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Dishing it up / With virtues as numerous as its seeds
By Haim Cohen and Eli Landau
Tags: Recipe, Israel News

"In honor of Simhat Torah, I feel like preparing dishes based on pomegranates," said the chef. "Although the pomegranate is one of the symbols of Rosh Hashanah meals, now is the height of its season, so what could be more fitting for our holiday meal?"

"If we're already talking about the Torah," replied the doctor, "I couldn't agree more, because we're talking about one of the Seven Species, and besides, the pomegranate has 613 seeds, each of which symbolizes a mitzvah. But I consider the pomegranate a real marvel. There is proof that its juice helps to fight cancer, especially prostate cancer, and most important of all, its fruit is absolutely delicious, perfect. Equally sweet and sour, it can therefore serve as a dessert, but can also be used in the cooking, marinating and seasoning of meat dishes and in salads."

The doctor continued to enumerate the advantages and uses of the wonderful fruit: "Pomegranate concentrate can replace vinegar in any recipe. The juice can serve as a slightly sour seasoning and constitute an important part of any sauce. A pomegranate juice marinade does wonders for lamb and poultry. The seeds are a a marvelous addition to fresh salads, rice and potato dishes, and desserts as well. The combination of pomegranate flavors with the bitterness of the salad leaves will yield nothing less than perfection. For example, the combination of arugula, pine nuts, fresh lettuce and pomegranate seeds will make a wonderful salad, and the addition of blue cheese (such as Roquefort) will vastly improve its taste."
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The chef's reply? "Let's cook with pomegranates." The following are the results.

Pomegranate risotto

A slightly sour and wonderful-tasting dish.

half kg. rice for risotto

1.5 liters hot vegetable stock

1.5 cups pomegranate juice

seeds from 1 pomegranate

1 medium-sized onion, finely chopped

100 gm. butter

olive oil

4-5 tbsp. grated Parmesan

salt and pepper

In a heavy, medium-sized pot, melt 50 gr. butter with 2 tbsp. olive oil. Add the onion; saute over medium heat until it becomes transparent. Add the rice and saute for another minute or two, while stirring. Add half a cup pomegranate juice and cook until it evaporates almost completely. Add one ladle full of vegetable stock. Add salt and pepper; stir until the liquids are absorbed. Gradually add one ladle full at a time, while stirring. After about 15 minutes of cooking, when the rice is still hard, add the pomegranate seeds and continue to cook until the rice softens. The risotto should be well cooked, not al dente.

Turn off the flame and add 50 gr. butter; stir until it melts. Add the Parmesan, mix well and serve.

Pomegranate chicken

1 whole chicken, cut in 8 parts

1 cup pomegranate juice

1 medium-sized onion, finely chopped

olive oil

1 small sprig of rosemary

flour

salt and pepper

Dredge the chicken pieces in flour and shake off excess. Heat 3 tbsp. olive oil in a heavy, medium-sized pot and saute the chicken (two to three pieces at a time). Set all the browned chicken pieces aside on a plate, and add the onion to the pot. Stir for 2 minutes and add the rosemary, sauteeing until the onion begins to brown. Return the chicken pieces to the pot with any juices that may be on the plate. Stir and add half cup pomegranate juice. Cook until the liquids evaporate almost completely. Add another half cup pomegranate juice and bring to a boil. Lower the flame to a minimum; simmer for 45 minutes in a covered pot, turning over the pieces of chicken from time to time.

After cooking, add the pomegranate seeds. Wait 10 minutes before serving.

