Afghan Eggs and Tomato: Tukhum-Bonjan or Agay-Bonjan

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AfghanBreakfast, AfghanCuisine, AfghanEggs, EggsTomato, FriedEggs

Afghan Tomatoes and Eggs: Tukhum-Bonjan or Agay-Bonjan

Growing up, I remember Saturday morning by cartoons on TV and the smell of onions, tomatoes and sometimes belle-peppers frying in the kitchen. That was the one day of the week my dad would be in the kitchen, because as the joke goes in my family the only thing my dad can cook is eggs. My dad would stand by the stove top and brag about his amazing egg-cooking skills to my mom, who would be actually cutting up the tomatoes, heating the bread, basically preparing breakfast but letting my dad do the simple step of adding the eggs at the very end. It’s funny because on my least favorite things to cook is eggs, so now I actually look back and appreciate those days where my dad would so eagerly cook us breakfast.

Ingredients:

2 medium onions chopped

3 medium tomatoes chopped

5-6 eggs

Salt, pepper, dried mint for seasoning

1-) Fry tomatoes on medium heat until softened, then add onion and fry until translucent.

2-) Add eggs and mix around a bit so it’s like a scrambled egg, and leave on heat until cooked.

3-) Add salt, pepper, and even dried mint as seasoning

4-) Serve eggs with warm Afghan bread, and sweet Sheer-Chai (Milk-Tea) drink.

Kufta Chalow-Afghan Meatballs with Dried Plum Seeds Sauce

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AfghanCuisine, AfghanFood, AlooBukhara, GroundBeef, InternationalCuisine, KuftaChalow, Meatballs, Rice

Kufta Chalow: Afghan Meatballs with Dried Plum sauce

Kufta Chalow is a basic everyday Afghan meal, I remember this meal fondly as a child. My mom would put a big mound of Chalou and in the center she would place three neat meatballs, circling it with a nice tart tomato sauce prepared with dried plums. I just remember loving the small mountain of rice on my plate, the excitement to dig in for that first bite.

Chalow is the most basic of Afghan rices, it is plain white rice but can be dressed up with fried almonds, Zereshk (dried barberries), or various sauces. Even though Chalow is simple in flavor, it has a cooking method that is base for all Afghan rice which ensures a perfect consistency of individual grains of rice perfectly cooked and fluffy.

All Afghan rice is prepared with an Aw Roghan, which literally translates as Water and Oil, it’s basically the sauce the rice is prepared in. For Chalow it literally is water, oil, salt, and a little bit of cumin for flavor. That’s all there is in preparing Chalow, getting the perfect consistency is achieved in cooking it by first boiling the rice until slightly softened, and then steaming it at a very high and then a very low temperature. The hint of cumin gives the rice a subtle flavor, and a heavenly smell. To this day the smell of cumin reminds me of the excitement of coming home to a basic comforting meal of Kufta Chalow.

Kufta Kurma is prepared in a delicious tart tomato based sauce that has a unique flavor with the use of dried plum seeds called Aloo Bukhara. The key in Kufta is always ground black pepper and garlic, this livens the otherwise dull flavor of ground beef. The Kurma sauce develops better flavor and consistency by simmering on low heat.

Kufta Kurma with Aloo Bukhara Sauce

2 Pounds of Ground Beef

4 Medium Onions

2 Teaspoon minced garlic

1-2 Tablespoons of ground black pepper

2 Tablespoons dry coriander

½ bunch fresh cilantro chopped

1 ½ cups of tomato sauce

6 Aloo Bukhara-Dried Plum seeds (Have them soak in water for about an hour before you cook)

Salt as needed

1-) Mince all of your onion in food processor

2-) For meatball mixture mix ground beef, half of onions finely minced, 1 teaspoon minced garlic, 1 tablespoon of ground black pepper, 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger, 2 tablespoons dry coriander,  ½ bunch of chopped fresh cilantro, and about ½ teaspoon of salt

3-) For Kurma sauce fry other half of chopped onions in a pot with 1 teaspoon of minced garlic. Fry until onions are a light brown color, it is important that the onions are not too dark or the kurma will have a dark color.

