Muqalqal

I am back with another dish as part of my breakfast series and today’s offering comes from Yemen, a cuisine which is really underrated and is one of my absolute favourites. It has such a variety of ingredients and amazing flavour combinations that it always keeps my tastebuds excited. 

Today’s dish, muqalqal, gets its name from the way it is prepared, as it means “fried”, referring to how the meat is fried with the rest of the ingredients. This dish is made all year round, but is most popularly made on Eid Al-Adha because many people have fresh meat. It is important to use the freshest meat possible and a tender cut since we aren’t cooking it for very long and we want to make sure it doesn’t end up tough. 

Not only is muqalqal absolutely delicious, but it is also a one-pot dish, making it super easy and quick to make, with not much to clean up afterwards. It is also a popular camping dish because of how easily it comes together. You’ll be amazed at how just a few ingredients can make such a flavourful dish. 

The recipe is pretty straightforward, you just want to make sure to use good quality ingredients to get the best taste. The meat should be lamb, because using a leaner meat could result in dry meat. I made the simplest version, which is my personal favourite, but versions of this dish use more spices and bell peppers, but I like something simpler for the morning. The use of chillies is optional. I use a milder type of chilli, but this is up to personal taste. 

Muqalqal is usually served with a buttery layered Yemeni bread known as mlawah, and while this is the best bread to serve it is not necessarily easy to come by, so serve it with any flatbread you can find. A meat stew may not be the first thing that comes to mind for breakfast, but trust me, you’ll definitely be adding this to your breakfast repertoire. 

Ingredients 

2 tbsp olive oil 

350 g lamb, cut into bitesize cubes

1 medium onion, finely chopped

1 chilli, finely chopped

½ tbsp garlic paste

Salt

Pepper

½ tbsp cumin 

1 medium tomato, finely chopped

Coriander, finely chopped to garnish

Bread to serve

Instructions

1. Heat the olive oil in a large pan, then add the meat. 
2. Sauté the meat until it changes colour, then add the onions and continue cooking. 
3. Next, add the chilli and garlic paste, followed by the spices. Cook covered for a few minutes until the meat softens. 
4. Add in the chopped tomatoes and cook covered for a few more minutes. Once meat is cooked through, pour into the serving dish and garnish with chopped coriander. 
5. Serve with warm bread and enjoy!

More Recipes here 👉👉👉 You’ve Been Served