Shrimp Machboos (spiced rice with shrimp)

Name: Shrimp Machboos (spiced rice with shrimp)
Total time: 75 min
Yield: 6
Cuisine: Emirati
Ingredients: 1 kg fresh shrimp, peeled (tails left on) and deveined; 3 cups basmati rice, rinsed and soaked for 30 minutes; 3 onions, chopped; 5 cloves garlic, crushed; 1 tbsp grated ginger; 3 tomatoes, chopped; 2 tbsp tomato paste; 2 green chilies; 4 tbsp ghee (samn) or oil; 1 tbsp bezar (or mixed spices); 1 tsp turmeric; 1 tsp ground cumin; 3 dried black limes (loomi), pierced; 4 cardamom pods, 1 cinnamon stick and 3 cloves; A pinch of saffron soaked in rose water or hot water; ½ bunch fresh coriander, chopped; 4½ cups hot fish stock or water, and salt to taste

Emirati75 minServes 6

Shrimp machboos is one of the best-known rice dishes of the Emirati and wider Gulf coast, built on spices such as bezar, dried lime and cardamom and usually served with daqoos, a spicy tomato sauce. It is said that machboos grew out of spiced rice dishes that reached the Gulf through sea trade with India, but this is not firmly documented.

Ingredients for Shrimp Machboos

1 kgfresh shrimp, peeled (tails left on) and deveined
3 cupsbasmati rice, rinsed and soaked for 30 minutes
3onions, chopped
5 clovesgarlic, crushed
1 tbspgrated ginger
3tomatoes, chopped
2 tbsptomato paste
2green chilies
4 tbspghee (samn) or oil
1 tbspbezar (or mixed spices)
1 tspturmeric
1 tspground cumin
3dried black limes (loomi), pierced
4cardamom pods, 1 cinnamon stick and 3 cloves
A pinch ofsaffron soaked in rose water or hot water
½ bunchfresh coriander, chopped
4½ cupshot fish stock or water, and salt to taste

Method

Season the shrimp with 1 tsp turmeric, 1 tsp bezar, the juice of 1 lemon and a little salt, and leave for 15 minutes.
Heat the ghee in a wide pot and brown the onions until golden. Add the garlic, ginger and green chilies and stir for a minute.
Add the cardamom, cinnamon, cloves, bezar, turmeric and cumin and stir for 30 seconds. Add the tomatoes and tomato paste and cook down to a thick sauce.
Add the loomi and hot stock and boil for 10 minutes so the flavours infuse. Add the seasoned shrimp (see step 1), cook for just 2 minutes, then lift it out and set aside so it does not toughen.
Add the drained rice to the simmering stock so the liquid sits about 2 cm above it. Stir in the coriander and saffron, adjust the salt, and cook over high heat until most of the liquid is absorbed.
Reduce the heat to the lowest setting, cover the pot with a cloth and a tight lid, and cook for 15 to 20 minutes until the rice is done. Rest for 5 minutes without opening.
Fluff the rice gently and serve on a large platter with the seafood on top, alongside daqoos, lemon and fresh greens. Return the shrimp on top of the rice for serving.

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