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Mathlootha
Lamb with wheat and rice
Mathlootha (مثلوثة): Qassim's three-part feast pot of jareesh, qursan bread and rice with lamb
Mathlootha means 'the tripled one', and in Buraidah and Unaizah in Qassim, central Saudi Arabia, it is the dish that appears when a family wants to honour guests: cracked wheat, thin qursan bread and rice cooked in one lamb broth and layered on a single tray. Each layer keeps its own texture, from the soft, porridge-like jareesh to the silky torn bread and the separate grains of rice, all tied together by the spiced lamb. It is eaten by hand or with spoons from a shared platter, with laban and a sharp daqqus sauce. The mistake most people make is cooking all three in one pot at once, so everything turns into the same mush. Chef's tip: cook the jareesh first because it takes longest and holds its heat; the bread and rice can follow in the same broth while it rests under a lid.
- Total time
- 220 min
- Difficulty
- hard
- Serves
- 6
Ingredients
For the lamb and broth
- 3 ⅓ lb lamb shoulder on the bonecut into large pieces
- 2 onionschopped
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil
- 2 dried black limespierced
- 2 tsp baharat
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 3 tomatoesgrated
- 2 ½ tsp salt
- 12 ½ cups water
For the three layers
- 7 oz jareesh (coarsely cracked wheat)soaked 2 hours
- 9 oz qursan or very thin wholewheat flatbreadstorn into pieces
- 2 courgettescut in chunks
- 10 ½ oz basmati ricerinsed and soaked 20 minutes
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Method
0/8 doneStep 1: Heat 2 tbsp vegetable oil in a very large pot and fry 2 onions until golden. Add 3 ⅓ lb lamb shoulder on the bone and brown on all sides over a medium-high heat.
15 minStep 2: Stir in 2 tsp baharat, 1 tsp ground cumin, 3 tomatoes, 2 dried black limes and 2 ½ tsp salt, then pour in 12 ½ cups water. Bring to the boil, skim, cover and simmer until the lamb is tender enough to pull from the bone.
120 minStep 3: Lift out the lamb and keep it warm under foil. You should have about 2.5 litres of broth; ladle 1 litre into a second pan for the jareesh.
Step 4: Drain 7 oz jareesh (coarsely cracked wheat) and cook it in that 1 litre of broth, stirring often, until it is soft and thick like porridge. Stir in ¾ cup laban or thin plain yogurt, cover and keep warm.
50 minStep 5: Bring 1 litre of the remaining broth to a simmer with 2 courgettes. Add 9 oz qursan or very thin wholewheat flatbreads a handful at a time and cook, stirring gently, until the bread is soft and silky and the courgette is tender.
15 minStep 6: Put 10 ½ oz basmati rice in the last 600 ml of broth (top up with water if needed), bring to the boil, then cover and cook on the lowest heat until the liquid is absorbed and the grains are fluffy.
20 minStep 8: On a large tray, spread the jareesh in one section, the qursan in another and the rice in the third, or layer them with rice on top. Lay the lamb in the middle and pour the onion and ghee over everything. Serve hot.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 780 kcal
- Protein
- 46 g
- Carbs
- 70 g
- Fat
- 34 g
- Fibre
- 8 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does mathlootha take?
- About 220 minutes in total: 40 minutes to prepare and 180 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 6 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- What can I use instead of onions?
- 2 shallots per onion.
- What can I use instead of dried black limes?
- Lemon, same amount.
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