Harees recipe might be prepared using meat or chicken. It is one of the most famous authentic cuisine for Iftar on the Emirati banquet during the Holy Month of Ramadan. Families don’t cook this simple but amazing dish to offer it on Iftar meal for its members only, but they cook an enormous amount of it to distributed to other family members, friends, and neighbours, further to less fortunate people.

Ingredients:

• 1 kg of Harees (wheat grain)
• 1 kg of beef cubes
• Salt (as desired)
• 7-8 cups of water
• Dehn Khaneen (traditional ghee)

Preparation method

• Soak the Harees seeds in water overnight to soften
• Wash the meat well, put the meat in a deep saucepan, add water, let it simmer until almost cooked
• Drain the Harees, add it to the meat in the same saucepan, and add salt. Cover the saucepan and leave it to simmer on low heat until fully cooked
• Transfer Harees and meat mixture into a special deep pot. Pummel the Harees and the meat with wooden Harees spoon (or use your hand mixer). Keep pummeling the mixture until it become soft and well mixed
• Serve the Harees mixture in flat dish. Decorate it with Ghee

Ingredients:

• 3 pieces Jameed (a dried hard yogurt made of goat’s milk)
• 4 kg lamb with bones
• 1 chopped onion
• ½ teaspoon cardamom
• Laurel leaves
• Black pepper (as per your preferences)

• 3 cups of rice (Preferably Egyptian rice)
• 1 cup of vegetarian oil
• Salt (as per your preferences)
• Bread “Sharak”
• Peeled almond
• Pine seed

Jameed & Meat Preparing method

• Put the Jameed in a bag made of fabric and smash it using a hammer
• Soak the Jameed in boiled water overnight
• Next day, use the blender to mix the Jameed by adding some water, then filter the mixture and pour it in a big saucepan over medium heat. Stir the mixture over the heat and bring it to a boil
• In another deep saucepan, add the lamb and pour cold water, then let it boil.  Remove any foam that appears on the top of the water; add the chopped onion, cardamom, laurel leaves and pepper. Cover the pan and let the lamb get cooked for at least one hour, then add the Jameed and let it boil together for more half an hour
• Soak the rice in the water for half an hour
• In a pot, add the vegetarian oil then the rice, some salt and enough boiled water to cover the rice, bring it to a boil, and let it simmer on low heat for 30 to 40 minutes.
• Remove the meat pieces from the Jameed and broth mixture. Strain the mixture
• For Mansaf presentation, use a big round serving platter, place the bread, add the Jameed and broth mixture to wet the bread, add the rice then the lamb pieces and decorate the dish with fried almond and pine seeds. In a bowl, pour the remaining Jameed mixture in a deep pot and serve with the Mansaf

Kabsah is one of the most popular, authentic and well known worldwide, cuisine from the Saudi Arabia’s kitchen.There are tens of Kabsah’s recipes, but we choose to share with you the Chicken Kabsah as a favorite dish for everyone.

Ingredients:

• 1 chicken-weight one or one & half Kilo, cut into 8
• 1 1/2 cup Basmati rice, long grain
• 2 onions, chopped
• 1 large carrot, shredded
• 5 cloves garlic, sliced
• 3 tomatoes, juiced
• 1 teaspoon salt (to taste)
• 2 teaspoons. Kabsah spice mix, includes: one tbsp. of (Curry powder - turmeric - ginger - black pepper), 1/2 tbsp. of (ground cloves - ground cardamom - coriander - cumin) and a pinch of chili powder

• 3 dried bay leaves
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 3 dried lemons
• 5 teaspoons olive oil
• 1 or 2 hot green pepper
• 5 cups of water
• 1 cup raisins
• 1 cup toasted nuts (almond, pine nut, hazelnut) (optional)

Preparation Methods:

• Place a pan on medium heat with onion and olive oil and stir till translucent then add garlic and carrots and stir till the carrot becomes yellow.
• Add tomato juice, chicken, salt, all of the Kabsah spice, dried limes, cinnamon stick, bay leaves, and hot pepper and stir well.
• Add 2 cups of water and stir, once boiled lower the heat to medium low and let cook for about 60 to 90 minutes.
• Transfer the chicken to a baking tray to broil for 10-15 minutes until golden crisp.
• On the same pan, where you boiled the chicken, add 3 cups of water, check the salt, raise the heat to high. once boiled add the rice and raisins and stir till boil again then lower the heat to low and let cook for 20 to 30 minutes.
• leave the rice on very low heat for 20 – 30 minutes until cooked.
• Once the rice is done transfer to a serving large plate topped with broiled chicken, hot pepper and garnish with toasted nuts

Mandy rice is one of the most famous dish from Yemeni kitchen,  especially in Hadhramaut city.

