1695. Arabic Salad and Meat Rice Bowl

I can hold an entire conversation on how ancient Arab and European peasant food has now made a comeback as the food of the elite. In the olden days, peasants and farmers would eat the most rustic, local, seasonal, and unprocessed food there was. Refined, processed, and bleached was reserved for the aristocrats and royalty. 

Today, refined and ultra-processed comes cheap in the form of fast food; and has effectively become the food of the poor. The rich are eating oat bran bread and flame-grilled steaks with seasonal flambeed vegetables. See the switch that has been made? Anyways, on to this dish, a simple salad with a hearty side of rice which was typical peasant food not too long ago. So delicious, but then again farmers and peasants always know how to have a good time and enjoy good food; it was the aristocrats that filled their empty lives with gossip and anemia.

Ingredients: serves 4

For the rice:

300g minced meat

1 onion, chopped

2 cups rice, soaked

1 tsp allspice

1 tsp 7-spice

2 tsp salt

For the salad:

1 1/2 cups cherry tomatoes

1 large bell pepper

2 cucumbers

1/2 white onion

1 cup parsley

4 cups fresh baby spinach

salt and pepper

1 lemon, juice

2 tsp sumac

1/4 cup olive oil

Method:

Make the rice: saute the mince and chopped onion until browned; add the spices and salt. Drain the soaked rice and stir through the cooked mince. Add just enough boiled water to cover, bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, cover and let steam at lowest heat setting for 20 minutes.

Meanwhile make the salad: chop the tomato, capsicum, cucumber, onion, and parsley in a bowl. Make the dressing by whisking the salt and pepper, lemon juice, sumac, and olive oil.

To serve, put a handful of fresh baby spinach on once side of each person's plate; toss the dressing through the chopped salad and top the spinach with some of that. Spoon the cooked rice on the other side of the plate, and enjoy immediately.

صحة و عافية