Egyptian Molokhia Recipe
Incredible as it might seem to those of us that love it, most of the world have never heard of Molokhia, let alone been privileged enough to eat it.
Molokhia is a green leaf vegetable also known as ‘Jew’s Mallow’ and is not dissimilar to spinach.
It’s used in a variety of Egyptian dishes and is instantly recognisable by its viscous, slimy quality. Believed to be a favourite dish of the Pharaoh’s, who ate it with rabbit, molokhia remains ever popular in modern day Egypt where is also eaten with chicken, lamb or vegetarian.
Although typically served like a soup, it’s customary to eat with rice onto which the molokhia is spooned like a sauce.
This Egyptian Molokhia recipe is for the vegetarian soup version, a supremely healthy and uber delicious snack that is both versatile and quick to prepare.
Time to Table: 25-30 minutes (allow 2 hours additionally for Frozen Molokhia leaves to thaw)
Ingredients for Egyptian Molokhia Recipe:
400g x frozen molokhia leaves
2 x cup of vegetarian stock
½ x onion
3 x bay leaves
1-2 x cloves of garlic
2 x table spoons of cumin seed
2 x table spoons of olive oil
1 x aggressive squeeze of a lemon
Directions
1. Place the frozen Molokhia at room temperature and allow two hours to thaw.
2. Mix the vegetable stock with boiling water and allow to dissolve.
3. Chop the onion and at to the pot along with the stock and the bay leaves.
4. Once the broth starts to simmer add the Molokhia, stirring as you do so.
5. Simmer the broth for 20 minutes.
6. Meanwhile heat the olive oil in a separate pan, add the chopped garlic and cumin seeds and lightly fry until both start to brown.
7. Once the garlic and the cumin have begun to brown, poor the whole pan into the Molokhia broth stirring once again.
It’s ready!
Serve with rice, mezzes and salad for a full vegetarian feast. It also works equally well with couscous or the Andean grain, quinoa.
Optional
Add some fresh chilli to the mix for some additional spice. Other vegetables can also make worthwhile additions to the broth including mushrooms, peppers or chickpeas.
