Make Ahead

Chicken may be used instead of meat. Serve with plain rice steamed in the Persian manner (page 338) or the quick and easy boiled and steamed rice (page 339). The eggplants are usually deep-fried, but in this instance it is as good to broil or grill them, as they get stewed as well. If you don’t fry them, it is not really important to salt them (see page 289).

This Persian sauce is exquisite, with delicate spicing and dried lime as the dominant flavor. Serve it with plain rice prepared in the Persian manner (page 338) or the quick and easy boiled and steamed rice (page 339).

This is one of the most popular sauces in Iran and a favorite of mine. Dried limes and the herb fenugreek give it a unique and delicious bitter-sour taste. Flat-leaf parsley, chives, and in some versions dill and cilantro complete the symphony of flavors. Fresh fenugreek can be found in Iranian and Oriental stores in the summer, and packets of dried fenugreek leaves are available the year round. Only a little is used, because it is very powerful. The dried limes can be found in Oriental and Indian stores in various forms, whole, broken into pieces, and powdered. To make them yourself, see page 44. If you can’t find the powdered one, add an extra whole one. Serve with plain rice steamed in the Persian manner (page 338) or the quick and easy boiled and steamed rice (page 339).

Apricots have a particular affinity with lamb. The early Arab Abbasid dynasty, centered in Baghdad, adopted the combination from the old Persian Empire that preceded it and created a series of dishes on the theme which they called mishmishiya (see page 255), mishmish being the Arab word for “apricot.” Apricot is still a favorite partner to lamb in modern Iran. The rest of the Middle East has adopted it to a lesser degree. You need a tart, natural variety of apricots, not a sweetened one.

A number of popular Lebanese dishes which go under the name of fatta (see page 222) involve yogurt and a bed of soaked toasted or fried bread. This one is served for breakfast accompanied by scallions and green peppers cut into strips.

This version with tamarind is from Aleppo. Serve hot or cold, as a first course or part of a buffet meal.

The round, sweet orange-fleshed pumpkins are the ones to use for this dish. The amount of stuffing you need depends on the size of the pumpkin. If you wish to make it without meat, increase the quantity of rice.

This is sometimes made with lettuce leaves.

Serve cold as a first course. Choose peppers that can stand on their bases.

This old classic is prestigious in the Arab world. In Egypt, during their season, artichokes were sold by vendors who brought crates to the kitchen door, and our cook pared the bottoms. Nowadays I use frozen artichoke bottoms that are so good you cannot tell they are not fresh. Look for them (a flat-cup variety) as produce of Egypt in Middle Eastern stores.

Stuffed zucchini was one of our everyday dishes in Cairo. When my parents settled in London, my mother searched for a long time for a proper zucchini corer but in the end settled for an apple corer to do the job. In the past it was customary to fry the zucchini in butter until lightly colored before stewing, but it is usual now to omit this step. The most common filling is the meat-and-rice one called hashwa (page 306).

This elegant dish with an exquisite sweet-and-sour caramelized flavor is a specialty of Aleppo in Syria. The onion layers are used to make little rolls around a filling. In Egypt we soaked the tamarind pods and used the filtered juice. Now I find that the Indian tamarind paste obtainable from Middle Eastern stores is perfectly good to use.

This version of the Tunisian meshweya (page 85) can be served hot or cold. I prefer it cold.

Serve cold as a first course.

This famous Turkish dish is served as a cold appetizer or first course. Conflicting stories are told about the origin of its name, which means “the Imam fainted.” Some say it came about when an imam (Muslim priest) fainted with pleasure on being served it by his wife. Others believe that the Imam fainted when he heard how expensive the ingredients were, and how much olive oil had gone into the making. The dish is part of the range of zeytinyagli (cooked in olive oil) dishes Turkey is famous for. It can be cooked in a saucepan or in the oven.

This meatless filling is for vegetables to be eaten cold. These are usually cooked with olive oil. If the vegetables are to be stewed, the rice is used raw; if they are baked, it has to be cooked.

We made this in Egypt.

This Tunisian way with potatoes is as good hot as it is cold. Sweet potatoes can be used in the same way. Although in the Arab world potatoes never had the importance they acquired in Europe, and they never replaced grain, they are treated in a most delicious way. You must try the variations belonging to various countries which follow. Serve hot or cold with grilled or roasted meats and chicken. Some can also be served cold as appetizers.

Moroccan tomates confites have a deliciously intense flavor. Serve them hot or cold with grilled meat or fish or as an appetizer.