4-) Once onions are a light brown color, add 1 ½ cup of water to the pot and let it come to a boil.

5-) After water has come to a boil make small oval shaped meatballs and carefully place them in the pot.

6-) Let meatballs simmer for about 20-30 minutes with lid on.

7-) Add the tomato sauce, ½ cup boiled water, and the Aloo Bukhara. Let this boil on medium for about 10 minutes.

Put the temp lower and let the Kurma simmer for about 15 minutes, once the sauce has thickened and the oil comes to the top and separates from the sauce the Kurma is ready.

9-) Before serving you can pick out the Aloo-Bukhara with a spoon, or serve with Aloo-Bukhara still in the sauce.

Afghan Nergis Kabob

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AfghanCuisine, AfghanFood, Afghanistan, BoiledEgg, Fried, InternationalCuisine, Kabob, NargisKabob

Nargis Kabob is one of those dishes that just looks beautiful in any dinner spread, and goes well with whatever assortment of food there is. One of my aunts used to always prepare this dish for parties, I remember watching her as she would carefully cut in half each meatball revealing a surprise boiled egg inside.  My mom says in Afghanistan Nargis Kabob was a fancy and prestigious dish not just because of its taste, but mostly because of the ingredients used. Both meat and eggs were very scarce for the average Afghan family, and for a person to have the luxury to stuff a meatball with a boiled egg made a statement in itself. Nowadays these are both easy ingredients to access making this a dish that can be enjoyed by many.

Nargis Kabob and Shamee Kabob have a similar cooking method as they are both fried kabobs. For both you use a food processor and something to bind the meat such as flour, baked potatoes, or even canned chickpeas.  Seasoning and spice is very important in this dish, since the boiled egg has very little flavor. I always prepare the kabob and cook a small piece just to taste the spice, if needed you can always add more. While Afghan food is not spicy, this dish in particular tastes good if you add a little spice to the meat mixture.

Ingredients:

10 small boiled eggs

2 lb Ground beef or Lamb

2 cups of Flour (may need more)

½ small onion finely minced

¾ cup coriander powder

½ cup red chilli powder

2 teaspoons cumin

½ teaspoon ginger

2 tablespoons minced garlic

1 tablespoon salt

4 tablespoons black pepper

1-) Boil the 10 eggs, let them cool, peel, rinse and dry.

2-) Combine the ground beef/lamb, minced onion, garlic, spices and seasoning all in one bowl.

3-) Take a chunk (about a handful) of the meat and place in food processor with a little bit of the flour mixture. Process until the meat mixture sticks together and almost resembles a dough-like mixture and clumps together in the processor.

4-) Repeat this process of taking a chunk of the meat and some flour. Once you have done this with all of the meat, combine all of the mixture in a bowl.

5-) Heat oil in a deep saucepan to about medium-high temperature. Test the oil with a little clump of your meat mixture, your oil is ready if the meat dropped in rises to the top and begins cooking.

6-) Now take a boiled egg and a small amount of the meat mixture. Carefully form the meat mixture around the boiled egg, make sure you don’t have too much meat and keep it a thin layer around the egg. I usually start with a lot of meat and carefully take it off as I am forming the meatball, just until I have the egg covered with a thin layer.

7-) Place the meatball carefully in the oil and let deep fry for about 5 minutes, or until the outside is golden brown. If your meatball opens up while frying, coat the meatball with a little whisked egg whites right before cooking in the oil.

These kabobs are best when served at room temperature.

