This recipe is pretty foolproof even for beginners.​ The ingredients are simple but the challenge is mastering the assembly. I've included lots of tips to help. It is time consuming but once you are done you can freeze them and have multiple quick dinners prepared and ready for when you don’t have a lot of time.




Makes about 12 Kubba using the 10 inch diameter top
Each Kubba serves approx 2 people
Prep Time approx 3 -4 hours

​Note: If you end up making less Kubbas and have left over stuffing, you can use it for another recipe like spaghetti, burek, or an omelet. When you first start making them, you may tend to make the paste thick (which will have you end up with extra stuffing) but as you get better you will make them thinner which results in more kubba.

Stuffing Ingredients
3 tablespoons cooking oil
5 medium onions chopped (or 4 cups chopped)
4 pounds lean ground beef or 8 cups (some like to order coarse ground from butcher but it's not necessary)
5 teaspoons salt
2 tablespoons baharat (middle eastern spice blend)
1 tablespoon black pepper (add more if you like spicy)

Paste Ingredients
3 pounds (or 6 cups) lean ground beef (90% lean or more)
4 cups bulgur/gurgur #1 (you can rinse and squeeze water out but it's not necessary)
2 cup cream of wheat (aka farina)
4 teaspoons salt
1 tablespoon baking soda
3 1/2 cups ice cold water

Cooking Stuffing

• ​Heat oil in a pan over medium heat.
• Add onions to pan and saute. When the onions are soft and translucent add meat, salt, baharat, and black pepper. Mix well and then turn burner off. The meat will not be fully cooked. You can taste an onion to see if spices are the way you like and adjust if necessary.
• Place in a colander to cool and to drain any extra liquid. Mash meat mixture by hand to make sure spices were blended well.

Preparing Paste

• Mix dry ingredients (bulgur, cream of wheat, baking soda, salt).
• Add the meat and water.
• Mash by squeezing through fists until it is mixed well.
• If the mixture feels dry, add ice cold water a couple tablespoons at at a time.
• Run through meat grinder or food processor (you can skip this step - I tried both ways)
• Mash again by hands. Add more ice water as necessary (a little at a time) to get into a dough consistency that shapes well. Roll some into a ball and flatten out to see if it is shaping well.
• If you added too much water and it feels sticky, you can sprinkle a little cream of wheat to fix

Assembly

• Leave the paste covered when you are working with it so it doesn’t dry out.
• Have a bowl of ice water ready for dipping your hands in and adding more water to paste if necessary.
• You will need a thick plastic bag that has been cut (I save the bags that Royal rice comes in).
• Wet the surface you are working on a little or add a couple drops of oil on the surface and spread out (so your plastic will stick to it better).
• Lay piece of plastic out.
• Dip hands in ice water. Get about a cup and half of paste.
• Put your paste on top of the plastic and mash down by hands into a thick circle.
• Place other plastic on top.
• Use rolling pin to roll out as thin as possible while still being able to work with it (make sure your plastic on the bottom is not wrinkling).
• Your circle should be about as thick as a nickel.
• If your paste seems to be falling apart or cracking add more ice water a little at at time.
• Remove top plastic
• Use a pot lid or something else that has about a 10” diameter lip and place over the paste and firmly push down and rotate a little. The Farberware 8 quart pot lids work great for this. You can use a smaller lid for this but it will take more time to assemble as you will have more to make.
• Run your fingers across the outside edge of lid all the way around to remove extra paste. Put the extra paste back in the covered bowl.
• Grab the edges of the plastic that your paste is on and set the circle aside (do not remove the from the plastic).
• Repeat the paste cutting process for the other side of the kubba.
• Get about a cup of meat mixture. Press down meat mixture with fingers onto the circle you just made. Make sure to not put any on the ½ inch outer edge
• Grab your other circle by using the plastic edges to hold. Flip it over the bottom piece.
• Leave plastic on and start to gently press the top piece on. Now press the edges down to seal except leave one area un-pressed. Gently push the top of the kubba toward the area you left un-pressed to let out any air. Once you have pushed all the air out, seal the edge that you had left open. Remove the top piece of plastic and use the bottom plastic to press the edges once more and smooth edges. Check the paste (bottom and top) to make sure there are no holes by lifting up with plastic. Patch if necessary with paste.
• I recommend cooking the one you just prepared to see if you want to make any adjustments. You may want to add more spices to meat or that you may find that you made the paste to thick, etc.
• Test run - Boil water in a pan that is wider than the kubba and deep enough to cover it with water. Add a teaspoon of salt. Place kubba in the pan. Allow to boil again and then leave boiling for about 15 minutes. You may need to use a metal spatula on top of kubba to weigh down and allow it to cook evenly. Remove from pan.
• After the test run make adjustments if necessary and assemble the rest.
• ​You can cook right away or freeze.

