Khorashi with Buftek

We stopped off at the airport in Egypt on a trip abroad and amongst all the fast-food chains there was a place that served up khoshari, all made up in bowls, ready to eat. It literally had everything we needed to fill ourselves up before the flight. If you enjoy lots of textures and flavours, you will love everything about this.

Serves: 6

INGREDIENTS

For the buftek:

• 6 rump steaks
• 2 onions, blended to a purée
• 2 tsp salt
• 4 tsp ground black pepper
• 2 medium eggs, lightly beaten
• 250g dried white breadcrumbs
• oil, for frying

For the khoshari:

• 300g basmati rice
• 450ml cold water
• oil, for frying
• 3 onions, thinly sliced
• 8 cloves of garlic, minced
• 2 tsp salt
• 400g carton of passata
• 2 tsp chilli flakes
• 2 tsp apple cider vinegar
• 100g salted butter
• 3 tsp ground cumin
• 200g macaroni
• 400g tin of brown lentils, drained and rinsed
• 400g chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• fresh chives, for sprinkling
• lime wedges, to serve
• salt

METHOD

1. We should begin by prepping the beef steaks.Use a meat hammer to bash each steak till it is thin, about 25mm. Put the steaks on a large tray.

2. Put the blended onions in a bowl with the salt and pepper and mix through well.

3. Now smother the mixture all over the beef steaks, cover and leave to marinate for 4 hours.

4. After 4 hours, take each steak and dip into the beaten egg, then coat generously with the breadcrumbs. Set aside on a tray.

5. Now on to the khoshari. This is all about the different layers and textures. So, let’s start with the rice.

6. Wash the rice till the rice water runs completely clear. Put the rice in a pan with the cold water and the cinnamon stick. Cook the rice by bringing to the boil and stirring occasionally to stop the grains from sticking to the base. Once all the water has evaporated, lower the heat completely, put the lid on and leave to steam.

7. Now on to the tomato sauce. Pour the oil into a pan, enough to cover the base in a thin, even layer. Get the oil nice and hot. As soon as it’s hot, add the thinly sliced onions, making sure to separate them with your hands as you drop them in.

8. Fry the onions till they are crisp and very golden brown. You may need to do this in two batches dependent on your pan size. Remove the onions with a slotted spoon on to a plate lined with kitchen paper to drain. Sprinkle salt over generously to keep the onions crisp.

9. To the same pan, add the minced garlic, making sure the oil is still hot and adding a little more oil if you need to. Fry till golden Add the salt and the passata, along with the chilli flakes and apple cider vinegar and cook over a medium heat for 10–15minutes till thickened. Set aside. Take the rice off the heat. In a small pan, warm the butter till melted and browned slightly.

10. Add the ground cumin, mix through, and drizzle all over the rice. Fluff up the rice and set aside with the lid on. Now boil the macaroni till tender and not too soft or as per the instructions on the packet. Make sure to season the water really well. While the pasta is boiling, pour some oil into a large frying pan, enough to cover the entire base, and fry the beef in batches (you may need to do these two at a time). Fry for 5 minutes on each side, till golden brown and cooked through. Repeat for the rest of the steaks.

11. Drain the pasta and we are ready to begin layering the khoshari. Take a large platter and layer the rice on first in one even layer, removing the cinnamon stick. Add the layer of lentils and season with salt, then the chickpeas and season again. Add themacaroni, top with the tomato sauce and then the crispy onions.

12. Sprinkle over the chives and it is ready to eat. Plate up with lemon wedges and enjoy.