I had the pleasure of featuring Hala Alyan’s new novel The Arsonist’s City on my show . Alyan’s beautiful novel takes place in Damascus and Beirut, covers the story of three generations of a family, and culminates in them returning to their family home in Beirut after a death. This dish, makloubeh (“upside-down” in Arabic) is mentioned in one scene and also would have been a common celebration dish for this family. Watch the full episode below.
A few notes about this dish: I went through at least six iterations of the dish, consulting a variety of online and cookbook versions to find the method that provides a nearly foolproof version for me. Two things to note: The size and shape of the pan is surprisingly important, and pre-soaking the rice and using hot broth are key to it cooking through and setting up. I used a 2-quart Calphalon non-stick saucepan. A stainless steel pot that’s 9-10″ across and 3-4″ tall will also work. Pots with straight vs. curved sides will work better. Your pot must have a lid. If you don’t have a non-stick pan, I strongly recommend cutting a circle of parchment paper to fit inside your pan and oiling it well (both sides) as well as the sides of the pan. Everything except the rice is pre-cooked. Vegetables and meat broth can be made a day or two ahead if needed. You’ll also need a plate or platter big enough to un-mold this onto. Let it sit an hour for it to firm up, or else it will collapse. Some recipes call for ground spices in the broth but I found they made the rice taste gritty, so I specify whole spices that are cooked in the broth and then removed.
I also consulted with a friend’s mother, Siham Tannous, who was born in Beirut and has been making this all her life. Her tip: When you pour in the broth, it should rise no farther than width of one finger above the patted-down rice. Siham makes it with eggplant and lamb most often, and does add turmeric to hers. My friends Huda Al-Marashi and Laura Bashar also weighed in on technique.
It’s most traditional using lamb (which comes out incredibly tender and flavors the rice beautifully through the home-made broth) but some people do use chicken, so I’ve indicated that option in the notes. I’ve also seen vegetarian versions, but I can’t vouch for their authenticity. If making a vegetarian version, make sure your vegetable broth is very clear or it will hamper the ability of the rice to cook through. Vegetables commonly used are eggplant, peppers, and onions, with cauliflower, potato, and tomato also appearing. I cut up the peppers into bite-sized pieces before layering. The potatoes are my favorite part. Amina at Hungry Paprikas blog roasts her vegetables with olive oil spray while the stock is cooking, which yields a satisfying result with far less effort. You must pre-cook all the vegetables before making the makloubeh.
Each family in the region (Jordan, Iraq, Syria, Lebanon) makes their own special version of this dish, frying the vegetables, making the stock, then layering.
Makloubeh | Upside-down spiced rice with lamb and eggplant
Ingredients
Lamb stock
- 1 pound lamb shoulder cut into large cubes
- 1 onions thinly sliced, use 2 bunches scallions for migraine diet
- 3 bay leaves
- 1 cinnamon sticks
- 3-4 cardamom seeds green (also called pods)
- 4 black peppercorns (whole)
- 4 allspice (whole)
- 4 cups water (filtered or spring)
- 1 tsp sea salt omit for migraine, low-tyramine, low-sodium diets
- 1 tsp turmeric (dried) optional, but gives the dish its gorgeous color
- 1/4 tsp black pepper ground
Makloubeh
- 1 eggplants skinny (Japanese), cut in 1/2" slices
- 1 potatoes russet or gold, cut in 1/2" slices
- 1 bell pepper cored, seeded, and sliced
- 1 tomatoes cored and sliced
- 2 tbsp olive oil (extra virgin) ideally, olive oil spray
- 1-1/4 cups basmati rice rinsed and drained 3 times, then soaked for 30 minutes and drained.
Instructions
Lamb stock
- Bring stock ingredients (lamb through water) just to a boil in a large pot, then turn down to a simmer, skimming off any scum that appears on the surface with a spoon. Keep the lid on and skim every 10 minutes.
- Cook for 60 minutes. Strain stock into a bowl,reserving the lamb and onions. Pick out and discard the whole spices.
- Measure out just under 2.75 cups of stock and stir in the salt, turmeric if using, and 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper. Reserve extra stock for another use.
Makloubeh
- Preheat oven to 400ºF. On baking sheets lined with silicone or parchment paper, brush or spray eggplant and potatoes with olive oil, season with salt and pepper. Do the same with the tomato slices and pepper strips on another sheet. Roast vegetables for 30 minutes while lamb stock is cooking. Let cool. Rinse and drain rice then let soak for 30 minutes while lamb stock is cooking.
- Oil bottom of the pot well (see notes). Rinse and drain the rice. Layer in the tomatoes and peppers, a little rice, eggplant, potatoes, a little rice, lamb and onions. Pour remaining rice over the top and pat down firmly. Gently pour over the hot stock. Pat down again with a wooden spoon.
- Place the covered pot on medium high heat and allow it to start bubbling, which should take about 5 minutes. Once it is bubbling, decrease the heat to low. You want the dish to be simmering but with very little movement so it sets up in the layers.
- Cook for 15 minutes, then remove lid, wiping off any condensation, and pat down rice with the back of the spoon. Cover and cook another 5 minutes. The rice should be fully cooked on top, and when you press down with the back of a spoon should feel firm and no liquid should squish up around the edges. Cook 5 minutes more if needed. Turn off heat and let sit one hour.
- When ready to serve, place a large tray with raised edges on top of the uncovered pot. Hold the pot and the tray with both hands, then swiftly flip the entire thing over and set on the counter. Leave it a few minutes to allow gravity to drop the makloubeh. Lift pot slowly. It may not look like a solid cake but that’s okay, it will still be delicious!
- Garnish with toasted sliced almonds and chopped parsley. Serve into bowls and then dollop with yogurt.
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