Tagen BAMIA (Okra) WITH MEAT

Tagen BAMIA (Okra) WITH MEAT

Author: Marisa López Chicote

Bamia or bamiya is a stew made from lamb, okra and tomatoes originating from the Middle East. It is found in all Arab countries but also in Anatolia and Greece. In Arabic, bamya literally means okra, the same fruit of the malvaceae family.

Bamia is one the Egyptian cuisine star dishes

Ingredients:

1 kg Okra small
2 tablespoons of clarified butter (ghee)
3 cloves garlic
1 kilo of veal or lamb meat in pieces
2 chopped onions
1 green pepper, chopped and 1 chilli pepper
2 tablespoons of Tomato paste
4 chopped tomatoes
Juice of 1 lemon
Salt
Black pepper
Boharat
Cumin , Cardamom

Elaboration:

To peel the okra, peel the pyramid -shaped top and cut a very small piece bottom . Then rinse and let dry.
First, I prepare the meat. In a pot, boil water with salt, pepper, cumin, boharat, one onion, cardamom seed and cook for about 1 hour and half low fire. This can be done in express pot will take only 20 minutes

Once I have the meat done, I put in a pot a tablespoon of ghee and a chopped onion and chopped garlic and saute well. Add salt and pepper and a bit of cumin. Once become transparent, add the tomatoes and 2 tablespoons of tomato paste and simmer well and let cook the tomato.

Add the bamia ( Okra), the cooked meat with the broth and green pepper and 1 chilly peper and water if necessary and put all in a tagen. Put the tagen in the oven at 180 C and bake it for about 1 hour. Rectify salt and add lemon juiice .

Serve hot with rice

About the Author: Marisa Lopez Chicote is an event planner and mother of 5, living in Cairo and Muslim since 1985, alhamdullah. She loves travelling and cooking.