Fahsa

Ingredients

Lamb

• 800 glamb shoulder on the bone
• 2 litreswater
• 1onion
• 1bay leaf

Stew

• 1onion, chopped
• 4 clovesgarlic
• 3tomatoes, chopped
• 2 tbsphawaij
• 1 tspturmeric
• 2 tbsptomato paste
• salt

Hulba

• 3 tbspground fenugreek seed
• 500 mlcold water
• 2 tbspzhug
• juice of ½ lemon
• salt

To serve

• malooj or khubz
• a stone bowl

Directions

1. Start the hulba the day before, or at least 8 hours ahead. Soak the ground fenugreek in the cold water and leave it.
2. Fenugreek must be soaked long and in cold water. It swells enormously, the bitterness leaches out into the water, and it will not whip at all if the soak is short.
3. Pour off the dark water on top and discard it, keeping the swollen paste beneath.
4. Whisk the paste hard with a little fresh cold water, adding it a spoonful at a time, until it turns pale and roughly doubles into a light white froth.
5. Whisk it until it is genuinely frothy. This is an aerated foam rather than a paste, and it is the crown of the dish.
6. Fold in the zhug, lemon juice and salt, then keep it cold.
7. For the stew, simmer the lamb with the water, one onion and the bay leaf until completely tender, about 2 hours, then shred the meat off the bone and keep the broth.
8. Fry the second onion, the garlic and tomatoes with the hawaij, turmeric and tomato paste for 10 minutes.
9. Add the shredded lamb and enough broth to make a thick stew, and simmer for 20 minutes.
10. Heat a stone bowl until it is genuinely hot, either in a hot oven or over a flame.
11. Pour the stew into the hot stone bowl and spoon the hulba over the top, where it will seethe and bubble.
12. That bubbling in the stone is the dish and it is the reason it looks the way it does. Served in a cold ceramic bowl it is a good lamb stew and it is not fahsa.
13. Serve immediately, still bubbling, with malooj to tear and dip.

Technique

• The stone bowl, a madra, is the piece of equipment that makes this work. It holds heat far longer than metal or ceramic.
• Hulba is bitter, aromatic and slippery, and it divides opinion sharply. It is not a garnish and there is no leaving it off.
• Hawaij is the Yemeni spice blend of cumin, coriander, cardamom, turmeric and pepper, and it is worth mixing fresh.

Substitutions

• A small cast iron pan, heated hard, in place of a stone bowl.
• Beef in place of lamb, which is common and needs a little longer.

Variations

• Saltah, the closely related stew served the same way with a different base.
• With more zhug for a fiercer hulba.
• Made with shredded beef shin, which is the everyday version.

History

Shredded lamb stew served bubbling in a stone bowl under fenugreek froth, eaten with malooj bread.

Frequently asked questions

What is Fahsa?

Fahsa is a soup & stew from Yemen: shredded lamb stew seething in stone pot with fenugreek. Shredded lamb stew served bubbling in a stone bowl under fenugreek froth, eaten with malooj bread.

How long does Fahsa take to make?

Fahsa takes 30 min plus 8 hr soaking of preparation and 2 hr 30 min of cooking. The recipe makes 6 servings. It is rated hard to make.

What can I substitute in Fahsa?

Yes, within limits. A small cast iron pan, heated hard, in place of a stone bowl. Beef in place of lamb, which is common and needs a little longer.

What is the most important thing to get right in Fahsa?

Fenugreek must be soaked long and in cold water. It swells enormously, the bitterness leaches out into the water, and it will not whip at all if the soak is short.