In Love with Algerian Cookies

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Afghan Cuisine, Algeria, Algerian Cuisine, baklava, cookies, favors, flowers, Middle-East, sweets, wedding

I would love to claim that these amazing and beautiful cookies are Afghan, but I have to give proper credit and admit that they are Algerian. Algeria has the most delicious and beautiful cookies in the Middle East/North Africa region, these types of cookies are given in boxes for weddings and made for special occasions. Not only do they look beautiful but the cookies taste delicious, each one is like a sweet lemon almond baklava that melts in your mouth. My best friend is Algerian and I remember being amazed by these beautiful little cookies on her henna night, I thought they were just too pretty to taste good. On the morning of her wedding I remember waking up at her house next to a stack of these cookies in favor boxes. I couldnt help myself and tried one of the cookies. Once I discovered how delicious the cookies tasted, it didn’t take long for me to polish off all the cookies in the box without any consideration for the tight dress I had to squeeze myself into that day. Since then I have had the taste of these cookies in my mouth, the outside is slightly crunchy while the inside has a rich flavor similar to almond baklava but the texture is softer and more like a cookie. The hint of lemon gives the cookie a light fresh flavor overall. I just can’t compare the flavor to any other type of sweet I have eaten.

I feel that in a way these cookies represent Algerians as a people; Algeria is an Arab country that is heavily influenced by Middle Eastern and French culture. While the insides of the cookie leans toward traditional Middle Eastern sweet flavors, the design and beauty of the cookies are more French influenced and definitely the most beautiful sweets you will find in the entire middle-east.  I believe that this fusion of cultures has produced these Algerian cookies which are incomparable in design and flavor.

             

When I got engaged I was adamant that I get these delicious cookies for my engagement party, luckily I found an incredibly talented Algerian family friend to make them for me for both my engagement party and a smaller bridal party. Interestingly because of baklava and halwa (semolina sweet) flavor of these cookies most of my family and friends thought they were just decorated Afghan sweets. Here are some pictures of the cookies I thought may be fun to share, especially because the colors and the light lemon flavor remind me so much of spring. I am still on the lookout for an easy to follow recipe especially for the Makrout El Louz and the baklava style where it’s crunchy on top and filled with almonds, if anyone has recipes to share!

Haft Mewa: Afghan New Year (Nowruz) Dried Fruit Salad

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Afghan Cuisine, Afghanistan, dried fruit, fruit salad, haft mewa, Nowruz

Haft Mewa

Haft Mewa literally translates as “Seven Fruits” and is a fruit salad made for Nowruz (Afghan New Year) from seven dried fruits and nuts. The dried fruits and nuts are usually walnuts, almonds, pistachio, hazelnuts, senjet (a type of dried cherry), dried apricots, and raisins. Haft Mewa is more than a simple fruit salad, it’s preparation is done very carefully as Afghans believe that if the Haft Mewa comes out correctly then their family will have good luck for the year. It is believed that not everyone can prepare Haft Mewa; some families have good luck and are able to make it while others follow the exact same steps but their Haft Mewa spoils in the two to three days of chilling that is required. I am not sure if this is simply superstition, but my mom believes in it and for the first time this year she had me help her prepare the Haft Mewa hoping it would bring me good luck.  Before we put all the fruits and nuts together my mother made sure to do a prayer and Bismillah with the addition of each component. It may seem a bit superstitious, but Nowruz is full of these kinds of beliefs about ensuring good luck for the coming year. The trickiest part of preparing the Haft Mewa is that all of the nuts must soak in water overnight so the skin can easily be removed. My mom recalls my Bibi (grandmother) staying up all night some years just removing the skin of the nuts. Blanched almonds make the process easier, and the pistachio skin comes off easily, but the walnuts take forever. Every year I remember steering clear of my mom as she would skin the walnuts, because she would continuously mutter under her breath that this was the last year she would prepare this time-consuming dish, but her frustration would be forgotten within a few days when we would eat the Haft Mewa. The dried fruit salad is extremely refreshing and the combination of nuts and dried fruits makes for a delicious contrast of sweet and crunchy.

