Oven Baked Lamb Maglouba

Ingredients

2 cups basmati rice or 400 g, washed and rinsed

2 teaspoons ground cardamom

2 teaspoons dried lime powder

2 teaspoons ground cloves

2 teaspoons arabic mixed spicess

3 small eggplants or 400 g, cut into round slices

2 teaspoons salt

1 cup vegetable oil, for deep frying

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

400 g lamb, loin chop, with bones

1 medium onion or 100 g, finely chopped

5 cloves garlic, crushed

2 cubes MAGGI® Chicken Bouillon or 20 g

3 cups water or 750 ml, hot

2 tablespoons butter, melted

300 g cauliflower, cut into medium florets

1 medium onion or 100 g, sliced & fried for garnishing

½ cup pine seeds or 50 g, slightly toasted

100 g dough

1 teaspoon butter, melted

Preparation

Soak rice for 30 minutes and drain. Combine all spices and gently mix together with wet rice, allow to sit for 15 min.

Peel and cut eggplants into 2cm thick slices, dredge with salt and allow juices to draw. Heat vegetable oil in a pan, pat-dry eggplants and fry on both sides until golden brown.

In large sauce pan, heat Oil and fry Lamb pieces until golden brown, add chopped Onions and fry for another 5 minutes. Add Garlic, MAGGI® Chicken Bouillon and water and simmer over medium heat for 1 hour. Remove lamb and reserve hot stock.

Pour melted butter in the bottom of a Dutch Oven or ovenproof pot (a clay pot would work best), Layer Cauliflower florets on the bottom and cover with half of the rice. Layer the fried eggplants over the rice, place lamb pieces over the eggplant, and cover with the remaining rice. Make sure the content of the pot only fills 2/3 of the pot size, since rice will increase in size once fully cooked.

Pour hot stock over the rice, garnish with Fried Onion slices and Toasted Pine Seeds. Rice should be covered with stock, if needs be add more water.

Role out bread dough to a large enough size to cover the top of the rice pot plus an extra 3cm hanging over the edge. Place over the pot and gently pinch the edges ensuring a tight seal between pot and dough.

Brush with melted butter and bake in a preheated oven for 45 minutes or until the pastry is golden brown.