We went to a friend’s birthday party in Oxford recently and he sensibly (and generously) catered for the ravening hordes by getting a local restaurant to deliver the food. It came from Al-Shami, a Lebanese restaurant close to the city centre in Jericho and something of an Oxford institution.
Tim had ordered an array of vegetarian mezze and although it was all good, I liked one dish so much I went to Al-Shami the next day to ask how they’d made it, and they very kindly gave me some guidelines. It is zahra maqlia, cauliflower served with a tahini and lemon sauce – you can just see a corner of it in the picture at the top.
My version didn’t come out exactly the same as theirs (any departures from tradition are mine) but the family still ate it enthusiastically two days running as I tinkered with proportions and cooking times. It’s my favourite new way of cooking cauli, a much under-rated vegetable these days.
We also had another dish inspired by Al-Shami, loubieh bzeit, or French beans cooked with olive oil, tomatoes, onions and garlic. I think both are best eaten cold. Served with hot pitta bread they make an excellent summer lunch.
Lebanese-style Cauliflower (Zahra Maqlia)
Ingredients:
1 medium cauliflower
Olive oil
About 6 tbsp tahini paste (I used light tahini, less oil)
The juice of 1 or 2 lemons, to taste
Parsley and ground cumin, to garnish
Method:
Break the cauliflower into medium-sized florets and steam until almost tender. Drain well, heat a tablespoon of olive oil in a deep frying pan and sauté the cauliflower until it’s tinged with golden brown. It should still have a bit of bite. If you cook it until it’s mushy you will end up with a cauliflower mulch. (Next time I make this I think I’ll roast the cauli instead.)
If your tahini paste has separated in the jar, stir it with a fork until it’s amalgamated again. Put the tahini in a bowl and stir in plenty of lemon juice. It may seize and stiffen – if so, just add a little hot water to loosen it. You’re looking for the consistency of double cream.
Pour it over the warm cauliflower and mix gently. Allow to cool, then chop a big handful of parsley and stir it through. Decant into a bowl and sprinkle a little ground cumin over the top.
Lebanese-style Beans and Tomatoes (Loubieh Bzeit)
Lebanese seven-spice mix, baharat, really adds to this recipe. If you can’t source it, there are lots of recipes online for you to make your own.
Ingredients:
500-600g French beans
1 medium onion, peeled and chopped
2 fat cloves of garlic, peeled and finely sliced
Olive oil
1 x 400g tin of tomatoes, chopped, or their equivalent in fresh tomatoes, skinned
A big handful of chopped parsley
2 tspn Lebanese seven-spice mix (or to taste)
For the yoghurt drizzle:
150g Greek yoghurt
1 small clove of garlic, crushed
Plus toasted pine nuts to garnish, optional
Method:
Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a deep frying pan and cook the onions until soft and golden. Add the sliced garlic and seven spice powder and fry for a couple of minutes more. Top and tail the beans and stir threm through, cooking briefly.
Stir in the chopped tomatoes with a small splash of water and cook uncovered for around 20 minutes or until you have a thick sauce and the beans are tender but still green and not soggy. Add a little more water if it starts sticking.
While they’re cooking, stir the crushed garlic into the yoghurt and loosen with water until it has the consistency of double cream.
Spoon the beans and their tomato sauce into a bowl and stir in the chopped parsley. Allow to cool, then just before serving drizzle over the yoghurt mixture and scatter with toasted pine nuts, if using.
My son loves his food and eats absolutely everything with one exception – cauliflower! Wonder if this would convert him.
Worth a try! 🙂
I love Lebanese food so these recipes hit the spot. I’m especially interested to try the cauliflower one, as I’m one of those people who underrates cauliflower.
I love it in whatever form but if it normally leaves you cold you might like this, Margaret. The Goan cauli curry is pretty special too, Mrs Portly Passim.