AI-generated image
Ouzi
Ouzi: Jordanian and Syrian filo parcels of spiced rice, minced lamb, peas and nuts
Ouzi is the showpiece of Jordanian and Damascene wedding buffets and Eid lunches: golden filo bundles that break open to spiced rice, minced lamb, peas and toasted nuts. The name comes from the whole roast lamb once served on a mountain of rice; the parcels are the neat, home-sized version, made ahead and baked as guests arrive. Serve with plain yoghurt or a cucumber-yoghurt salad. The common mistake is filling the filo with wet rice, which turns the bottoms soggy, so cook the rice until just tender and spread it out to steam dry. Chef's tip: lay a few nuts and peas in the bowl first, then the filo, then the filling, so each parcel comes out with a pretty top.
- Total time
- 100 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 6
Ingredients
For the filling
For the nuts
For the parcels
To serve
Shop this recipe on Amazon
Spices & pantry
Fresh ingredients (7)
Links open Amazon in a new tab. As an Amazon Associate, WhatToEat.Today earns from qualifying purchases.
Method
0/8 doneStep 1: Warm 2 tbsp olive oil in a wide pan over a medium heat and soften 1 onion for 5 minutes. Add 14 oz lamb mince and fry, breaking it up, until browned all over with no pink left.
12 minStep 2: Stir in 2 tsp baharat (seven-spice mix), ½ tsp ground cinnamon, 1 ½ tsp salt and 1 carrot, then the drained 10 ½ oz basmati rice, and stir for a minute to coat the grains.
2 minStep 3: Pour in 2 ¼ cups hot water or chicken stock, bring to the boil, cover and cook on the lowest heat for 12 minutes, until the water is absorbed. Scatter 5 ½ oz frozen peas on top, cover again and leave off the heat for 5 minutes. Spread on a tray to cool and steam dry.
20 minStep 4: Fry 1 ⅜ oz blanched almonds and 1 oz pine nuts in 1 tbsp butter over a medium-low heat, stirring, until golden. Tip onto a plate at once.
4 minStep 5: Heat the oven to 375°F (350°F fan). Brush six small bowls or large muffin cups with a little of 3 ½ oz butter.
Step 6: Brush a sheet of 12 filo pastry with butter, lay a second on top at an angle and brush again. Put a few nuts in a bowl, press the filo in with the edges hanging over, fill with about one-sixth of the rice and fold the edges over to close. Brush the top. Repeat to make six.
15 minStep 7: Turn the parcels out onto a lined tray, seam side down, and brush with the rest of the butter. Bake for 20–25 minutes, until deep golden and crisp; the filling should be piping hot, at least 160°F in the centre.
25 minStep 8: Serve hot with 10 ½ oz plain yoghurt.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 640 kcal
- Protein
- 23 g
- Carbs
- 62 g
- Fat
- 33 g
- Fibre
- 4 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does ouzi take?
- About 100 minutes in total: 45 minutes to prepare and 55 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 6 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Can I make it ahead?
- Yes. It keeps well, so you can cook it earlier in the day or the day before and reheat it.
- What can I use instead of basmati rice?
- Any long-grain rice, same amount.
- What can I use instead of onion?
- 2 shallots per onion.
Reviews
No reviews yet. Be the first to cook it.
Rate this recipe
Sign in to rate and review this recipe.
You might also like
Pork souvlaki
This is a pork recipe. Walk through any Greek town after dark, from Athens to Thessaloniki, and the smell of souvlaki stands drifts down the street; cubes of pork shoulder grilled on thin skewers are the country's favourite cheap supper, eaten standing up or at a plastic-table taverna. At home you marinate the meat in lemon, olive oil, garlic and dried oregano, grill it hard and fast, and pile it on warm pitta with tzatziki, tomato and red onion. Chef's tip: cut the pork into even 2.5 cm cubes and leave a little fat on; lean loin dries out, shoulder stays juicy over high heat.
Greek
Tteokgalbi
Tteokgalbi is rib meat chopped finely, pressed back into neat slabs and grilled, so it's soft enough to eat without struggling with a bone. Two places in South Jeolla claim it: Damyang, the bamboo county, where all-beef patties come with rice steamed in bamboo tubes, and Gwangju's Songjeong district, whose restaurant street near the railway station mixes beef with pork. This home version uses minced beef and pork, seasoned with soy, garlic and pear, then brushed with a soy and honey glaze as it cooks. Serve with rice, lettuce and a few banchan; leftovers are good cold in a lunchbox. Chef's tip: slap the mince against the bowl for a few minutes; it turns sticky and the patties hold together on the grill without any breadcrumbs.
Korean
Char siu
Hanging in long glossy strips in the windows of Guangzhou's siu mei shops, char siu is the roast pork Cantonese families pick up on the way home to put on rice, noodles or into steamed buns. The outside is lacquered, sweet and a little charred at the edges; the inside stays juicy, savoury and faintly scented with five-spice. Shoulder (pork butt) is the cut to use, because its marbling keeps the strips moist through a hot oven. Marinate it overnight in the fridge, roast it the next day and eat it warm with steamed rice and blanched greens, or cold in fried rice and noodle soups. Chef's tip: save the honey for the last ten minutes; brushed on at the start it burns black long before the pork is cooked.
Chinese