Mombar

Ingredients

Casings

• 1 kgbeef or lamb intestine casings
• coarse salt
• plain flour
• juice of 4 lemons
• vinegar

Filling

• 400 gshort-grain rice, washed
• 300 gminced beef or lamb
• 2onions, very finely chopped
• 3tomatoes, grated
• 3 tbsptomato purée
• 1large bunch parsley
• 1 bunchdill
• 1 bunchcoriander
• 100 mloil or samna

Spice

• 1 tbspground cumin
• 1 tspcinnamon
• 1 tspground coriander
• 1 tspblack pepper
• 1 tspmixed spice
• salt

Boiling

• 2bay leaves
• 1onion
• 1cinnamon stick
• 1 tbspvinegar

To fry

• oil, for deep frying

Directions

1. Turn each casing inside out, which is done by pushing one end back on itself with a stick or a spoon handle and running water through. Turning them inside out is not optional, because the inner surface is the one that needs scraping.
2. Repeat with lemon juice and vinegar, then rinse again, and do the whole cycle three or four times. Keep going until the casings are pale, slippery and smell of nothing but lemon. Turn them back the right way out and check for tears, setting damaged sections aside.
3. Mix the rice with the mince, onions, grated tomato, purée, chopped herbs, oil and all the spices. Fill them no more than half full, and this is the single most important instruction here.
4. Tie off each end with kitchen string, and tie the length into shorter sections if you like. Prick each section several times with a needle. Bring a large pot of water to a simmer with the bay, onion, cinnamon stick and vinegar. Lower the mombar in and simmer very gently for about an hour.
5. Keep it at a bare simmer and never let it boil, because a rolling boil bursts the casings. Test one after an hour: the rice inside should be completely soft with no chalky centre.
6. Lift them out carefully and let them drain and cool a little. Now deep fry them at 180°C (355°F) for 3 to 4 minutes until the casings are deep brown, blistered and crisp. Stand back when they go in, because any trapped moisture spits.
7. Drain and serve hot, cut into lengths, with lemon and bread. It is a butcher’s dish in the true sense: it exists because the casings are there and nothing from the animal is wasted.

Technique

• Ask the butcher for cleaned casings, which cuts hours off the work.
• It is often served alongside stuffed vegetables as part of a mahshi spread.
• The boiled mombar can be refrigerated and fried the next day.

Substitutions

• Ready-cleaned sausage casings from a butcher.
• Vegetarian rice stuffing, with no mince, which is common in Egypt.

Variations

• Baked rather than fried, which is lighter.
• With more herbs and no meat.
• Served in a tomato broth rather than fried.

History

A butcher’s dish using the cleaned intestine of the animal; it is a Cairo speciality served at Eid and in offal restaurants alongside kawareh.

Frequently asked questions

What is Mombar?

Mombar is a main from Egypt: sausage casings stuffed with spiced rice and herbs, boiled then fried crisp. A butcher’s dish using the cleaned intestine of the animal; it is a Cairo speciality served at Eid and in offal restaurants alongside kawareh.

How long does Mombar take to make?

Mombar takes 1 hr 30 min of preparation and 1 hr 30 min of cooking. The recipe makes 6 servings. It is rated hard to make.

What can I substitute in Mombar?

Yes, within limits. Ready-cleaned sausage casings from a butcher. Vegetarian rice stuffing, with no mince, which is common in Egypt.

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

Turn each casing inside out, which is done by pushing one end back on itself with a stick or a spoon handle and running water through. Turning them inside out is not optional, because the inner surface is the one that needs scraping.