Freezing

• Lay kubba in a tray that fits in your freezer. Use cut plastic bags in between each kubba so they don’t stick. Freeze in the tray covered with plastic wrap for 24 hours and then put in freezer bags. Leave the plastic on if you put more than one in a bag. You should be able to fit 2 in a gallon freezer bag.

Cooking

• Boiling Method - boil water in a pan that is wider than the kubba and deep enough to cover it with water. Add a teaspoon of salt. Place kubba in pan. Allow to boil again and then leave boiling for about 15 minutes. You may need to use a metal spatula on top of kubba to weigh down and allow it to cook evenly. Remove from pan.
• Pan Fry - If you like a crispy outer shell, after boiling (instructions above) brush both sides of the kubba with oil and pan fry for about 5 minutes each side or until it gets a little brown and crispy.
• Oven Method - Another alternative is to brush both sides with oil and wrap in aluminum foil. Bake from frozen at 400 for 40 minutes.

Serve with some Amba (mango pickles). I like to chop some onions and tomatoes and mix with the Amba.

Serves about 6 

Preparation time: About 2 hours

​This dish is very simple to make but takes a while because the meat takes about 2 hours to get tender and the barley takes a little over an hour.  If you need to speed things up, you can use a pressure cooker for the meat and barley.  Also, soaking the barley overnight helps cook it faster but it would only save time if you were omitting the meat or you used meat that got tender in the time it took to cook the barley.

Ingredients
1.5 pounds lamb loin chops – found at Costco or Sam’s club in metro Detroit area (or your choice of meat with or without bones)
1 cup barley rinsed
2 cups liquid Kishk *see note below
30 kubba (for kubba recipe click here)
1 cup whole milk yogurt
½ cup milk
1 teaspoon salt
Water

*Kishk (also known as Jameed) is yogurt from goats milk that has been dried and preserved.  It has a very tart and tangy flavor.  It can found in at most Middle Eastern markets or even Amazon.  It comes in the following forms:

• Liquid- this is what I used (see pic below). Shake the container very well because the bottom of it will be solidified and the top will be a liquid.  The container I used had about 4 -5 cups so I froze half to use in the future. Don’t be surprised that it’s a bit pricey.  My container was $9.
• Powder – Follow the directions on package.
• Rock – these are soaked in water overnight. 

Directions

• Add your meat to a pot and cover with water.  Boil for about 5 minutes.  Discard water.
• In the same pot, add 10 cups of water and one teaspoon salt. Bring to a boil and then cover and simmer for 20 minutes.
• Add the barley to the pot. Cover and simmer for 45 minutes.
• Remove the bones from your meat if you used meat with bones and add the Kubba to the pot.  Bring to a boil and then turn burner to low for 20 minutes.
• If you are using the liquid kishk– shake your container very well.  Add the kishk liquid to a blender or food processor and blend.  Then add yogurt and milk and blend more.
• Add the Kishk mixture to the pot and gently stir.  Cover and simmer for 20 minutes, stirring frequently until your sauce thickens.  Add more salt to taste.

