Quick and Easy Arabian Pea Stew

I write simple recipes to show that you can indeed make tasty food using real ingredients and often just as fast as heating a manufactured meal in the microwave. This easy pea Yakhni is just such an example. Yakhni means stew served over rice. I used to make this regularly for my children as they were growing up. It was simple and easy and much healthier than most prepared foods. The special Arabian spices of cinnamon and allspice make any Yakhni delicious to taste. The dill goes particularly well with the peas. Children love this food, because the spices taste sweet and the vegetables are cooked with the meat, so it all blends well together and tastes better than relatively bland vegetables cooked separately.

To make this dish you need:

1 cup (240 ml) rice

2 cups boiling water

Salt

Half an onion, chopped

Some fat or oil for cooking

2 Finely chopped carrots (hint: slice them thinly, that works and is quick)

½ kg Mince meat

2/3 kg Peas (fresh shelled or frozen)

15 g Fresh dill, cut into medium bits

Salt, pepper, cinnamon, and allspice

A little more water

Serves 2. Just double the ingredients if for four people. Some people prefer less rice and more stew. If so, simply adjust to your preferences. If you are vegetarian and adapting this recipe to a meat-free version, it is best to omit the allspice.

Put the rice, a sprinkling of salt, and 2 cups of water on high heat until it starts to boil. Reduce to a simmer and cover. Cook for the length of time recommended on the packet. When fully cooked, take off the heat, fluff up with a fork and cover for a few minutes. And while the rice cooks...

Heat the fat or oil, add onion and stir till it starts to brown. Add carrots and stir fry together for about a couple of minutes. Add meat on a medium to high heat and stir-fry quickly as you add pepper, cinnamon,and allspice. The amount of pepper and taste, and cinnamon and allspice are recognized as if the chips are on a plate of salt. Once the meat is cooked, add peas and continue to fry for a few minutes notice. Season with salt, then rapidly to cover almost boiling water. Reduce the heat to low, stir and cook just discovered until peas are done.

Serve the stew on rice, peas. Have fun!