BAMIAH

Bamiah is a stew made of lamb or beef and okra. It is an Egyptian favourite often served in Middle Eastern restaurant. Can be taken with bread, paratha or rice with addition of all the spices make this dish really yummy.



BAMIAH RECIPE :

600g topside beef, cut into large cubes
3 Tbsp coriander seeds
2 tsp cumin (jintan putih) seeds
1 tsp fennel (jintan manis) seeds
12 dried chillies
1 tsp white peppercorns
4-5 cloves garlic
1 walnut sized piece of turmeric
1 walnut sized piece of ginger
salt to taste
5 Tbsp oil or 3 tbsp ghee
2 cups water
1 Tbsp tomato paste
1 medium onion, thinly sliced
1 stick cinnamon 2 in
3 cardamoms
3 cloves
4 Tbsp ghee
300g small ladies fingers, cut off top and bottom and slash halfway up from tail end up
300g small tomatoes, cut off top
green peas for garnishing

METHOD :

Dry fry then grind coriander, cumin, fennel, dried chillies and peppercorns finely.
Blend garlic, turmeric & ginger into fine paste & combine with meat, ground ingredients. Add salt.
Heat oil, add onions, cinnamon, cardamoms & cloves. When onions are a little brown, add meat and fry until fragrant, then add water combined with tomato paste. Cover and simmer till meat is tender, stirring occasionally.
Heat ghee, add ladies fingers and fry for about 8 minutes. When meat is tender and gravy is thick enough add ladies fingers together with tomatoes.
Garnish with green peas.

PHOTO &  RECIPE adapted from THE MPH COOKBOOK by Zarinah Anwar.