Jordanian cooking centred on the Bedouin tradition: lamb, rice, yogurt, bread. Mansaf, the national dish, slow-cooks lamb in fermented dried-yogurt (jameed) sauce over rice and shrak flatbread, eaten communally with the right hand. Maglouba (upside-down rice and meat), galayet bandora (tomato stew), kibbeh and meze plates fill the table; knafeh and atayef close the meal.
Whole peeled garlic cloves and chillies fry in a generous pour of olive oil until aromatic. Roughly chopped ripe tomatoes go in; they collapse, release their water, then thicken into a rough stew. Salt at the end; sometimes a sprinkle of dried mint. Eaten warm with khubz (Arabic flatbread) for scooping.
Mixed lamb-and-beef mince mixes with grated onion, parsley, allspice, cinnamon and salt. Potato slices and tomato slices line a wide baking dish. The mince mix shapes into thick patties (or flat layer) and goes on top. More tomato and pepper slices over. A tomato sauce (tomato puree, pomegranate molasses, garlic, stock) pours over. Baked for 40 minutes at 200°C.
Dried jameed balls soak overnight then break down in water to form the cooking liquid. Lamb shanks or shoulder simmer in spiced water until tender. The lamb stock combines with the jameed liquid; both reduce together with cardamom, cinnamon and bay. Rice cooks separately; flatbread layers under everything; lamb perches on top; the jameed sauce ladles over generously. Almonds and pine nuts toast as topping.
Lamb mince is fried with onion, garlic, baharat, cinnamon, allspice and pine nuts. Basmati rice is cooked pilaf-style in a meat-spiced stock until almost done. Lamb and rice are folded together with peas, almonds and parsley. The filling is spooned into a phyllo-lined dome mould (or wide cake tin), the tops are folded over to seal, brushed with ghee, baked for 30 minutes until deep gold. Inverted onto a platter; sliced at the table.
Yogurt-based marinade with lemon, garlic, tomato puree, allspice, paprika and olive oil. Chicken thighs cube small (3 cm), marinate at least 6 hours, ideally overnight. Threaded onto skewers; grilled hot 8-10 minutes total. Served with garlic toum, hot bread and grilled tomatoes.
