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Mbakbka
Pasta cooked in spicy lamb sauce
مبكبكة (mbakbka): Libyan pasta cooked straight in a spicy lamb, tomato and chickpea sauce
Mbakbka is the Tripoli family's go-to one-pot, made any day of the week and especially loved in winter: short pasta cooked directly in a spicy red sauce of lamb, tomato paste, chickpeas and bzar spice, so it drinks up the flavour and the starch thickens everything. The name echoes the bubbling sound the pot makes. The usual mistake is adding too little water: the pasta should be just covered when it goes in, and needs a stir every few minutes so it doesn't stick. For a vegetarian version, leave out the lamb and add a diced potato and courgette with the chickpeas, using vegetable stock. Chef's tip: let the pot rest off the heat for 5 minutes with the lid on, and the sauce settles into a thick, glossy coat.
- Total time
- 65 min
- Difficulty
- easy
- Serves
- 4
Ingredients
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 14 oz boneless lamb shouldercut into 2 cm pieces
- 1 onionfinely chopped
- 3 cloves garliccrushed
- 4 tbsp tomato purée
- 1 tsp hot chilli powder
- 1 tsp sweet paprika
- 1 ½ tsp bzar or baharat spice mix
- ½ tsp ground turmeric
- 1 ¼ tsp salt
- 14 oz tinned chickpeasdrained
- 5 cups hot water
- 2 tbsp fresh parsley (optional)chopped
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Method
0/5 doneStep 1: Heat 3 tbsp olive oil in a wide pot over a medium-high heat and brown the 14 oz boneless lamb shoulder for 6 minutes. Add 1 onion and 3 cloves garlic and cook for 4 minutes until soft.
10 minStep 2: Stir in 4 tbsp tomato purée, 1 tsp hot chilli powder, 1 tsp sweet paprika, 1 ½ tsp bzar or baharat spice mix, ½ tsp ground turmeric and 1 ¼ tsp salt and fry for 2 minutes until the paste darkens.
2 minStep 3: Add 14 oz tinned chickpeas and 5 cups hot water. Cover and simmer for 25 minutes until the lamb is tender.
25 minStep 4: Stir in 12 ½ oz short pasta (ditalini or broken spaghetti); it should be just covered by liquid, so add a little water if needed. Cook uncovered for 12–15 minutes, stirring every few minutes, until the pasta is tender and most of the sauce has been absorbed.
14 minStep 5: Turn off the heat, cover and rest for 5 minutes. Serve scattered with 2 tbsp fresh parsley.
5 min
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 640 kcal
- Protein
- 34 g
- Carbs
- 82 g
- Fat
- 20 g
- Fibre
- 8 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does mbakbka take?
- About 65 minutes in total: 15 minutes to prepare and 50 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 4 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it very spicy?
- It has some heat. Use less chilli for a milder version, or more if you like it hot.
- What can I use instead of onion?
- 2 shallots per onion.
- What can I use instead of garlic?
- ½ tsp garlic paste or ⅛ tsp garlic powder per clove.
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