Shishbarak and Mujaddara

Ingredients

• Shishbarak:
• 2 cups flour
• A pinch of salt
• About 1 cup lukewarm water, or as needed for the dough
• 300 g minced meat
• 2 onions
• A pinch of seven-spice
• A pinch of black pepper
• Salt
• 2 kg yogurt
• 2 cups water
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch
• 1 head garlic
• A bunch of fresh coriander
• Mujaddara:
• 1 cup lentils
• 1 cup rice
• 2 large onions
• Vegetable oil or ghee

Method

1. We start by preparing the dough... mix the flour with the salt, then add the lukewarm water gradually and knead until a dough forms. Cover it and set it aside to rest.
2. Finely chop the onions for the shishbarak filling and sauté them with a little vegetable oil until softened, then add the minced meat with the spices and salt and stir until the filling is cooked.
3. Let the filling cool, then start shaping the shishbarak... Roll out the dough thinly and cut it into small circles. Fill each circle and seal it in the usual way. Sprinkle a little flour on a tray and arrange the shishbarak pieces on it while waiting for the yogurt to come to a boil.
4. Whisk the yogurt with the water and cornstarch (each 1 kg of yogurt needs 1 cup of water and 1 tablespoon of cornstarch)... You can blend them together to make sure there are no lumps in the yogurt mixture.
5. Place the yogurt mixture in a pot over the heat, stirring. Once it boils, reduce the heat a little and add the stuffed dough pieces. Leave everything to boil for 10 minutes or until the dough is cooked.
   Timers: 10 min
6. Finally, crush the garlic with a little salt and mix it with the finely chopped coriander. Spread this mixture over the shishbarak and let it simmer for only 5 minutes over low heat, then turn off the heat.
   Timers: 5 min
7. Prepare the mujaddara... Boil the lentils (with just enough water to cover them and a little more), but do not overcook them so they do not fall apart and the skins separate on their own. Boil them for about seven minutes over medium heat, then add the rice, reduce the heat, and cover the pot until done.
8. Slice the onions and sauté them in ghee or oil until browned. When serving the mujaddara, garnish it with the onions.
9. Serve the shishbarak with lentil-and-rice mujaddara.
10. Also from the wonderful Lebanese kitchen, here is Faraka