Ingredients:

-Walnuts

-Pistachio

-Hazelnuts

-Blanched Almonds

-Dried Apricot (make sure they are sweet)

-Senjet (Dried Cherries)

-Raisins (Green and Black)

1- ) Soak the walnuts and pistachios overnight in water. The next night remove the skin for all of the walnuts and pistachio. The pistachio skin comes off easily, but the walnut skin requires a bit more effort.

This is how the walnuts look after the skin has been removed

3- ) Boil enough water so it will cover all of the drief fruit and nuts. Then cool the boiled water to room temperature. Make sure to rinse all of the nuts in water so they are clean.

4- ) In a large pot place the walnuts, pistachios, hazelnuts, blanched almonds, dried apricot, and senjet all together. Pour the cooled boiled water so it covers about two inches above the fruit and nuts. You can add a little bit of rosewater as well, but I think it takes away from the natural flavors of the druit salad. Cover the pot and place in the fridge for about two to three days.

5- ) The night before you serve the Haft Mewa, add the raisins both green and black. Let the fruit salad chill overnight, and then serve.

And just in case anyone is wondering my mom’s Haft Mewa came out delicious, so I hope it does bring us and all the other families who prepared it some good luck .

Tea Time Sambosas

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AfghanCuisine, AfghanFood, Afghanistan, Pastry, Pistachio, PowderedSugar, PuffPastry, Sambosa, Samosa, Tea

Tea-Time Sambosas

These sambosas remind me of my grandmother. They are delicious savory pastries prepared with pastry sheets, stuffed with ground beef, but are topped with that wonderful surprise garnish: powdered sugar and pistachio. My mom says my grandmother used to prepare these for afternoon tea in Afghanistan. It reminds me of a time way back, in a country long gone where people would stop at 3 in the afternoon for “tea time”. The combination of sambosas with powdered sugar may sounds strange, but the taste is delicate as the sweetness of the sugar complements the buttery savory dough and oddly lightens the ground beef. These sambosas remind me of Afghan women during my grandmother’s generation with their hair in big puffy styles and short pencil skirts, their lives revolved around being the perfect hostess. But these women have been overlooked and forgotten with the images of women in Afghanistan seen on television. To this day my grandmother is a classy lady, she refuses to wear boots or heavy coats, she likes her nails painted a pale pink color, and prefers her skirts to fall at the knees and no longer. She makes herself neat and pretty every day, arranging her chiffon scarf carefully over her graying reddish brown hair. Sometimes when I stare at her pictures I find her youth, I can see why my grandfather was in love with her and married her at such a young age. Her skin is still porcelain white, and she remains the only Afghan woman I have ever met with auburn colored hair. Cooking comes from my grandmother, her family was known to cook phenomenal food, and no matter how good my mom can cook she says that the talent is all from my grandmother. I can imagine the women during my grandmother’s time sitting in a big formal dining room somewhere in the afternoon time taking a break from the day with their legs crossed, delicately eating these savory samosas holding fancy tea cups filled with tea sweetened with tiny sugar cubes. Sambosas here are reserved for dinner, or breakfast as we don’t have “tea time” in America or really anywhere in the modern world, but sprinkling some sweet powdered pistachio sugar on a samosa takes me back to a time that is long forgotten.

Recipe:

1 package of pastry sheet defrosted

1 lb. of ground beef

1 large onion chopped

Salt and Pepper (for seasoning)

Sumac (optional)

Garnish:

1 cup powdered sugar

2 cups pistachio

1-) First cook the ground beef in a skillet, make sure to finely mince the ground beef with your spatula so its grounded and doesn’t cook as clumpy chunks of meat. Cook the ground beef about half an hour on medium heat stirring frequently. Halfway through cooking the ground beef add the chopped onions and let that cook with the ground beef.

2-) Once ground beef is cooked place the ground beef and onion mixture in a strainer to get out all the excess oil. Press the meat with the back of a spoon to make sure the mixture is dry from any extra oil, as you don’t want the inside of the samosa to be runny with oil.

