Pacha/Stuffed Tripe

Serves about 8

Prep time about 3 hours
Cooking time about 3 hours

You will need 2 large cooking pots (10 quarts or bigger) and a large needle and thread

Ingredients
5 pounds beef or lamb tripe*
4 cups basmati rice rinsed
3 lbs chuck roast cut in small cubes
4 garlic cloves minced
Salt
ground black pepper
2 teaspoons baharat (middle eastern spice blend)
2 cups dried chick peas or 4 15 oz cans of chick peas
3 -5 pounds lamb shank or other meat with bones of your choice
3 pounds of Lamb tongue (optional)
lamb feet (optional)
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
4 lemons or limes sliced

Optional Ingredients
Tomato paste and/or chopped tomatoes for rice mixture
Onions quartered (to put in the meat soup)

*If you end up buying more pacha than you need, clean and freeze for another use.

If you are using dried chick peas, soak the chickpeas in water overnight.

Meat Soup Preparation
The meat soup is done in a separate pot than the pacha. First rub some flour on the lamb shank or other meat with bones, tongue, or feet and then rinse well. Add them all to a large pot of boiling water. Boil on high for about 20 minutes then discard water. Rinse all of the meat/bones with cold water. Add the meat/bones back to the pot and add enough water so that it is a couple inches over the meat/bones. Add 1 tablespoon salt, 1 teaspoon pepper, onions (optional), and bring to a boil. Cover and boil on medium/low heat for about 2 – 3 hours or until your meat is tender. The tongue usually takes about 2 – 3 hours to become tender. If you are adding dried chick peas, add them the last hour of boiling. If you are using canned chick peas, add them the last 15 minutes of boiling. When the broth is done, remove the tongue from the pot and allow to cool enough to handle. Peel the tongue and add both back to broth. Add more salt and pepper if necessary.

Tripe Preparation
Rinse the tripe well. Cut the tripe into pieces that are symmetrical when folded. Keep in mind the pouches will be the size of your piece folded in half. Discard extra small pieces. Gently rub them all over with flour and water and rinse. Soak with a little water and lemon/lime slices for at least an hour and then rinse. Thread your needle and tie a knot at the end of the thread. Fold your tripe piece in half and sew around most of it except about 2 inches. Tie a knot and cut the thread. Repeat this for the rest of your pieces.

Rice Mix Preparation
Gently mix the rice, meat cubes, garlic, 5 teaspoons salt, 2 teaspoons of ground black pepper (more if you like spicy), and 2 teaspoons baharat by hand . If you are using tomato paste or chopped tomatoes, also add those and mix.

Pacha Stuffing and Cooking Directions
Stuff the pouches about half full and sew the part you left open closed. Repeat for all of your pouches. Add the pouches to a pot of boiling water and boil for about 10-15 minutes. Remove the pacha and dump the water out. Add the pacha back to the pot with enough water to cover a couple inches over, and one tablespoon salt. Cover and bring to a boil over medium heat for to 2-3 hours or until tender (the lamb tripe cooks faster than the beef). Serve the pacha with the meat soup.