Recipes from around the world: Mansaf

All the way from Jordan.

Have you tried Mansaf? It's a delicious Levantine dish made with lamb cooked in fermented dried yoghurt sauce and served with a healthy portion of rice. It's a well-loved dish across the Levant and is even considered Jordan's national dish, here's how you can make it yourself.

Ingredients

• 2 lbs Lamb Meat cut into chunks (including bones)
• 6 cups Water
• 2 crystals Gum Arabic
• 4 Cloves whole
• 4 Cardamom pods
• 1 Cinnamon Stick
• 13 Allspice berries
• 1 Bay Leaf
• 2 cups Rice
• 4 cups Water
• 1½ tsp Salt
• Pinch of Saffron
• 1 Laban Jameed
• 4 cups Water
• 4 tbsp Almonds blanched and chopped

Method

For the Meat:

1. Put the lamb in 6 cups of water, bring to a boil and add the spices.
2. When the water comes to a boil turn down to a slow simmer.
3. Cook for 2 hours or until the meat is tender. Add more boiling water if necessary.
4. Once the meat is done, pour it through a sieve and preserve the water. Set the meat aside on a plate for later.
5. For the Laban Sauce:
6. Wrap the laban in a cloth and break it into pieces with a hammer.
7. Place the laban and 4 cups of water in a food processor and process until the laban has dissolved.
8. Pour the laban into a bowl through a sieve, and set aside.
9. Pour the laban into the meat water, and put back on the heat. Bring to a boil.
10. Add the lamb chunks to the sauce (leaving out the spices).

For the Rice:

1. In a pot, put 2 cups rice, 4 cups water, 1½ tsp salt and a pinch of saffron.
2. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook until all the water has gone.

Bringing It All Together:

1. Toast your almonds in a frying pan with a little olive oil.
2. Tear bread into little pieces on a plate as a base for the meal.
3. Ladle some of the sauce over the bread on the plate.
4. Spread the rice over the bread.
5. Ladle more sauce over the rice.
6. Place the lamb chunks on top of the rice.
7. Ladle more sauce over the top.
8. Sprinkle toasted almonds and parsley over the entire dish.

Courtesy of Ahmad Abualrub!

Look out for more delicious dishes created by students on Sanctuary Social.