Serves about 6










​
Ingredients
1 head Cauliflower
1 small onion chopped
2 cloves garlic minced
1 pound stew meat
1 6 oz can tomato paste
2 tablespoons oil
​1 tablespoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baharat
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 red pepper (optional)
5 cups water

• Cut meat in small cubes. Prepare meat by sauteing with a little oil or boiling until tender. I like to use my Instant Pot electric pressure cooker for this.  I added the meat with 1/4 cup of water and chose meat/stew option for 20 minutes.
• Remove stem of cauliflower and cut the florets in bite size pieces.
• Heat one tablespoon of oil in a pot over medium heat. 
• Add onions and garlic and saute until onions are soft and translucent. 
• Remove the onions and garlic and set aside.
• In the same pot, add the other tablespoon of oil and add the cauliflower florets. 
• Stir every few minutes until the cauliflower is browned all around.
• Remove cauliflower from pot and set aside.
• Add the water and tomato paste to pot and stir or whisk until the tomato paste has melted down.
• Add the cauliflower, onions and garlic, meat, salt, and spices to pot and stir.
• Bring to a boil and then turn burner down to low and simmer covered for 20 minutes  or until cauliflower is tender.
• Add more salt and spices if you prefer.
• Serve over rice.

Click here for White rice recipe.

Makes about (7) 16 inch casings

This sausage is delicious and aromatic because of the baharat and garlic. They are usually eaten with fried eggs. These are traditionally hung out to dry in the cold but we skip this step to not risk contaminating the sausage.






​Ingredients

• 10 lbs ground beef 85% or 88% lean
• *5 – 10 casings or about 90 inches

-*make sure to order/buy the wide ones, not the ones that are used for cooking bombarra
-*If you use the plastic wrap method below you do not need this ingredient

• 30 Cloves of garlic minced
• 4 tablespoons Baharat (middle eastern spice blend)
• 4 tablespoons salt
• 2 tablespoons garlic powder
• 1 tablespoon ground black pepper (add more if you prefer spicy)

Instructions

• Rinse the casings inside and out. Add the casings to a bowl and cover with water. Add 1 cup of flour and gently rub them to clean. Try to turn the casings inside out and clean the inside part with the flour/water mixture. Rinse the casings and the bowl you used. Add the casings to the bowl again and cover with new water. Add lemon or lime slices and soak for about ½ hour to hour.
• Add all other ingredients in a large bowl. Knead by hand by squeezing the mixture in your fists until mixed very well and it is smooth. At this point, you can take a sample of the meat and cook it to see if you want to add more spices or salt (or if you are a risk taker just place some raw meat on your tongue to taste).
• Start stuffing your casing leaving about 1 inch at the end. Stuff and push down on meat. Try to pack meat in tightly. Fill until you have about 1 inch left at the other end. Try to push air out. Using rolling pin to flatten and remove air. You want it to be about 2 inches high and 3 inches wide. Tie one end. Pack more meat in if the meat isn’t packed tight. Tie the other end. Use a small needle to poke holes all over both sides of casing, especially where you see air pockets. Use a rolling pin again to remove any air left. Place the basterma you just made on a tray that will fit in your freezer. Repeat process until meat runs out.
• When you are all done stuffing, cover the tray with a plastic bag or plastic wrap. After 2 days in the freezer, remove basterma from tray and place in an XL Ziploc freezer bag. Leave the bag in freezer until you are ready to eat. To prepare, pull one out of the freezer and let it sit out for about 20 minutes to make it easier to slice. Slice and cook on pan over medium heat (if you used the plastic wrap method below, make sure to remove plastic before you slice). Add oil to pan if necessary.

Plastic Wrap Method

• Another option, instead of using casing is to make them into a sausage shape by wrapping them in plastic wrap like a piece of candy and roll (see video). Take a small piece of plastic wrap and set on counter. Set meat shaped like a sausage on the plastic wrap. Roll the wrap tightly over the meat and shape the sausage . Roll the ends to close.

