MAFRUM - TRADITIONAL LIBYAN SABBATH DISH

Potatoes and egpplant stuffed with meat and stewed in a rich sauce of tomatoes and vegetables.

Recipe from Rina MEVORACH  - serves 6

MAFRUM - TRADITIONAL LIBYAN SABBATH DISH

Potatoes and egpplant stuffed with meat and stewed in a rich sauce of tomatoes and vegetables.

Recipe from Rina MEVORACH    - serves 6

 Rina prepares the mafrum  in her Jerusalem kitchen with her grand-daughter Enelle. She is teaching her the dishes she still cooks every day, passing on the tastes and flavours from her original home in Tripoli in Libya. 

Filling

In a large bowl mix:

•  ½ kilo / 1 lb mince meat – beef or lamb, or a combination 
• 1 onion and 2 large garlic cloves, chopped together, in a food processor, or by hand 
• 1 cup flatleaf parsley, chopped
• 2 eggs
• 1 tablespoon oil
• Spices:
• ¼ teaspoon black pepper
• ¼ teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon soup powder (or 1 teaspoon salt)

Vegetables for stuffing

10 potatoes, washed and peeled
1 medium eggplant, peeled and cut into fat chunks. 

You want the eggplant  about 2 inches/5cm thick so that you can divide them and stuff meat in the middle. 

Cut potatoes lengthways into 2 inch / 5 cm slices and cut each slice almost in half, so that it hangs together at the end, leaving you room to stuff meat in the centre. In the end you have what looks like a potato sandwhich. Repeat the same process with the eggplants slices.

Frying

• Flour for dipping
• 2 eggs
• Salt and pepper

Prepare one bowl with flour, and another with an egg wash, made by beating the eggs with a fork, and adding salt and pepper. When all the vegetable parcels stuffed with meat are ready, dredge them in flour. Dip the flour dredged parcels in the egg, and fry in deep oil, so that the outside is sealed and the oil is not absorbed. When they are brown, but not cooked through, remove from the oil, and lay on paper towels. 

NOTE: You can prepare the mafrum to this stage, then put the vegetable rissoles in the fridge for 24 - 48 hours till you are ready to complete the dish. You can also freeze them at this point.

stew

• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 large potato, chopped thickly
• 2 carrots, sliced
• 3 garlic cloves
• 1 small container tomato paste
• 1 tablespoon oil
• Spices:
• 1 tablespoon chicken soup powder, or 2 chicken stock cubes
• 1 tablespoon sweet paprika
• ½ teaspoon cinnamon

You will need a large pot, as it will have to fit the parcels, plus the additional vegetables which are part of the tomato stew.

Put the stew ingredients into your large pot. Heat together over a medium flame, till just combined, then lay the mafrum on top. Cover with boiling water. Allow the sauce come to the boil, then lower the heat and stew for 90 minutes. If the sauce gets too thick, just keep adding water. Serve with rice.