Roasted short rib in pomegranate juice

A very special roast, slightly sour, with a strong flavor and color. A perfect dish for this time of year.

a 3-kg. piece of shpundra (short rib), with fat removed by the butcher, and tied as for a roast

2 thinly sliced onions

2 thinly sliced leeks (both the white and green parts, but without leaves)

1 head of garlic separated into cloves, peeled and chopped

1 celeriac, peeled and chopped (or 2 stalks celery, with leaves, chopped)

half a liter pomegranate juice

half a liter chicken stock

leaves from 6 sprigs of thyme

1 tbsp. rosemary needles

3 fresh bay leaves or 2 dried ones

seeds from 1 pomegranate

olive oil

salt and pepper

In a large, heavy pot, heat 3 tbsp. olive oil; add the meat and brown it on all sides. Then remove and set aside. Place onion and leeks in the pot, and saute while stirring, until they become transparent. Add the garlic, carrots and celeriac; continue stirring until the onion begins to brown. Add thyme, rosemary and bay leaves, and sautee while stirring for 2 or 3 minutes. Add 1 cup pomegranate juice and, with a wooden spoon, scrape the bottom of the pot and loosen anything that has stuck to it. Add the rest of the liquids. Add salt and pepper; bring to a boil.

Return the meat to the pot. Bring to a boil again and lower the flame to a minimum. Cover the pot and transfer it to the oven (preheated to 100 degrees Celsius); alternatively, simply cover it and leave it on the stove, on the smallest burner, for 3 and a half hours. From time to time, baste the meat with the liquids.

When the meat is cooked, place it on a serving platter. Leave the pot on the stove and turn up the flame. Continue cooking until the sauce thickens.

Untie the roast (which has cooled off by now). Cut it into slices about 1 cm. thick. Pour some of the sauce over; if there is any left, serve it in a side bowl. Sprinkle the pomegranate seeds over the meat and serve.

Kibbeh in the style of Syrian Jews

One of the fancier dishes from the culinary tradition of Syrian Jewry. Preparing the recipe is somewhat complicated, but the effort is worthwhile. These are not small kibbeh balls that require the manual dexterity of a watchmaker, but large ones that are easy to manipulate. This can be an appetizer or a main course.

For the outer layer:

2 cups of Persian rice

half kg. lean ground lamb

1 tsp. salt

For the filling:

half kg. ground beef

1 celeriac, finely chopped

100 gm. roasted pine nuts

24 dried apricots immersed for half an hour in hot water, drained and dried

1 tsp. salt

black pepper

pinch of cinnamon

1 tsp. ground coriander seeds

olive oil

For the sauce:

2 medium-sized onions, chopped

half a liter fresh pomegranate juice

4 tbsp. pomegranate concentrate (syrup)

1 tsp. sugar

salt and pepper

Soak the rice in warm water for half an hour. Drain and wrap in a paper towel. Transfer the rice to a food processor and grind very finely. Add the ground meat and process in pulses until a kind of dough is formed. Divide the dough into four balls.

Prepare the filling: Mix ground meat, celeriac, 1 tbsp. olive oil, salt, pepper, cinnamon and coriander seeds. Divide the mixture into four parts.

Take a ball of rice dough and place between sheets of cling-wrap or baking paper. Roll out with a rolling pin until you get a rectangle about 15 x 20 cm. Remove the top sheet of cling-wrap/paper.

Spread the meat filling on the dough, leaving an outside margin of about 1 cm. Scatter a quarter of the pine nuts on the meat and place six apricots on top, in a row down the center. Lift the bottom sheet of cling-wrap/paper and roll up the kibbeh, pinching the ends to close them. Continue gently until you get a cylindrical roll; wrap it in the same cling-wrap/paper and set aside. Do the same with the three remaining balls. Refrigerate the four rolls for at least half an hour.

Heat 2-3 tbsp. olive oil in a large flat skillet that will hold the four kibbeh cylinders in one layer; brown them, one at a time, on all sides. Remove and in their place, saute the onion in the pot until it is transparent. Add salt and pepper; stir for about 2 minutes. Add all the liquids and sugar; bring to a boil.

Place the four kibbeh in the pot, side by side. Bring to a boil again. Lower the flame to a minimum and simmer for 45 minutes in a covered pot, making sure to lift the lid from time to time to baste the kibbeh with the cooking liquids.

Transfer the kibbeh to a serving platter. Cut each roll into two or three parts. Pour some of the cooking liquids over and serve with white rice. More cooking liquids can be poured over it, too, of course.
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