Serves about 6











Ingredients
2 15 oz. cans white beans (Great Northern variety or other) drained and rinsed or about 3 cups cooked if you use dry
1 6 oz. can tomato paste
1 small or medium onion chopped
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon oil
5 cups water
1 tablespoon salt + 1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 to 1 lb. stew meat

Instructions

• Prepare meat by trimming any fat and cutting into about 1 to 1 1/2 cubes. Add the meat to a small pot of boiling water with 1 teaspoon salt. Remove any scum that floats to the top in the beginning. Boil until tender. Depending on your meat, this can take up to an hour or more. See pressure cooker instructions below if you want to speed up process.
  • Meat cooking alternative  - pressure cook meat to tenderize
    • Add meat to Instant Pot or any other pressure cooker 
      
    • Add enough water to cover and a little salt,
      
    • Use manual setting at high pressure for 30 -40 minutes depending on type of meat and how large it is cut.
    • Using natural release is usually recommended for meat, but I use quick release if I am in a rush
•  In a medium sized pot, heat oil and sauté onions until they are soft and translucent.
• Add the tomato paste to pot and stir for about a minute until it softens.
• Add water, beans, 1 tablespoon salt, pepper, and meat.
• Bring to boil, then cover and reduce heat to low. Simmer for about 20 minutes.
• Add lemon and more salt, pepper, and lemon if necessary.
• Serve with rice.

Click here for white rice recipe.

This is a great summer recipe for when we finally start using our grills again in Michigan! 










Serves 6

Ingredients
3 pounds boneless skinless chicken breast
1/2 cup plain whole milk Greek yogurt 
3 Garlic cloves minced
1 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon cumin
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
2 tablespoons lemon juice

1. Trim the chicken and cut into cubes of your desired size - about one inch on each side works well. 
2. Mix all of the ingredients except the chicken in a large bowl.
3. Add the chicken to the bowl and mix well to coat the chicken with the sauce.
4. Cover and marinate in refrigerator for at least one hour but longer is better - up to overnight.
5. When you are done marinating, preheat your grill.
6. Put the chicken on skewers.
7. Using medium/high heat, grill until chicken is ready, flipping once.  It took me about 20 minutes - 10 minutes on each side.
8. Serve in a sandwich with garlic paste or eat with yellow rice. 

​

Rice and stew or riza maraka is a staple in many Chaldean households.  It is what was for dinner most nights growing up.  The rice was always the same but the stew would be different each time.  The following is a basic rice recipe to go along with the many stew options on this site.

Serves 6 - 8 *see recipe for less below

Ingredients
3 cups white basmati rice (I use the Royal brand)
4 1/2 cups water
2 tablespoons vegetable oil (or you can use corn or olive oil)
1 tablespoon table salt (if you use sea salt or kosher salt you may need more)

Instructions
Put the rice in a bowl.  
Rinse with cold water 3 times.
Soak in warm water 10 to 20 minutes.
Add 4 1/2 cups water, oil, and salt to a pot.  Bring to a boil.
Drain the rice and add it to the pot of boiling water.
Boil uncovered for 3 minutes.
Cover pot and turn to low to simmer for 10 minutes.
Turn burner off and leave the rice in covered pot for 5 more minutes.
Use a fork or spatula to gently turn the rice to fluff it up.

*Ingredients to serve 4 - 6 - Instructions are the same
2 cups white basmati rice
3 cups water
4 teaspoons vegetable oil 
2  teaspoons table salt (if you use sea salt or kosher salt you may need more)

The warm spices give this lamb and amazing flavor. It comes out very moist and tender. This is a regular at all of our family gatherings and hope it becomes one of yours too!

Serves 8-10

Ingredients
6 Pound boneless leg of lamb
1 teaspoon baharat (middle eastern spice blend)
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
2 teaspoons salt
2 crushed bay leaves
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 cup cognac liquor

1. Trim most of the fat off of the lamb.
2. Cut if necessary to try to even out the thickness of the lamb.
3. Mix all of the spices and the cognac in a small bowl.
4. Rub the spice mixture all over the lamb.
5. Marinate the lamb for at least one hour or up to overnight preferably. Flip the lamb over during the marinating if possible.
6. Preheat oven to 350 F.
7. Place the lamb in an oven proof dish with a lid or cover with aluminum foil.
8. Flip the lamb over after 1 1/2 hours.
9. Roast for 2 to 3 hours or until the lamb is tender enough to be pulled apart with a fork.
10. To serve, shred the lamb with 2 forks or cut into slices. Take some of the sauce from the baking dish and drizzle it over the lamb.

