Recipes: THYREAD AL LAHAM (Bread Soaked in Meat Curry)

A favourite daily dish during the Holy month of Ramadan (fasting month). It consists of meat, vegetable thin Salonah and Khoubiz Al Tanoor or Al Riqaq bread.

Thyread with Khoubiz Al Tanoor

1. Prepare meat and vegetable salonah adding more boiling water to obtain a thin salonah.
2. Strain the salonah sauce, set the meat and vegetable aside with some sauce, keep warm.
3. Cut Tanoor bread into small pieces (3-5cm).
4. Drop enough bread into the boiling sauce and mix until most of the sauce has been absorbed.
5. Stir and sprinkle with 1 teaspoon fresh roasted ground coriander, cumin and a dash of chili powder or mixed Gulf spice.
6. Cover and simmer for 10-15 min.
7. Serve in a large dish, pour the retained sauce on top. Cover with meat, vegetables and dried limes.

Thyread with Khoubiz Riqaq:

1. Break the Riqaq bread into small pieces.
2. Fill the serving dish with the bread.
3. Add the boiling sauce while mixing with a spoon and fork or two spoons as if tossing a salad until the bread is completely soaked and some excess sauce is covering the bread.
4. Do not stir. The Riqaq bread will soon absorb the excess sauce.
5. Arrange the meat, vegetables and limes on top, then serve.

Salonat Al Laham Ma Al Khothrah (Meat and Vegetable Curry)

Almost all types of local vegetables can be used. This dish is also called Maraq Alkhothrah

¾ kg lamb with bones, cut into 4-5 pieces
4 whole black pepper corns
2 cloves
2 whole cardamoms, partially opened
a pinch of turmeric and mixed Gulf spices
1 sliced garlic clove
1 tablespoon chopped onion
¼ cup vegetable oil
1 cup chopped onion
1 large garlic clove, chopped or crushed with
a pinch of salt and
1 teaspoon fresh ginger, chopped or
crushed with a pinch of salt
1 green chili or green pepper
1 tablespoon mixed Gulf spices
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 large eggplant
1 large potato, peeled and sectioned
½ squash or ¼ pumpkin or cauliflower
1/3 cup cut green beans or okra
1 small bunch of chopped fresh coriander
3-4 tablespoons tomato paste
2 dried limes, pricked
1 teaspoon of freshly roasted and ground coriander and cumin

1. Trim the meat of any excess fat. Place in a pot. Cover with water. Bring to a boil, skimming any brown froth, as it appears.
2. Add the ingredients listed for boiling the meat, cover and cook over low heat or in a pressure cooker until the meat is tender but not overcooked.
3. Meanwhile, crush the garlic to a pulp with salt, lemon juice, mixed spice, ginger and chili. Cut the vegetables into medium size pieces not more than 4cm3.
4. In a large size pot, heat the oil and add the chopped onions and fry. Add the spices, paste and stir.
5. Add the strained meat and vegetables, stir or cover the pot and shake up and down to mix ingredients without crushing the vegetables, cover and cook for a few min.
6. Meanwhile, boil the stock and stir in the tomato paste.
7. Strain the stock into the meat and vegetable mixture. Add the dried limes, cook uncovered over medium heat for 15 min. or until the potato is cooked.
8. Add salt and lemon juice according to taste. Sprinkle with one teaspoon of freshly roasted and ground coriander and cumin powder. Cover and simmer over low heat for 10 – 15 min.
9. Serve with rice or bread.

Variations:
Before boiling the meat, stir in 3-4 tablespoons of hot oil with 2 tablespoons chopped onion, 1 chopped garlic clove, 1 teaspoon of the mixed spices and 1 teaspoon of the garlic spice paste prepared in step-3. Fry until the meat is cooked only from the outside. Add water to cover it by 2cm. Bring to a boil, remove the brown froth as it forms. Add the whole spices and dried limes, cover and simmer. Once the meat is just cooked, strain and stir with the fried vegetables in step-5 of the above recipe.

Salonat Al Khothrah
Omit meat and start the recipe from step-4. In step-7, use boiled stock or water.