Egyptian Fatteh

Ingredients

• 450 gbeef (stewing cut), cut into chunks
• 1onion, quartered, for the braise
• 1chicken stock cube
• 2tomatoes, crushed or chopped, for the sauce
• 4garlic cloves, divided — 2 for the bread, 2 for the sauce, plus a little for frying the meat
• 1 tbsptomato purée, divided between the red sauce and the fried meat
• 2 cupslong-grain rice, cooked with 2¼ cups water
• fideo noodles (vermicelli/shareya), a small handful, toasted in butter before the rice goes in
• butter, used across several stages — frying the bread, the rice and the meat
• 2 tbspolive oil, 2 tbsp is enough for the sauce
• 1pita bread, torn into bite-sized pieces and fried
• 1 tbspground cumin, divided between the bread, the sauce and the meat
• 3 tbspwhite wine vinegar, for the red sauce
• salt, to taste
• black pepper, to taste

Method

1. 1

   Cook the beef: melt butter in a pot. Brown the beef, then add the quartered onion, salt, pepper and stock cube. Cover with water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for about 2 hours until very tender. Remove the beef pieces and reserve the broth separately.

2. 2

   Fry the pita: melt a knob of butter in a pan over medium heat. Add the torn pita pieces and fry until golden and crisp. Transfer to a glass baking dish. Add more butter to the pan, then briefly sauté 2 crushed garlic cloves with salt and cumin until fragrant. Toss the fried pita in this garlic butter. Set the dish aside.

3. 3

   Cook the rice: melt butter in a pot and fry the fideo noodles, stirring constantly, until deep golden brown. Add the rice and stir briefly until some grains turn opaque. Add 2¼ cups water and salt. Bring to a boil, cover tightly and simmer for 35 minutes until tender.

4. 4

   Assemble: pour enough reserved meat broth over the fried pita to saturate it. Layer the cooked rice on top. Spoon more broth over the rice until the liquid just reaches the top of the rice layer.

5. 5

   Make the red sauce: heat olive oil in a small pan. Add the crushed tomatoes, tomato purée, 2 crushed garlic cloves, cumin, vinegar, salt and pepper. Cook over medium heat, stirring, until fragrant and slightly thickened. Spread over the top of the rice.

6. 6

   Fry the beef: heat oil or butter in a pan. Add the reserved beef with a touch of tomato purée, crushed garlic, cumin, salt and pepper. Cook until golden and slightly crispy on the edges. Spoon over the assembled dish and serve immediately.