This is a very tasty and nutritious vegetarian dolma that I personally prefer over the meat version.

If you don't have all of the vegetables used in the stuffing, feel free to replace with another vegetable (except I wouldn't leave out the tomatoes or garlic). You can saute the stuffing vegetables with a little oil for a few minutes but we didn't notice a taste difference when we did that.

Serves about 6

Ingredients

Vegetables to stuff
50 - 60 grape leaves
2 Italian eggplants (small eggplants)
2 zucchinis
3 large onions
1 or 2 small bell peppers

Stuffing
2 tomatoes
1 cup diced broccoli florets
1 cup diced cauliflower florets
1 potato 
1 cup of mushrooms 
4 garlic cloves
1 15 oz can chick peas drained
4 tablespoons fresh dill weed 
2 cups basmati rice
1 6 oz can tomato paste or ½ cup
2/3 cup olive oil
1 tablespoon pomegranate syrup aka pomegranate molasses  
4 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
 
Sauce Ingredients
1/4 cup olive oil
3/4 cup water
4 teaspoons salt
3 teaspoons citric acid (can substitute for an extra lemon juiced)
1 lemon juiced
1 tablespoon pomegranate syrup aka pomegranate molasses 
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
ground red pepper to taste if you like spicy
 
Preparing vegetables to stuff

• Eggplant - remove top stem and cut in half crosswise.   Core out the middle on each half but leave the bottom part to make like a pocket.  Sprinkle salt on the inside. Save the core for the stuffing.
• Zucchini - remove top stem, peel, and cut in half crosswise.  Core out the middle on each half but leave the bottom part to make like a pocket.  Save the core for the stuffing.
• Onion - Cut the top and bottom off. Make a slit from the side into the middle of the onion and then peel.  Carve out the dark area on the bottom of the onion where the roots were (this makes it easier to pull the layers of the onion off).  Put in microwave for 2 minutes or put in boiling water for a few minutes.  Allow to cool enough to handle.  Gently remove outside leaves that are big enough to stuff and save the middle for the stuffing.
• Bell pepper - cut across the top except for about a half inch.  Remove the seeds and membrane.

 
Preparing Stuffing
Add the following to a large bowl:

• Finely dice the broccoli florets, cauliflower florets, potato, mushrooms, and the core of the eggplant, zucchini, and onions.
• Dice 2 tomatoes.
• Remove the stems from the dill and mince
• Mince garlic. 
• Add the chick peas, rice, tomato paste, 2/3 c olive oil, 1 T pomegranate syrup,  4 ½ t salt and 1 t black pepper.  Gently mix by hand.

 
Stuffing Vegetables

• You will need a 6 or 8 quart pot.

• Line the bottom of your pot with carrots or celery or anything else you prefer so your stuffed vegetables and dolma don't burn or stick on the bottom.  I used fava beans.
• Start stuffing zucchini, eggplant, onions, and peppers a little more than ¾ full.  Make sure the onion skins overlap each other when you are closing them. Add the vegetables to your pot after you stuff them.  Try to wedge the eggplant and zucchini into each other so the stuffing doesn’t come out. 
• Next roll grape leaves. Lay out a grape leaf, vein side up.  Put stuffing near the top but not right to edge.  Bring the sides in and then roll starting from the top, while tucking in at the same time.  Try to lay grape leaves close to each other so they don’t come apart when cooked.

 
Cooking

• Mix  the sauce ingredients and pour over vegetables and dolma in the pot.
• Place your pot on stove over high heat for a couple of minutes until the liquids boil. 
• Cover and reduce heat to low to simmer for an hour or until rice is cooked.
• Allow to cool for about 10 minutes. Remove lid from pot.  Place a serving dish bigger than your pot over your pot (serving side down).  Flip the pot and serving dish over together and set down.  Slowly remove your pot.

