Hashweh – Lebanese Rice

The word for “Stuffing” in Arabic is Hashweh, and that’s what Palestinians call this dish even when it doesn’t function as an actual stuffing. Other cultures in the Arab world have different names for similar preparations, including quzi (the Arabian Gulf), ruz bilkhalta (Egypt), or ruz mtabal (Syria).
Hashweh is a one-pot rice dish, loaded with ground or minced beef (or lamb), lots of toasted nuts and dried fruit like raisins. It is anything but bland. Expect layers of flavour in each bite, thanks to aromatics and warm Middle Eastern spices like cinnamon and allspice. It can be served as a side dish, but for me, it is the perfect weeknight dish, ready in 30 minutes. Although not exactly authentic, the beauty of this dish is you can include any vegetables you have in the fridge and you have yourself a healthy, nutritious and so tasty dish. Serve it the following day with a grilled meat; delicious.

INGREDIENTS
1 ½ cups basmati or medium grain rice
Olive oil
1 Small red onion, finely chopped
1 Large carrot grated
3 Celery branches finely chopped
1 lb lean ground beef or lean ground lamb
1 ¾ tsp ground allspice, divided
½ tsp minced garlic
¾ tsp ground cloves
¾ tsp ground cinnamon
salt and pepper
½ cup fresh parsley leaves, roughly chopped
⅓ to ½ cup pine nuts, toasted
⅓ to ½ cup slivered almonds, toasted
½ cup dark raisins

PREPARATION
Soak the rice in cold water for 15 minutes or until you are easily able to break one grain of rice between your thumb and index fingers. When ready, drain well.
Meanwhile, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a heavy cooking pot. Add chopped red onions, cook on medium-high heat briefly, add the celery, grated carrot then add the ground beef.  Season the meat mixture with 1 ¼ teaspoon allspice, minced garlic, ½ teaspoon ground cloves, ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon, salt and pepper. Toss together to combine. Cook until the meat is fully browned (8-10 minutes). Drain.
Top the meat with rice. Season the rice with a little salt and the remainder of the allspice, ground cloves and cinnamon. Add 2 ½ cups of water and 1 tablespoon of olive oil to cover the rice.
Turn heat to high and bring the liquid to a rolling boil. Let boil until the liquid has significantly reduced (see picture below).
Now turn heat to low and cover; let cook for 20 minutes or until moisture has completely been absorbed and the rice is no longer hard nor sticky. Remove from heat and set aside for 10 minutes.
Uncover the rice pot and place a large round serving platter on the opening of the rice pot. Carefully flip the pot contents onto the platter so that the meat layer now tops the rice.

Garnish with parsley, toasted pine nuts, almonds and raisins. Enjoy.