them in the blender. Add spiced, herbs, and tomato paste, blend in. Put the sauce in a pot on low heat to simmer and thicken.

Fry or bake the potato with a little oil, add to the simmering tomato sauce along with baked meatballs and don’t forgot to add the meat juices, it adds more flavor to the stew.

Adjust the seasoning and continue simmering for 15-20 more minutes.
Serve along with rice pilaf. You may add some toasted pine nut on top.

Meat Stuffed Eggplant Roll

Tags

eggplant, eggplant roll, ground beef, middle eastern, pan dishes, stuffed eggplant, Vegetables

I’m a terrible eggplant eater, yes like it like it and like it…. and in any way (fried is mostly wonderful), I know this way has too much calories, but its nutty buttery tangy rich flavor is something that I can not resist.

Eggplant or aubergine (the black beauty), is one of the most nutritious vegetable you can eat, and there is more than a reason why you should eat eggplants, It is rich in fiber, iron, and compounds called terpenes which lower your cholesterol, and most of its nutrition is in the skin. do you know that eggplant biologically is fruit? yes fruit and berry species (the beautiful purple berry).

When buying the eggplant, you will want to look for the firm nut not too firm eggplant, after slicing sprinkle with salt and set a side for about 30 min, so they will not soak too much oil during frying.

As the eggplants is my favourite vegetable, whats yours?

Meat Stuffed Eggplant Roll

2 big eggplants
plenty of oil for frying
roasted pine nut for garnish

For meat stuffing:

1 lb ground beef
1 large onion minced very fine
3 gloves of garlic mashed
1\2 teaspoon all spices
1\4 teaspoon cumin
1\4 teaspoon cinnamon
1\2 teaspoon coriander
1\2 teaspoon cardamom
1\2 teaspoon paprika
1\4 teaspoon turmeric
dried basil leaves
salt and black pepper

For the tomato sauce

3 large fresh tomato
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1\4 cup pasta tomato sauce
3 gloves garlic
dash of cinnamon, all spices, salt, black pepper
dried basil leaves

Slice the eggplants with its skin on lengthwise, about 1\4 inch thick. sprinkle with salt and let a side for 1\2 an hour. fry with plenty of oil heat it first, until golden, put the fried slices on kitchen paper to drain out some oil.

In a pan, add the ground beef and the onions the garlic and the spices, and cook on medium heat, stir frequently. lay a slice of eggplant, put the meat stuffing at one end and roll, arrange the roll on a high-sided oven pan.

With your blender, grind the tomato pieces along with the garlic and spices, in a pan heat 1 tablespoon olive oil, add the tomato puree, the tomato paste and the sauce, stir frequently let cook for 3-4 min.

Spread the tomato purée over the eggplant rolls in the pan, cover the pan with aluminum foil, put it in the oven for 1 hour on 400 f.

Served either with bread especially pita, or the white rice. Garnish with chopped fresh parsely and roasted pine nuts.
Enjoy.