3-) Mix the ground beef and onion mixture with about half a teaspoon of salt, two or three tablespoons of black pepper, a pinch of cumin, and if you want a tart flavor a teaspoon of sumac. Black pepper is the most important seasoning for the ground beef as it gives it a bolder flavor that contrasts nicely with the buttery pastry dough.

4-) Roll out the pastry dough and cut into three long rectangles. Then cut about three squares from each rectangle.

5-) For each square place about ½ tablespoon of the ground beef mixture, then dab your fingers with a little water on the edges to fold the pastry over.

6-) Once all of the sambosas have been filled use a fork to make wedges on the edges. Whisk two egg yolks and brush the tops with the egg yolks.

7-) Let the sambosas cook at 350 degrees for about twenty minutes, check your oven and take out once the tops are golden brown.

 During the cooking time pulse about one cup of pistachios in a food grinder until it is powdered. Mix the pistachio with 1 cup powdered sugar.

9-) Once the sambosas are cooked let them cool for about fifteen minutes, then sprinkle the powdered pistachio and sugar mixture on top.

10-) Serve the sambosas with either sweetened tea or Sheer Chai (Tea prepared with Milk)

Kecheri Quroot

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AfghanCuisine, AfghanFood, Kufta, Meatballs, Rice, Rissoto, Yogurt

Kecheri Quroot

This is one of my absolute favorite dishes, and I have never understood why I have not seen it on a menu at an Afghan restaurant. Kecheri Quroot can be likened to risotto in that it is a rich dish made with short grained rice. The first time I asked my mom for a recipe for kecheri quroot she laughed out loud, and said no one asks how to make kecheri quroot it’s so basic, anyone can cook shola. Initially I got a little huffy feeling like she was laughing at me, but what my mom meant is that kecheri quroot falls under the category of shola for Afghan food. Shola is a soft mushy short grained rice that basically is cooked in the starch of its water, and becomes very sticky from absorbing the starchy water. Since Afghan rice is known for its individual grains, shola is the opposite as it is sticky and soft. But there is an art to perfecting shola as well, because the trick is to cook shola and allow it to absorb water/broth many times to perfect and get it nice and sticky. Kecheri quroot is a type of shola that comprises of two dishes and one “sauce”.

The first part is a yellow shola made of short grained rice and mung beans.

1 and ½ cups of short grained rice

1 and ½ cups of mung beans (if pre-soaked then add with rice at the same time)

1 cup of Oil (may need more)

½ large onion finely minced

1 teaspoon turmeric

½ clove of fresh garlic

1-) Heat your oil in a pot, add the minced onion and garlic. Fry until the onions have a light caramel color. Also preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

2-) Add one teaspoon of turmeric and let that fry for a few minutes so your oil turns a nice orange color

3-) If you did not pre-soak the lentils then add the lentils and let them cook for 15 minutes before adding the rice. If your lentils are pre-soaked then add lentils, rice, and 2 cups of water. Add about a teaspoon of salt as well, if needed add more you can taste and make adjustments.

4-) Cover the pot with a lid and turn the temperature to low letting the rice and lentils cook. After about 10 minutes, check the rice and lentils. If the water has been absorbed, add about another cup or half cup of boiled water. You continue to do this until the rice and lentils have cooked and absorbed most of the water. This cooking process of slowly cooking the rice allowing it to absorb more water is what gives the dish a creamy flavor.

5-) Once the rice and lentils are fully cooked there should be some water in the pot. If most of the water has been absorbed then add 1 cup of boiled water. Cover the pot with foil, and put in the oven at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes.

Kufta (Small Meatballs in a tart tomato sauce)

1 Ib Ground Beef

1 large onion finely minced

1/2 can Tomato Paste

1 can Tomato Sauce

Garlic

3 tablespoons Black Pepper

1 teaspoon Salt

½ teaspoon Ginger

1-) For the meatballs mix ground beef, ½ of the minced onion, 3 tablespoons black pepper, 1 teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon ginger. Roll into tiny meatballs.