Ingredients:

• 1 medium size chicken
• 1 1/2 cup basmati rice, rinsed and strained
• 5 cups water
• 5 table spoons olive oil
• 2 hot green pepper
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 2 tomatoes, chopped
• 2 carrots, shredded
• 2 bay leaves
• 3 cardamom

• 5 cloves
• 1 tea spoon turmeric
• 1/2 tea spoon ginger
• 1/4 tea cinnamon
• Pinch of cumin
• Pinch of coriander
• salt and pepper to taste
• 2 table spoons lemon juice
• 1 medium coal and some oil

Directions:

• Prepare the chicken, place the onion and 3 tbsp. olive oil in a baking tray and stir for a minute then add the shredded carrots and stir till the onion is translucent.
• Add the chopped tomatoes, cumin, coriander, turmeric, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, cardamom and bay leaves, and stir.
• Rub the chicken with lemon juice and same spice added before to the onion. place it in the tray and add 2 cups of water. Cover the try and keep it on high heat to boil then lower the heat to medium for 45 to 60 minutes to cook.
• Prepare the rice by placing 3 cups of water in a pan on high heat, add salt to taste, black pepper, cloves, cardamom, turmeric, and 2 tbsp. of olive oil, let boil then add the rice and once boiled again cover and lower the heat to low and let cook for about 15 to 20 min., (in this step you can add a burning coal in a mini heat resistant bowl or ramekin to the pan and cover to give a stronger smell and taste).
• Light the coal on the stove and prepare a small heat resistant bowl covered with foil and some sunflower oil in it or any kind of oil. Place this bowl in the oven.
• Once the chicken and rice are ready remove the chicken from the tray and add the rice to the same tray and mix with the sauce in it and top again with the chicken then light the broiler to medium low and place the tray into the oven. Place the burning coal in the small bowl and close the oven right away and let the chicken to golden and catch the smell of the burning coal for about 10 minutes.
• Transfer the rice to the serving plate topped with the chicken and hot green pepper.

Makbous or Majboos as it's called in Kuwait is a famous dish in Kuwait, Bahrain, and Iran. It contains rice, vegetables, herbs, and any kind of meat (poultry, fish, or red meat)

Ingredients:

• 1 kg Hammour slices or fillet
• 2 cup basmati rice
• 1 big onion, chopped or wedges
• 1  tomato (cut into big chunks)
• 1/2 cup fresh cilantro, chopped coarsely
• 1 hot green pepper
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• spice (turmeric, cumin, cinnamon, black pepper, chili powder, paprika, and coriander)
• 3 lemon juice

• 1 cinnamon stick
• 2 cloves
• 1 dried black lemon
• salt to taste
• 3 table spoons tomato paste
• 5 cup water
• 1 cup sunflower oil

Directions:

• Sprinkle salt, cinnamon, turmeric, cumin, black pepper, coriander and lemon on the fish and marinate for 30 minutes in the fridge.
• Heat the oil on medium heat and place the fish slices to gain a golden color on both sides and transfer it to a dish and set aside.
• Take some of the oil (about 5 tbsp.) which used to fry the fish and place it in a pan, add the chopped onion and stir for minutes to golden, add garlic, turmeric, chili powder, paprika, cumin, salt, cinnamon stick and dried lemon and stir then add the tomato paste, tomato, and hot green pepper, stir then add water and fresh cilantro.
• When the water boil, add the fish and let it simmer for 10 minutes and transfer it to a dish and place the rice in the remaining water in the pan, once boiled lower the heat to low, cover and let it cook for about 20 minutes and stir, then add back the fish on top of the rice and cover for 3 minutes and turn off the heat.
• Serve the rice topped with the fish.

Although preparing Threed might consumes a lot of time, still it is one of the must have dish on the Emirati banquet during Ramadan in the UAE, because of its richness with all kind of nutrients, and because it’s conceder as a delicious comfort food.  

