AI-generated image
Meghli
Spiced rice pudding
Meghli: Lebanese caraway, cinnamon and anise rice pudding made to celebrate a new baby
When a baby is born in Lebanon, the family cooks a big pot of meghli and hands out bowls to every visitor who comes to congratulate them; it also appears at Christmas in Christian homes. Ground rice is simmered with sugar and warm spices — caraway, cinnamon and anise — until it sets into a smooth, cocoa-brown pudding with no milk or eggs at all. Each bowl is topped with desiccated coconut and a generous pile of soaked walnuts, almonds, pistachios and pine nuts. Common mistake: walking away from the pot; ground rice catches and lumps fast, so it needs steady stirring. Chef's tip: soak the nuts in cold water overnight and peel the almonds; they turn plump and crisp, which is the hallmark of a good meghli.
- Total time
- 50 min
- Difficulty
- easy
- Serves
- 8
Ingredients
For the pudding
- 5 ½ oz rice flour (ground rice)
- 6 ½ oz sugar
- 6 ¾ cups water
- 2 tbsp ground caraway
- 1 tbsp ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp ground aniseed
To top
- 2 ⅛ oz walnut halvessoaked overnight
- 2 ⅛ oz almondssoaked overnight and peeled
- 1 ⅜ oz pistachiossoaked
- 1 oz pine nutssoaked
- 1 ⅜ oz desiccated coconut
Shop this recipe on Amazon
Spices & pantry
Links open Amazon in a new tab. As an Amazon Associate, WhatToEat.Today earns from qualifying purchases.
Method
0/5 doneStep 1: In a large heavy pan, whisk 5 ½ oz rice flour (ground rice), 6 ½ oz sugar, 2 tbsp ground caraway, 1 tbsp ground cinnamon and 1 tsp ground aniseed with a little of 6 ¾ cups water to a smooth paste, then whisk in the rest of the water so there are no lumps.
Step 2: Set over a medium heat and stir constantly with a wooden spoon, scraping the bottom, until it comes to a gentle boil, about 10 minutes.
10 minStep 3: Lower the heat and keep stirring for 20–25 minutes, until the pudding is thick and glossy and a spoon drawn through it leaves a trail that slowly closes.
25 minStep 4: Ladle into small bowls and leave to cool, then chill for at least 2 hours until set.
120 minStep 5: Drain the nuts. Sprinkle each bowl with 1 ⅜ oz desiccated coconut and arrange 2 ⅛ oz walnut halves, 2 ⅛ oz almonds, 1 ⅜ oz pistachios and 1 oz pine nuts on top just before serving.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 290 kcal
- Protein
- 5 g
- Carbs
- 42 g
- Fat
- 13 g
- Fibre
- 3 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does meghli take?
- About 50 minutes in total: 15 minutes to prepare and 35 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 8 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegan?
- Yes. It has no meat, fish, dairy or eggs.
- Is it gluten free?
- Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
- Can I make it ahead?
- Yes. It keeps well, so you can cook it earlier in the day or the day before and reheat it.
- What can I use instead of sugar?
- Caster sugar, same amount.
- What can I use instead of ground cinnamon?
- A cinnamon stick, ground: about ½ tsp per stick.
Reviews
No reviews yet. Be the first to cook it.
Rate this recipe
Sign in to rate and review this recipe.
You might also like
Kartoshka cakeCocoa and cake crumb truffles
Soviet cafés and school canteens sold these knobbly brown 'potatoes' for a few kopecks, and they began as a thrifty way to use up sponge and biscuit trimmings at the bakery. Crumbs are bound with butter and sweetened condensed milk, flavoured with cocoa and vanilla, shaped into little potatoes, rolled in cocoa and finished with two dabs of pale butter cream for the sprouts. They are fudgy and dense like a brownie truffle, need no oven, and children love making them. Traditional bakers added a spoonful of rum, an optional extra for adult batches only; this version is alcohol-free with vanilla. The usual slip is coarse crumbs, which make the potatoes crack, so blitz them as fine as sand. Chef's tip: chill the shaped potatoes for at least 20 minutes so they hold their shape and slice cleanly.
Russian
Undu walaluFried urad dal rings in treacle
Walalu means bangles, and these dark, sticky rings of fried urad dal soaked in kithul treacle are a sweet that Sinhala families bring out for Avurudu and for special almsgivings, often made in large batches by an aunt known for her steady hand. A thick, fluffy paste of ground black gram is piped into loops and fried until crisp, then plunged straight into warm treacle, so the rings stay crunchy on the outside while drinking up the syrup. They taste a little like a darker, smokier jalebi, with a toffee finish from the palm treacle. Watery batter is what ruins them; it spreads into flat blobs, so grind the soaked dal with as little water as possible and beat it until light. This recipe uses no asafoetida, so it is naturally gluten free. Chef's tip: pipe the rings onto small squares of baking paper and lower them into the oil paper and all; the paper peels away in seconds.
Sri Lankan
MarquesitasCheese and cajeta crepes
Evening in Mérida's Plaza Grande means the smell of marquesitas: thin batter pressed in hot hinged irons until crisp, then rolled like a cigar around grated Edam cheese and a sweet filling such as cajeta, chocolate-hazelnut spread or jam. Edam came to the Yucatán through the port trade with the Netherlands and became part of the local cooking, and the salty-sweet combination is the whole point. At home you can cook them in a thin, wide frying pan. Edam is usually made with animal rennet, so check the label or use a vegetarian Gouda-style cheese. Chef's tip: roll while the crêpe is still in the pan and hot; within seconds it hardens and will crack.
Mexican