2-) Place ½ of the minced onion and ½ clove minced garlic into a sauce pan with some oil. Fry until the onions are a light brown color.

3-) Add one and a half cups of water and let this come to a boil.

4-) Add meatballs gently, you can coat the meatballs with a little water so they are smooth.

5-) Let the meatballs cook with lid on for about 20 minutes.

6-) Add ½ can tomatoes pasta and 1 can tomato sauce. Let the sauce simmer for another 15 minutes, then put on low and let it cook until oil comes to the top and you have a thick sauce.

Quroot:

The third part is quroot which is made from dried chakkah (strained yogurt). That may sound confusing on its own. Quroot is found ready made in Afghan shops or sent to Afghans in the diaspora from overseas. To prepare it you take the quroot, defrost it and mix it yogurt to get a runny sauce. I am honestly not a big fan of quroot, so you can always use chakkah (strained yogurt) mixed with a little garlic, salt and mint instead.

To serve the Kecheri Quroot, you take out a big serving platter. Put the rice on the platter leaving a hole in the middle. Place your bowl of chakkah in the middle. Then put the kufta kurma all over the kecheri quroot. The dish is heavy, but delicious. The rice is thick and rich, and the chakkah makes the dish creamy but also lightens it with the tart yogurt flavor. The first time I heard the recipe for kecheri quroot I was surprised I kept asking my mom what makes the rice so creamy and soft, and I kept thinking there must be some heavy ingredients, but she said it was in the simple preparation of cooking the rice over and over again in its own starchy water and allowing it to fully absorb the flavors of the broth.

Potato Pakoras

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Afghan, Afghan Cuisine, Afghan Food, Afghanistan, Finger Food, Fried, Fried Potato, Pakoras, Potato, Potato Pakora

Potato Pakoras

Pakoras are basically any type of breaded fried vegetable. My mom prepares potato pakoras in two ways. One way she places sliced potatoes inside of a thick batter and then fries the potato. The other way is that my mom prepares a mashed potato mixture and then coats this with bread crumbs and fries the potatoes. While I am not a picky eater I absolutely cannot stand the first type of pakoras prepared with a batter, it always tastes too heavy to me but I enjoy the pakoras made with the breadcrumbs. These potato pakoras can easily be served for breakfast, dinner, or as finger food.

Ingredients:

-4 large potatoes peeled

-1 large onion finely minced

-1 bunch of green onions chopped

-1 bunch of parsley chopped

-Two tablespoon salt

-Two tablespoon black pepper

-1/2 teaspoon cumin

- A small pinch of cayenne pepper

-1/2 clove of garlic finely minced

-4 eggs whisked

-5 cups of breadcrumbs

1- ) Place the peeled potatoes on a pot of boiled salted water. Let the potatoes cook until soft and water is absorbed. Once the potatoes are cooked, mash them with a fork. Make sure to not mash the potatoes too much, you can leave some clumps in the potatoes. You can always use shredded potato instead as well.

2- ) Mix in the onions, green onions, parsley, salt, pepper, cumin, cayenne pepper, and garlic. You can check the seasoning at this time and make adjustments according to what you prefer.

Potato Mixture

3- ) Heat oil in a large skillet.

4- ) Take a tablespoon and a half of the potato mixture and form it into a round patty that’s about ½ inch thick. The patty should not be too thick or it will fall apart, but also it should not be too thin or it burns easily.

5- ) Dip the potato patty into the whisked eggs, and then dip into the breadcrumbs so it’s finely coated.

6- ) Fry each patty until golden brown on both sides.

7- ) Serve the Potato Pakoras with Chakkah. You can mix some finely diced cucumber into the chakkah as well; it tastes delicious with the crispy potatoes.

