Bazin

The Method for Bazin

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1. Heat the oil and brown the lamb for 6 minutes. Add the onions and garlic and cook for 5 minutes.

   Mark done Start 6 min timer

2. Add the tomato purée, tomatoes, turmeric, cumin, chilli powder, salt and the 600 ml water. Cover and simmer for 40 minutes. Add the potatoes and simmer for 15 minutes more.

   Mark done Start 40 min timer

3. Bring the 900 ml water and 1 tsp salt to a boil in a large pot. Mix the flours and add them gradually, stirring, then beat vigorously over a low heat for 15 minutes until smooth, thick and glossy.

   Mark done Start 15 min timer

4. With wet hands, shape the dough into a dome in a large shallow bowl. Pour the sauce around it and arrange the potatoes and eggs on top.

   Mark done

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Keep an Eye on These

1. Use a sturdy wooden spoon for beating the dough.
2. Keep your hands wet when shaping.
3. Serve at once; the dough firms up as it cools.

If You're Missing Something

• An eighth of a teaspoon of garlic powder per clove is the stand-in usually given when you are out of fresh garlic; it will not brown the same way, and it burns easily, so add it with the liquid.

Good to Know About Bazin

In Libya, bazin is served in the middle of the table in one large bowl, shaped like a dome, with the sauce poured around it, and everyone eats from it by hand. The sight of it, a pale mound in a ring of red sauce with eggs and potatoes, is part of the dish.

The dough is barley flour mixed with some plain flour. It is cooked rather than baked: stirred into boiling salted water, then beaten hard with a wooden spoon over a low heat until smooth and heavy. Keep beating until it comes away from the sides and is entirely free of lumps. It takes about 15 minutes of effort. Wet your hands and shape the dough into a dome, smoothing the sides.

The sauce is tomato, onion, garlic and lamb, simmered with hot peppers, turmeric, cumin and plenty of oil until it is thick and dark red. The lamb needs 50 minutes to become tender. Potatoes and boiled eggs go in at the end.

To eat, tear off a piece of dough, dip it in the sauce and take a piece of lamb or potato with it.

On the Table Alongside

Green chilli · Fresh salad · Olive oil · Mint tea

Sides from the same cuisine on this site: Pita Bread, Rice Pilaf, Flatbread.

Leftovers

Best eaten fresh. The sauce keeps in the fridge for 3 days.

The Numbers per Serving

Per serving, calculated from the ingredient list with USDA FoodData Central figures (SR Legacy). A calculation, not a laboratory analysis: brands, cuts and how you measure change the real numbers. How the figures are worked out.

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