Maklouba translates to upside down in Arabic. This dish was given this name because of the way it is prepared. The bottom of a pot is layered with vegetables and meat and then rice is put on top. The whole pot is flipped over when served. If it is made correctly, the rice and vegetables/meat will stay together like a cake.

There are a few keys to getting the Maklouba to stay together when flipped. First make sure your pot is greased well so the vegetables don't stick to the bottom. Second make sure your rice is still steaming hot when you put it on top of the vegetables (you will want to have your vegetables and meat prepared before you make the rice). Third, after you take the pot out of the stove, allow it to sit for at least 20 minutes. Having the rice steaming hot and allowing it to sit for 20 minutes is what makes the rice stick together. If your Maklouba doesn't stick together, don't stress. It will still taste great!

Serves about 6

Ingredients*
1 lb beef, your choice of cut (leave this out to make it vegetarian)
1 large eggplant
​1 large onion
2 garlic cloves
3 medium tomatoes or 2 large
3 medium sized potatoes or 2 large
1 cup oil (whatever oil you use to pan fry)
1/2 teaspoon baharat (middle eastern allspice)
1/2 teaspoon salt + more for sprinkling on vegetables
Rice Ingredients​
2 1/2 cups Basmati rice
4 cups Water
3 tablespoons oil
5 tablespoons tomato paste  
1 tablespoon salt

*You can use any vegetables you would like for this dish. Some other options are cauliflower, mushrooms, or peppers.

Ingredient Preparation:

• Peel stripes on the eggplant lengthwise. Slice into just over 1/4 inch thick circles. Sprinkle with salt and allow to rest for 1/2 hour to hour to allow it to release the moisture.
• Peel onions, cut in half, and slice lengthwise.
• Mince garlic.
• Slice tomatoes in 1/4 inch. Sprinkle with salt.
• Peel potatoes and slice (about 1/8 inch). Sprinkle with salt.
• Cut your stew meat into thin bite size slices.

Pan Frying:

• Start with the eggplants. Rinse salt off and squeeze dry with paper towel. Heat up a large frying pan over medium - high heat. Add 1/2 cup of oil to pan and allow to heat for a minute. Add your eggplants and flip over when one side is browned. Brown the other side. Add 1/4 cup oil as needed. Remove and place between 2 paper towels to absorb oil. Eggplants absorb a lot of oil when pan fried so another option is to brush both sides with oil and roast in oven for on 400 F for 20 minutes or until browned, flipping half way through.
• Add potatoes to pan. Add oil if necessary for any of these frying steps. Fry until both sides are brown and the slices are tender. Place slices between paper towel to absorb oil.
• Add tomatoes and fry for about 2 minutes on each side. You don't want them to fry so much that they are falling apart.
• Place onions and garlic in pan and saute until they start to brown and are tender. Set aside.
• Add meat to pan and Add 1/2 t salt and 1/2 t baharat and stir. Saute until tender.

Rice Preparation:

• Rinse rice a couple times to remove excess starch.
• Soak rice in warm water for about 20 minutes.​
• Heat oil in a pot.
• Add tomato paste and stir until it melts down a bit.
• Add water and salt and bring to a boil.
• Add rice and allow it to boil for a minute.
• Stir rice well to make sure that there are no chunks of tomato paste.
• Reduce heat to low, cover pot, and allow to simmer for about ten minutes.
• Fluff rice with fork and leave covered in pot.

Assembly:

• Preheat oven to 400 F.
• Use a pot that is oven safe and brush with oil or use oil spray
• Start by layering the eggplants and then the other vegetables and meat.
• Add your steaming hot red rice on top.
• Using a flexible spatula, pat down the rice to compact it.
• Put lid on pot and place in oven for 10 minutes.
• Remove from oven and allow to sit covered for 20 to 30 minutes.
• You will need a flat serving plate that is wider than the pot. Remove lid from pot. Place the plate on top of your pot (serving side down) and then flip your pot and serving plate over together. Allow the rice and vegetables to slide down then remove pot.