Mantou: Afghan Dumplings

Tags

Afghan, Afghan Cuisine, Afghan Food, Afghanistan, Dumplings, Pasta

As a kid Mantou was the kind of dish that made me love being Afghan and to this day I can’t help but get giddy when I see mantou at a party.  It’s the perfect combination of ground beef dumplings, topped with a thick creamy yogurt and a delicious vegetable sauce. Perhaps it’s because I like pasta, because Mantou reminds me of a perfect pasta dish. I think a reason why Afghans love mantou so much is really in the process and occasions it is prepared for. Mantou is typically prepared for parties and special events, and therefore requires many hands in helping stuff each dumping. I always remember feeling like an adult when I was about fourteen and my mom and aunt had me help them stuff mantou for a party. Mantou can easily be associated by many Afghans with an afternoon spent with family in the kitchen as everyone pitches in to help make a favorite dish. That by itself brings back such warm feelings around this time-consuming dish.

Ingredients for Filling:

-2 lbs Ground Beef

-3 medium onions finely minced

-1 Package of square wonton wrappers

-Oil for coating the steamer and Mantou

-Salt, Pepper, and Garlic for seasoning

1- ) Place the ground beef in a skillet and cook for about half an hour. It’s important to cook the ground beef for the mixture; some people fail to cook the ground beef which results in the filling turning into bland meatballs inside the dumplings. Make sure to stir and break up the ground beef so it’s not chunky but finely grounded. Once cooked remove ground beef from heat.

2- ) Place the ground beef in a sift or drainer in order to get rid of the oil in the ground beef. Just press down the ground beef gently so the excess oil is removed.

3- ) Take three medium onions and finely mince by hand or preferably in a food processor.

2- ) Mix the ground beef and finely minced onion. Onion is key in this dish because while you really can’t taste the onion, it gives flavor to the ground beef and also makes the dumplings less heavy. When eating the mantou you don’t really taste or notice the onions, but it’s important to have a ratio of about 60-40 with forty percent of the mixture being onions. Mix this with the ground black pepper, salt, and ½ teaspoon of minced garlic just to flavor the mixture.

3- ) Open your package of mantou dough (wonton wrappers). Dab your finger in a bowl of water and dab water on the edges of the square. Place about a teaspoon of mixture inside of the dough. Now fold over a corner of the dough and press down the edges so you create a wide triangle with the dough.

4- ) Next take the two edges of the dough and bring together in the back, you can use a little water and press the ends together.

5- ) Once all of the mantou have been filled, take out your steamer. Fill the bottom pot half way full with water and bring to a boil. Once at a boil, grease the pots that the mantou will be cooked in with oil.

6- ) Once water is boiling, take a bowl of oil. Place the mantou one by one into the pot in the steamer. Then brush each mantou with oil so they are all coated with oil. Dampen two paper towels with water and place on top of the mantou.

Mantou in steamer while cooking

7- ) Place the lid onto the steamer and let the mantou steam for about forty five minutes. If you check on the mantou and it looks like the mantou are soggy, don’t get nervous this just happens in the cooking process. Just cover the steamer and let the mantou cooked until the dumplings feel firm like pasta.

(Since the mantou is prepared in a “steaming” method, make sure during the cooking time steam is coming out of the steamer. This sounds silly but it’s a reminder to check that your heat is on medium and high enough so that the mantou steams properly. )

Sauce:

-Mantou is topped with a vegetable Kurma of usually lentils or kidney beans. I like both, but prefer kidney beans. The cooking method to both is very similar. For mantou with both Kurmas your goal is to have a nice tomato sauce, and should not be cooked too dry where there is not enough sauce.

Dal-Nakhod (Yellow Split Peas)

1- ) Take one cup of Dal Nakhod and soak in water for about fifteen minutes.

2- ) Finely mince one large onion. Place in skillet with oil and ½ clove of minced garlic. Fry onions until a light brown color.

3- ) Add drained Dal-Nakhod (Yellow Split Peas) and 1 cup of boiled water to the onions. Stir and let it come to boil.

