Libya: Tajin Of Lamb With Carrots And Green Olives, Twice Cooked Couscous, & Sharmoola Salad

 

Libya is located in Northern Africa, bordering Egypt, Tunisia & the Mediterranean Sea. The Libyans enjoy a passion for food & have a saying “one must eat well”. Libyan cuisine culture

is a mixture of Arabic and Mediterranean, with a strong Italian influence left over from the days when Libya was an Italian colony. This meal had exceptional appeal & tasted sensational &I encourage you to try it.

Our Libyan menu included 

TAJIN OF LAMB WITH CARROTS AND GREEN OLIVES,

TWICE COOKED COUSCOUS, 

& 
SHARMOOLA SALAD 

Which we served with 

Oranges, Dates, Carob, Harissa, Warm Pita Bread & Mint Tea

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TAJIN OF LAMB WITH CARROTS AND GREEN OLIVES & TWICE COOKED COUSCOUS

TAJIN INGREDIENTS:

·      2 kg  lean leg or shoulder of lamb 

·      1 ltr beef stock

·      1 kg carrots sliced diagonally

·      1 medium onion, chopped

·      1 tsp freshly grated ginger

·      1 cinnamon stick (cracked into several pieces to release the flavour)

·      2 tsp caraway seeds

·      salt and pepper to taste

·      Handful good quality pitted green olives

·      ¼  tsp Harissa

·      2 extra tbs Harissa to serve on the table

·      Olive oil

·      juice of 1 lemon

·      1 cup chopped parsley

COUSCOUS INGREDIENTS:

·      2 cups Couscous

·      2 cups water (boiled)

·      2 tbs olive oil

·      salt & pepper

Note: The traditional method of making a Libyan Tajin. uses an ovenproof  clay casserole dish that goes from stove top to oven to table. I used an enamelled Dutch Oven pot to  make this one-pot meal.

METHOD:

1.   De-bone the lamb, reserve the bone aside to be used later in the dish &  dice the meat into bite size pieces (producing approximately 1.2 kg meat)

2.   Place the onion, ginger, cinnamon, caraway seeds, salt & pepper in an ovenproof pan with olive oil, and stir on medium heat.

3.   Add the diced lamb

4.   Stirring occasionally until it is evenly browned

5.   Add stock & bone & bring up to a rolling simmer

6.   Cook on a medium heat until the meat is just done, approximately 1 hour (at this point the stock should be reduced to about half)

7.   Whilst the meat is cooking begin preparing the couscous.

8.   Place raw couscous in a pot, add salt, pepper &  olive oil then mix thoroughly

9.   Add boiling water to the pot

10.        Cover the pot with a lid and let stand for 15 minutes; the water would  

           be absorbed and the grains half-cooked.

11.        The couscous is now half cooked

12.         For the second stage of cooking you will cook the couscous over the Tajin

13.         You can use one of the double pots that have a fitting sieve on top but we didn’t have one so we improvised by wrapping the couscous in a foil parcel which we pierced in the bottom to allow the steaming aroma of the Tajin to enter).

14.         To do this: lay out a large sheet of aluminium foil ( if you need to you can join two sheets of foil together), & top the foil with baking paper. Pierce this all over with a thick kitchen fork.

15.         Now pour your half cooked couscous into the middle & and fold the foil up sealing all edges by folding it over in a seam to make a package.

16.        When the meat is cooked add the carrots slices to the pot

17.        Now place your couscous parcel into the Tajin pot on top of the meat, cover tightly with your ovenproof pot lid, and place in the oven for about 40 minutes at  200 °C (this way the meat, sauce and couscous cook together in the same double-tiered pot. The couscous will continue cooking by the steam arising from the simmering sauce; additionally, the couscous grains would also take the flavour of the sauce).

18.        After the 40 mins cooking time  remove the Couscous parcel & keep wrapped so couscous remains hot.

19.         Mix the ¼  teaspoonful of harissa  into the meat sauce, scatter olives on top and place the Tajin back in the oven for about 5 minutes without a cover. 

20.         When some of the sauce has evaporated and the lamb has browned slightly, remove from the oven. Don't let it dry out!

21.         Add the fresh lemon juice over the Tajin and drizzle generously with olive oil, then garnish with chopped parsley. 

22.         Serve a small extra dish of Harissa on the table for those who like to add extra spice to their meal

Recipe adapted from originals sourced from:

http://libyanfood.blogspot.com.au/2011/01/libyan-lamb-casserole-with-carrot-and.html

http://www.transitionsabroad.com/listings/travel/travel_to_eat/cooking_and_eating_the_perfect_couscous.shtml

HARISSA

is a red chilli paste which is commonly found in North African cuisine. In Libya it is often used as a condiment in meat dishes, stews, sauces and also in couscous. We used it in the Tajin & also had a small dish of Harissa on the table for those who enjoy a bit of ‘kick’ in their food.

INGREDIENTS:--

·      12 Dry Red chillies

·      1 tea sp Cumin seeds 

·      6 cloves Garlic 

·      1 tab sp  Coriander seeds (dry roasted)

·      1/4 tea sp caraway seeds (dry roasted)

·      1/2 tsp Salt

·      Olive oil to cover the paste

·      1 tab sp of tomato paste

METHOD:

1      Soak the dry red chillies in warm water for 15 minutes or until chillies became soft 

2      Save the soaking water then chop/grind chillis into a paste

3      In a pan add  garlic cloves, spices and tomato paste

4       cook in a low flame

5      Add salt and blend in to a smooth paste.

6      Blend chilli paste with other spices and little water (which we soaked the dry chillies)

7      Store Harissa in a clean glass jar top with a thin layer of olive oil.

8      This will stay for a month in fridge.

Recipe adapted from an original sourced from:

http://fatmamuslima.weebly.com/libyan-harissa.html

SHARMOOLA SALAD

INGREDIENTS:

·      2 Tablespoons Olive Oil

·      1/4 cup water

·      1 1/4 teaspoons Salt

·      ½  small onion

·      1 cucumber

·      3 tomatoes

·      1 Jalapeño chilli

METHOD:

1     dice  cucumber, tomato & onion into small pieces

2     slice the Jalapeno in larger pieces (this allows people to remove them from the salad if they don’t like ‘heat’)

3     mix olive oil, water & salt together & add to the salad 

note: we actually served the Jalapeno in a separate dish on the table 
so guests could add as little or as much as they liked

Recipe adapted from an original found at:

http://thelibyankitchen.blogspot.com.au/search/label/Salads