An Eid-ul-Fitr feast

Tomorrow, Muslims celebrate the religious festival of Eid-ul-Fitr. After attending Eid prayers, families and friends get together to share a delicious feast.

Traditionally sawine is the sweet which is served; this is enjoyed in some households as early as breakfast and after Eid prayers at some mosques.

Growing up, I would help our mom cook dhalpuri (this would be served at lunch) before heading out to early-morning Eid prayers. She usually kneaded the dough by hand, and ground the dhal in a manual grinder which was attached to the kitchen counter. She filled the loyas, then she rolled the roti and I cooked them.

I remember her feathery-light dhalpuri which when placed on the smoking hot tawah, and anointed with ghee, always ballooned. She would always roll the loya very thin and ensure I pressed the ends on the hot tawah with the
dabla to make sure they cooked properly. "Remove it quickly," she would say, "we don’t want it to be tough." It never was.

Eid lunch is typically a wonderful assortment of Eastern-inspired dishes with desserts bringing up the rear, with irresistible Indian sweets.

Food in all its universal glory knows no boundaries, so tomorrow we can all share in the beauty of this religious festival through the preparation and enjoyment of some of these appetising dishes.

Eid Mubarak!

Butter lamb

2 lbs boneless lamb, cut into 1-inch cubes

Marinade:

⅔ cup plain yoghurt

4 cloves garlic, minced

2-inch piece of ginger grated

2 tbs fresh lime juice

1 tsp garam masala

1 tsp chilli powder

1 tsp coriander

½ tsp cumin

½ tsp turmeric

1 tsp salt

Combine all the ingredients for the marinade, rub onto lamb and refrigerate overnight.

For the curry

1 tsp cumin seeds

1 tsp coriander seeds

¼ tsp fenugreek

3-inch stick of cinnamon

6 pieces cloves

Heat a frying pan add dried spices and cook dry until fragrant, remove and grind in a spice mill, set aside.

2 ozs butter

1-inch piece of ginger grated

2 cloves garlic, minced

½ cup pureed tomatoes (⅓ cup tomato paste)

½ cup cream

3 ozs ground almonds

Salt and pepper

Now heat the ½ of the butter in a heavy sauté pan, add lamb pieces in batches to brown, do not overcrowd pot, remove to a bowl when all pieces are brown.

Add the rest of the butter, sauté the ginger, and garlic, cook until fragrant, now add the ground spice mixture, fry for a few minutes, add lamb back to pot and stir and cook for a few minutes.

Add tomato puree and cook stirring well for a few minutes more.

Cover and cook stirring occasionally until tender, about 1 hour.

Stir in cream and almonds, cook for a few minutes more.

Serve warm with roti of steamed basmati rice.

Accompanied by vegetables or salad.

Dhalpuri

4 cups all-purpose flour

3 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

1 tsp brown sugar

½ tsp saffron/turmeric powder

½ lb yellow split peas

2 cloves garlic

3 tsp ground roasted geera/cumin

½ cup melted butter or ghee

Approx 2 cups water for kneading dough

Place split peas into a pot cover with water, add saffron and garlic and bring to a boil, lower heat and boil for about 15 to 20 minutes until peas are tender and cooked but not mushy.

Drain in a colander and cool.

Grind peas to a fine consistency using a food processor or food mill.

Season peas with salt and geera.

Combine flour with baking powder, salt, and sugar add enough cool water to make a soft pliable dough.

Cover and let rest for 30 minutes.

Divide dough into 8 pieces, form into smooth balls and cover.

Pat each piece of dough into a 3-inch circle, cupping the dough in your hands, fill the cavity with the dhal, about 1½ tablespoons.

Bring the sides of the dough together at the top and pinch together so that the filled dough becomes a smooth ball. Repeat.

Heat a baking stone.

Roll the roti loyas or filled roti dough into an 8-inch circle about ⅛-¼ inch thick.

Place on heated baking stone.

Cook until bubbles appear,

Flip roti and brush with melted butter, turn again and brush with butter, roti should balloon, at this point it is cooked, remove and repeat.

Makes 8 roti.

Vegetable biryani

2 cups basmati rice, washed and soaked in water for 20 minutes, drained

1 tsp saffron threads, toasted and steeped in one cup warm water

3 onions, peeled

4 cloves garlic

1-inch piece ginger, chopped

2 tbs blanched and slivered almonds

3 tbs water

2 tbs cashew nuts

3 tbs raisins

4 to 6 tbs coconut oil

1½ lbs mixed veg, carrots, cauliflower, potato etc.

1 cup yoghurt

6 cloves

½ tsp black peppercorns

1 tsp cardamom seeds

1 tsp cumin seeds

1 tsp coriander seeds

2-inch cinnamon stick

⅙ nutmeg

Pinch cayenne

Thinly slice 2 onions, set aside.

Place one onion into a food pro or blender; add garlic, ginger and 2 tbs almonds.

And water, process to a paste.

Meanwhile heat some oil in a frying pan, fry cashews until golden, remove then fry raisins until they begin to pop, remove for garnish.

Now add some more oil and fry onion slices until dark brown and crisp, this will take a while.

Now, heat 2 tbs oil in a large sauté pan, or shallow pan, add garlic and ginger paste, stir and fry until medium brown in colour.

Add vegetables to pan and stir and combine, add yoghurt and some salt stir and fry.

Place cloves, peppercorns, cardamom seeds, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cayenne into a spice mill, process to a fine powder.

Now add all this to the vegetables, add the rice and stir to coat well with spices.

Add 1 cup water with saffron threads and 1¼ cup additional water.

Simmer for 15 minutes.

Check and fluff, stir in onions, and decorate with raisins and cashews.

Serves 8

Sawine

2 tbs unsalted butter

4 ozs vermicelli sawine

2 cups water

1 cinnamon stick

1½ cups evaporated milk

½ cup condensed milk

1 cup regular milk

½ cup sugar

1 tsp cinnamon

½ tsp crushed cardamom pods

raisins and toasted almonds to garnish

Melt butter in a large frying pan, break the vermicelli and add to pan, turn frequently until the vermicelli is quite brown, remove.

Bring water to a boil add sugar and cinnamon stick, add vermicelli and cook until tender about 5 to 7 minutes.

Meanwhile in a heavy saucepan place all the milk, add the spices and bring to a boil.

Combine sawine with milk and serve garnished with almonds and raisins.

Serves 6 to 8

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