4- ) Once the Dal-Nakhod is at a boil, there may be foam at the top of the water. Gently spoon out the foam from the water.

5- ) Once you have removed the foam, add one can tomato paste, one teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon or less of black pepper, and a small pinch of finely ground cardamom. Add about two more cups of boiled water and let this all simmer on medium for about twenty minutes with lid on.

Check Dal-Nakhod while cooking, if it’s too dry and there is not enough water add ½ cup of boiled water, but don’t put too much water you just need it to cook the yellow split peas.

6- ) After about twenty minutes your Dal-Nakhod should be cooked and soft. By that time the water should be absorbed by the Dal-Nakhod and there should be oil at top with a nice tomato sauce. If the Dal-Nakhod appears too watery, put the temperature at low and let it cook with lid off until the oil comes to the top.

Kidney Beans:

The Lubya (Kidney Beans) should have a nice Kurma (sauce) and not be too dry. If you feel there is not enough Kurma (sauce) you can add a little bit of boiled water to the Kurma and let it simmer.

1- ) Finely mince one large onion. Place in skillet with a little oil and 1/2 clove of minced garlic. Let the onion brown to a light brown color.

2- ) Once onions have browned, add half can tomato paste and one can of tomato sauce. Bring this to a simmer for about 10 minutes so your sauce begins to develop.  Add kidney beans drained with about 1/3 cup of boiled water. Season with salt and pepper. Let this simmer for about half an hour so your sauce thickens.

Chakkah:

-Have about two cups of Chakkah ready.

Plating:

Once Mantou is prepared, take out a big serving platter. Spread a layer of chakkah on the serving platter. Then place the mantou on top of the chakkah. Top the mantou with spoonfuls of Chakkah all over, but make sure you don’t overdo it with the chakkah. Sprinkle dried mint on top of the chakkah. And for the final step take large spoonfuls of the Lubya or Dal-Nakhod and pour on top of the mantou. You should be able to see the mantou dumplings underneath the sauces. The dish is ready to serve warm.  (I will share a guilty-pleasure, mantou tastes amazing as a leftover as well, I have been guilty of eating mantou cold the next day straight of the fridge, it’s like a messy taste of heaven)

Mantou with Lubya Sauce

Mantou with Dal-Nakhod Sauce

Chakkah: Thick and Creamy Afghan Yogurt sauce

Tags

Afghan Food, AfghanCuisine, Afghanistan, Dip, Garlic, Sauce, strained yogurt, Yogurt

Chakkah is a very basic sauce to prepare but is used so frequently in Afghan food that I thought it should be my first post or “recipe”. Chakkah is basically a thick and creamy strained yogurt. It is used in countless recipes as either a dip or a sauce for many types of dishes. Chakkah is also stirred into some soups and Kurma dishes such as Chicken Lawand to create a creamy sauce.

Making Chakkah is very simple. All it involves is straining plain yogurt in cheesecloth. Then fresh minced garlic and salt is added just so the Chakkah has a nice garlicky flavor. If the Chakkah is being used as a dip ground mint can also be stirred in. But if the Chakkah is being used as a topping for a dish then it is usually left plain.

The consistency of Chakkah is important; I think it’s a step some Afghans overlook. Chakkah being used as a topping for fried vegetable dishes should be thicker, but when going over pasta dishes it should be slightly thinner in consistency.

Here are the basic steps that can be modified depending on what is needed.

6 cups plain yogurt

½ clove of fresh garlic finely minced

1 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoon mint (or more if you want)

1-) Place the yogurt in a cheesecloth and let strain for about an hour. The yogurt should be thick and creamy for the chakkah.

2-) Place thick yogurt in bowl mix with garlic, salt and mint. Make sure it has a nice delicious garlic flavor.

 

A really easy short cut is if you go to an Afghan of Middle-Eastern store and buy ready-made strained yogurt. Sometimes these yogurts are bit too strained and thick, so you can just mix a tiny bit of water to get it the right consistency.