When we
first moved to our neighborhood years ago, there was a hole-in-the-wall eatery
called Amir’s Falafel, run by a Lebanese family. Over the years it expanded
into a little restaurant, but it was still mostly a take-out place. The falafel
was terrific, and you could get a platter of falafel, hummus, and baba
ghanhoush, with a small salad and of course pita.
One of my
favorite dishes was moujadarah: lentils on rice, topped with caramelized
onions. The onions were the best part. Then new ownership came in, the
moujadarah was gone, and even the fattoush salad acquired sour pickles, an
unwelcome taste among the brightness of fresh tomato, cucumber, red onion,
lettuce, and toasted pita chips.
Well, I
adapted it quite a bit. What I really wanted to do was reproduce Amir’s dish,
and Annia’s was somewhat different. First of all, Amir’s had rice, Annia’s had
bulghur. Secondly, Amir’s onions were sliced, and Annia’s were finely diced.
Finally, one of Annia’s instructions seemed dangerous to me: pour two cups of
cold water on onions that have been cooking in one cup of oil? Just thinking
about the splatters scares me.
So I
improvised. Cooked a cup of lentils in two and a half cups of water, with Annia’s
spices (ground coriander, cumin, white pepper, cinnamon, ground cloves instead
of allspice, cayenne instead of Aleppo pepper). Cooked a cup of rice. Sliced up
two good-sized onions thin, heated maybe half a cup of olive oil and canola
oil, and when it was hot, added the onions. Stirred frequently to keep some
slices from getting too brown while others were still softening. Annia’s signal
for when the onion is done was when they smell “bacony, almost burnt,” so I
waited for that moment – and did not add any cold water. Mixed everything
together, and had my Lebanese dinner. (I know, I should have taken a picture, but I haven't been Instragramed yet.)
P.S. It's the first day of spring and it snowed... what a bummer.
P.S. It's the first day of spring and it snowed... what a bummer.
I love your story of connections and the work you went to to recreate something special. Initiative and a bit of instinct were heavy players too.
ReplyDeleteYum! You're descriptions are beautiful- makes me almost taste what you made. Nice job.
ReplyDeleteYour descriptions are so vivid....I could taste your words.
ReplyDeleteThis dish sounds so delicious! Loved your reflection about adding water to the onions and oil: "Just thinking about the splatters scares me."
ReplyDelete