United Arab Emirates – Beef Al Harees

by Adelina Aida

This dish is a very healthy meal in UAE. It is composed of boiled wheat, legumes, chickpea, and lentils. When this is cooked, then convert into a paste and mix with cooked meat with gravy. This is a very unique dish but has many fans following. It is said to be Ramzan special dish because it has all the nutritional aspects that give you healthy nutrition while you are fasting. It has thick consistency because having many components and a thick mixture of wheat and porridge make it like a thick paste. It can be cooked with chicken meat, beef meat, and mutton meat. Boneless meat is used in this dish because it is like a thick mixture or more like a unanimous paste.

This dish is very popular in the Middle East, they serve different ingredients with this same dish according to the regional favorite condiments. This has originated from many countries like Syria, Oman, Dubai, etc.

This dish is popular in many Asian countries like

• Yemen
• Oman
• Malaysia
• Syria
• Iran
• Kuwait
• India
• Singapore

It has many other elements that are served like Fried onions, green chilies, cilantro, olives, butter, and mint leaves. This dish can be cooked only vegetarian version by adding just legumes, porridge, Onions, garlic. ginger. Simple curry is made of vegetables and then simply boiled porridge, legumes paste is added into the curry and served with the condiments.

This dish has many other names like

• Al harees
• Harees
• Jareesh
• Hareessa
• Haleem
• Arizah
• Boko Boko
• Jareesh, etc.

ETYMOLOGY OF AL HAREES

Harees means SMASHED OR MASHED. It is like a dish, that is a mashed mixture of wheat, rice, meat, and lentils.

According to the Patron Saint of Armenia, this meal is served for charity and poor children. This is the national dish of Armenia. This is said to be the mixed one-pot dish in which wheat, meat, lentils are cooked together. Some vegetables are also added, butter and oil quantity are also high to make it moisture and soft. Rice is also added but in small quantities with different lentils. Then served with green chilies, mint leaves, and Fried onions.

VARIENTS ACCORDING TO DIFFERENT REGIONAL TRADITION

This dish is served and cooked in many countries but with some variations according to the taste of that particular area.

ARAB CUISINE

This dish is very famous in Arab like in Saudia Arabia, Dubai, Abu Dhabi, etc. It is originated from the Levantine cuisine. It is usually cooked in Beef and Mutton but now Chicken can also be added into this dish. It is served on special Islamic festivals like Ramadan, during Iftar, and On eids for dinner and get-togethers.

It is included in many Arab cuisines like :

• Lebanon cuisine
• Yemen cuisine
• Iraqi cuisine
• Levantine cuisine
• Egyptian cuisine
• Emirati cuisine

KASHMIRI CUISINE

In Kashmir, it is prepared during winters. In Kashmir, it is made of mutton meat, rice, and some girda. It took usually a whole day to cook all things and mix them all together in an earthen pot on a Wood fire.

During winter, it is said to be good to consume heat in the body and make the body more immune. It has many nutritional elements that can make the body heat up and increase the metabolism so they can deal with the heavy snow in winters.

They have a special element to be added on that is GIRDA.

Girda is a very special bread of Kashmiris. It is very famous in particular part of Kashmire that is SRINAGAR.

ARMENIAN CUISINE

In Armenia, it is served on Easter day. It is also the national dish of Armenia. Many herbs are also added and they can also skip the meat portion for their religious ritual. It is made by many different regional elements :

• Korkot / dried roasted wheat
• mutton or chicken ( rich in fats )
• Huge amount of butter

ELEMENTS OF THE DISH

MEAT

In this dish, meat is the main element that is added for some nice flavors and good taste. Because of the Halal animals in Islams so we have we opted to add the meat variety into this dish like :

• Beef
• Camel meat
• Lamb meat
• Goat meat
• Chicken

WHEAT

There are many options for Grains to be add on :

• Whole Wheat
• Barley
• Rice
• Oats
• Porridge

LENTILS

Lentils are added in few quantities but have also many types

• Red lentils
• Yellow lentils
• Split peas
• Brown lentils
• Chick peas
• Whole mung beans
• White kidney beans

GARNISHING

• Fried onions
• Green chilies
• Mint leaves
• Coriander leaves
• Chaat masala

SERVED WITH

• Boiled Eggs
• Cashew nuts
• Rice
• Bread
• Butter, etc.

INGREDIENTS

1. Mutton = 1 kilogram
2. Red lentil = 1/4 cup
3. Yelloe lentils = 1/4 cup
4. Brown lentil = 1/4 cup
5. Chick peas = 1/4 cup
6. Rice = 1 cup
7. Whole wheat = 1/2 cup
8. Barley = 1/2 cup
9. Oats = 1/2 cup
10. Onions = 2
11. Tomatoes = 2
12. Garlic cloves = 5 to 6
13. Ginger = 4 tablespoons
14. Oil = 1 cup
15. Butter = 8 tablespoons
16. Yogurt = 1 cup
17. Salt = 1 to 2 tablespoons
18. Red pepper flakes = 1 tablespoons
19. Turmeric powder = 1 teaspoons
20. Mint leaves = 1/2 cup
21. Fried onions = 1/2 cup
22. Lemon juice = 1/2 cup
23. Cashew nuts = 10
24. Coriander leaves = 1/2 cup
25. Green chilies = 4
26. Almonds = 10

COOKING METHOD

1. Take oil and butter in cooking pot and add chopped onions into it, stir it to caramelize them.
2. Then add mutton and garlic ginger with it. Fry all ingredients together on high flame, this will lock the moisture of mutton and make it smell free when cook on high flame.
3. Now Add spices like salt, pepper, turmeric and 4 glass of water. We have to make mutton tender completely.
4. Time to boil all the lentils and wheat, barley, oats.
5. Take water add salt and boil each of the lentils to make it mash.
6. On the side our mutton is cooking, when water dried out the gravy is read to mix with lentils.
7. Take the mutton pieces out and shred them into small pieces.
8. When lentils are boiled completely, mashed them into thick paste and mix them together.
9. Now add mashed lentils, shredded mutton into the gravy and mix them well.
10. Check the consistency, if it is very thin cook it amd make the thick texture harees.
11. Now on top add freid onions, green pepper, mint leaves, cashew muts, almonds, lemon juice and serve it with rice.