Freekeh pilaf
Instructions:
- We normally enjoy grains once they have matured and dried, but there is a widespread culinary tradition of consuming green, semi-mature grains, which taste grassier and are more nutritious than the dried version. Throughout the Middle East it is common to process young and green durum wheat into freekeh. This is done by literally burning the wheat head in order to scorch the chaff and thus to assist removing the grain. The result is lightly charred green grains with a wonderful smoky aroma, which are often used like rice or bulgur wheat. Freekeh isn’t easy to find but you should come across it in Middle Eastern grocery shops. Or you can use bulgur as a substitute, in which case reduce the cooking time by 10 minutes and leave to stand as with the freekeh.The key to this dish is good stock with a lot of flavor. As Arabs normally cook freekeh in chicken or mutton stock, I suggest reducing a good vegetable stock by half to intensify it.
- 2 medium onions, thinly sliced
- 2 tbsp butter
- 1 tbsp olive oil, plus extra to finish
- 1 cup freekeh (or bulgur wheat)
- 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp ground allspice
- 11/4 cups good-quality reduced vegetable stock
- salt and black pepper
- 1/2 cup Greek yogurt
- 11/2 tsp lemon juice
- 1/2 garlic clove, crushed
- 1/8 cup finely chopped parsley, plus extra to garnish
- 1/8 cup finely chopped mint
- 2/3 cup finely chopped cilantro
- 2 tbsp pine nuts, toasted and roughly broken
- Place the onions, butter and olive oil in a large heavy pot and sauté on a medium heat, stirring occasionally, for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the onion is soft and brown.
- Meanwhile, soak the freekeh in cold water for 5 minutes. Drain in a sieve and rinse well under cold running water. Drain well.
- Add the freekeh and spices to the onions, followed by the stock and some salt and pepper. Stir well. Bring to the boil, then cover, reduce the heat to a bare minimum and leave to simmer for 15 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and leave it covered for 5 minutes. Finally, remove the lid and leave the pilaf to cool down a little, about another 5 minutes.
- While you wait, mix the yogurt with the lemon juice, garlic and some salt.
- Stir the herbs into the warm (not hot) pilaf. Taste and adjust the seasoning. Spoon onto serving dishes and top each portion with a generous dollop of yogurt. Sprinkle with pine nuts and parsley and finish with a trickle of olive oil.