Ingredients:

main ingredients

• Chicken or Beef with vegetables stew (Saloona)
• Rgag Bread

Chicken or Beef with vegetables stew ingredients:

• 1 kg of chopped meat( or chicken), 80% boiled
• 1 big chopped potato
• 2 chopped zucchinis
• 1 chopped carrot
• 1 chopped sweet green pepper
• 1 eggplant
• 3 chopped tomatoes
• 2 to 3 finely chopped onions
• 3 crushed garlic cloves
• 2 to 3 tablespoons of tomato paste
• 2 Loumi (dried lime)
• Salt (as desired)
• ½ teaspoon of each of cumin, coriander, cinnamon, black pepper and cardamom powder
• 1 teaspoon of turmeric powder
• 1 teaspoon of Emirati fish spices (to enhance the flavour)
• ½ cup of chopped coriander
• 2 tablespoons of chopped parsley
• 1 to 2 green chili peppers (optional)
• 3 tablespoons of ghee
• 1 to 1 ½ liters of hot water

Preparation method

• Prepare the stew first. Fry the onions in a deep saucepan and add in the crushed garlic and Loumi
• Add the boiled meat to the saucepan and mix well. Add the spices and  the salt
• Add the rest of the ingredients, such as the tomato paste and some water
• Cover the saucepan for two minutes until you can smell the aroma of the spices and meat
• Add the chopped vegetables to the meat and spices and mix it well.
• Add the remaining amount of water to the saucepan, cover it and bring it to simmer until meat is tender and vegetables are cooked
• Break the Rgag bread in a (deep bowl) and pour the stock in first without pouring the meat or the vegetables
• Mix the bread and stock thoroughly
• lay the meat/ chicken and vegetables on top of the Thereed and serve it hot

Ingredients:

Kofta Ingredients

• 2 cups grated bottle gourd
• 3- 4 grams of Gram flour
• ¼ gram masala powder
• 1 green chili finely chopped
• salt as required

Masala Paste ingredients

• 2 large tomatoes, chopped
• 1 medium onion
• 1 green chili, chopped
• 1 inch fresh ginger
• 4-5 cloves garlic, chopped, 2 table spoons crushed cashews

Further ingredients

• 1 tea spoon cumin, ¼ red chili, ¼ turmeric powder, ¼ coriander powder, ½ gram masala powder
• 1 cup water, add more if required
• 1–2 table spoon oil
• Sugar (optional) 

Preparation method

• Rinse and peel the bottle gourd, grate it
• Squeeze the grated bottle gourd, collect the juice and keep it aside
• Mix all the kofta ingredients except the oil
• Make small round shaped balls or patties and fry them in oil until golden brown, drain it on paper tissue
• Blend all masala paste ingredients with little water to form a smooth paste
• Remove extra oil from the pan after removing the koftas, and keep one spoon of oil. Heat it again and fry the cumin then add the masala paste
• Fry for 8 – 10 minutes, add all the spice powders
• Stir and continue to fry masala paste until it starts leaving oil from the sides
• Add the bottle gourd juice and 1 cup of water to the paste, stir and simmer for 10 -12 minutes. Add the fried lauki koftas
• Switch off the fire and let them be in the curry for few minutes
• Serve it hot, garnished with coriander and along with roti, naan or rice

Ingredients:

For the Gram Masala

• 2 tea spoons poppy seeds
• 1 tea spoon coriander seeds
• 1 tea spoon cumin seeds
• 1 tea spoon fennel seeds
• 1⁄2 tea spoon whole black peppercorns
• 1⁄4 tea spoon freshly grated nutmeg
• 5 whole cloves
• 3 green cardamom pods
• 1 black cardamom pod
• 1 whole star anise
• 1 stick cinnamon, halved

For the Nihari

• 1 cup oil
• 1 medium yellow onion, very thinly sliced
• 3 lamb shanks, halved crosswise
• 1 tea spoon cayenne pepper
• 2 cloves garlic, mashed into a paste
• 1 inch piece of ginger, peeled and mashed into a paste and 2 inch julienned, for serving
• 1⁄4 cup flour
• 2 table spoons melted ghee
• Chopped cilantro, lemon or lime wedges, and naan bread, for serving (optional)
• Salt, according to taste

Preparation method

• prepare the gram masala: purée poppy seeds and 1 table spoon of water in a spice grinder into a paste
• Grind the remaining spices into a powder; stir into paste.
• To make the Nihari, heat oil and onion in a deep saucepan over medium heat. Cook until onion is caramelised, about 25 minutes; using a slotted spoon, transfer onion to a bowl
• Discard all but 1⁄4 cup oil from the pan. Add the lamb to cook it, turning as needed, until browned, 8–10 minutes. Stir in reserved gram masala, the cayenne, garlic and ginger pastes, and salt; cook 1–2 minutes
• Add 3 cups of boiled water. Reduce heat to medium-low; cook, covered, until lamb has fallen off the bone. Transfer lamb to a bowl and keep it warm
• Stir flour, ghee, and 1⁄4 cup water in a bowl and add to pan; cook until thickened, about 15 minutes. Return lamb to pan, stir the mixture until combined
• Serve with the reserved onion, julienned ginger, and, if you like, the cilantro, lemon or lime wedges, chilies, and naan bread