Tag: Western Asian
Afelia (Wine-Braised Pork)
Afelia (Wine-Braised Pork)
Afelia is a Cypriot dish consisting of pork shoulder braised in dry red wine and crushed coriander seeds. Wine and coriander happen to be a popular combination used in many dishes from Cyprus. The pork is usually served with bulgur pilaf, unless potatoes are added to the braise.
Equipment
- mortar and pestle
Ingredients
- 2 lbs boneless pork shoulder cut into 1” cubes
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 2 cups dry red wine
- 2 tbsp coriander seeds crushed
- 1/2 tsp cracked black pepper
- 2 bay leaves
- 1/2 tsp ground cumin
- 1/2 cup water
- 2 tsp salt
- 1 lb red potatoes cut into 1” cubes.
Instructions
- Crush the coriander seeds in a mortar and pestle.
- Marinate the pork with red wine, cumin, black pepper, bay leaves, and the crushed coriander seeds for 4 hours, preferably overnight. Drain and save the marinade.
- Add the olive oil to a sauté pan over medium high heat. Brown the pork for 10 minutes on all sides.
- Add the reserved marinade, water, and salt. Simmer over medium heat for 10 minutes.
- Stir in the potatoes. Cover and simmer over low heat for 75 minutes.
- Uncover and simmer for 10 minutes.
Bulgur Pilaf
Bulgur Pilaf
You may have heard of bulgur, but might not be sure what it is. Bulgur is wheat berry grain that is graded from super fine to coarse; very reminiscent of couscous. Bulgar is very high in fiber, more than brown rice, and low in fat and calories. This version is a basic Lebanese tomato based preparation; ready in about 20 minutes.
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 white onion finely chopped
- 1/4 cup tomato paste
- 1 roma tomato finely chopped
- 1/2 small green bell pepper finely chopped
- 1 1/2 cups fine bulgur wheat
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1 can chickpeas drained
- 3 cups chicken stock
- 3 tbsp parsley chopped
Instructions
- Heat up the olive oil in a pot over medium heat. Sauté the onions for 5 minutes.
- Add in the tomatoes and green pepper. Sauté for 5 minutes.
- Stir in the tomato paste, cumin, salt, and pepper. Cook for 2 minutes.
- Mix in the bulgur to the sauce.
- Pour in the chicken stock and chicken peas. Cover and pull from the heat. Let the bulgur absorb the liquid for 10 minutes.
Lebanese Cabbage Rolls
Lebanese Cabbage Rolls
I’m a huge fan of cabbage rolls. These Lebanese-style cabbage rolls are called Malfouf in Arabic. They are very similar in preparation to Lebanese stuffed grape leaves. The filling is a mix of ground beef, rice, and 7 spice. The rolls are simmered below a layer of tomatoes, garlic, with some lemon juice, until the rice is cooked, creating a garlicky, tomatoey, lemon sauce.
Ingredients
- 1 head green cabbage
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 lb ground beef
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 2 tsp Lebanese 7 spice
- 1 cup uncooked short grain rice
- 10 garlic cloves
- 2 tomatoes sliced
- 1 tbsp ground cumin
- 4 cups water
- 2 lemons juiced
Instructions
- Heat up oil in a sauté pan over medium high heat. Brown the ground beef.
- Turn off the heat. Stir in the rice, salt, pepper, and 7 spice. Set aside and let cool.
- Bring a pot of water to boil. Core out the cabbage and carefully remove the leaves. Drop the cabbage leaves in the water for a minute to make pliable. Remove from the pot.
- Place a couple of tbsps of the beef/rice in a cabbage leaf.
- Fold in the sides and roll up. Do this until all of the ground beef is used up.
- Line the bottom of a pot with any extra cabbage leaves. Place the rolls tightly in the pot.
- Cover the top with the tomatoes and garlic.
- Place any remaining rolls on the top. Season with cumin. Pour in 4 cups of water into the pot; enough to cover the rolls. Cover and simmer over medium heat for 30 minutes.
- Squeeze in the lemon juice. Cover and simmer over low heat for 45 minutes.
- Uncover and let rest for 30 minutes.
