AFGHAN DUMPLING WITH SPICED LAMB - AUSHAK

By Katie

My knowledge of Asian dumplings never expanded much beyond the doughy wontons I’ve been fishing out of brothy Chinese soup since I was a kid. I was enlightened recently by my friend, cookbook author and food blogger Andrea Nguyen (VietWorldKitchen and AsianDumplingTips) who shared the wisdom she gathered researching her latest book, Asian Dumplings. As I sat there listening to Andrea wax poetic about why she loves dumplings, “they just make people happy,” it hit me: Afghans have Asian dumplings of their very own.

And of course it makes sense that this Central Asian country located smack in the middle of the famed spice route would count dumplings amongst its culinary delights. I’m familiar with just two varieties of Afghan dumplings: aushak and mantoo, although there may be other regional varieties in Afghanistan.

My favorite of the dumplings is aushak. It’s made with a delicate dough and is traditionally filled with gandana, a member of the onion family with a mild flavor and an appearance similar to leeks. Although you can find gandana in some specialty markets, I substitute garden variety green onions. The dumplings are gently boiled and then topped with garlicky yogurt followed by paprika- and coriander-spiced meat sauce. Dried mint finishes the dish.

A lot of people are intimidated by the notion of making homemade dumplings, particularly when frozen ones are just a Trader Joe’s freezer section away. But making aushak by hand is both satisfying and fairly easy to do. And to be honest, as busy working mothers, both Humaira and I take a major short-cut: we use store-bought wonton wrappers in place of hand-made dumpling dough. In Afghanistan these dumplings are typically served on a big platter as a main course. Arranged four to a plate on your best china, aushak also makes  an elegant first course.

Seems to me, dumplings are the sort of thing that should be made in community. Growing up in Afghanistan Humaira remembers large groups of extended family gathering for the sole purpose of making aushak. The festivities would conclude with everyone sitting down together over heaping platters of dumplings. I made them for dinner recently with the assistance of my very capable six-year old. We had enough left over for the kids’ lunches. I suspect mine were the only children at the lunch table dining on Afghan dumplings smothered in garlic yogurt sauce.

Afghan Dumplings

Aushak

4 tbsp. olive oil, divided

1 large yellow onion, finely chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 lb. ground lamb (you can substitute beef or turkey)

1 cup tomato sauce

1 ½ tsp. paprika

1 ½ tsp. ground coriander

3 teaspoons Kosher salt, divided

½ teaspoon black pepper

1 lb. green onions, washed, stems removed

½ teaspoons crushed red pepper flakes (optional)

1 package won ton wrappers

1 tsp. vinegar

1 cup plain yogurt

½ teaspoon ground dried garlic

1 tbsp. dried mint

Saute the onion over medium heat in 3 tablespoons of the olive oil until tender and translucent. Add the garlic and sauté another minute. Add the lamb and sauté until cooked through, breaking it up like finely minced taco meat. Add the tomato sauce, 1 1/2 teaspoons of the salt, the paprika, coriander and pepper. Cook over low heat, stirring regularly for 20 minutes.

While the meat is cooking, finely chop the green onions (use the entire onion). A Cuisinart is useful for this step. Heat the remaining tablespoon of olive oil in a sauté pan over medium heat and add the green onions, 1 teaspoon of the salt, and the crushed red pepper. Turn heat to low and sauté until tender, 10 minutes.

To assemble the dumplings, fill a small bowl with water and put it at your work station. Set a won ton wrapper on your work surface and dip the tip of your finger in the water. Moisten the edges along two connecting sides of the wrapper. The water will serve as glue for the dumpling. Put about a teaspoon of green onions in the center of the wrapper. Fold the dough in half over the green onion in the shape of a triangle. Use the tip of your finger to firmly press the edges of the dough together to form a tight seal. Next, lift the two longest points of the triangle and press them together, creating a little circle over the dumpling. It will look like a fancy napkin fold (see photos below for clarity).

While you are assembling the dumplings, bring a large pot of water to a gentle boil. Add the vinegar. Once all of the dumplings are done, immerse them in the water and boil according to directions on the won ton package (about 4 minutes). While the dumplings are boiling, quickly stir together the yogurt with the garlic and the remaining ½ teaspoon of salt.

Gingerly scoop the cooked dumplings out of the water with a slotted spoon, a few at a time, and arrange on a large platter.Spoon the yogurt over the dumplings and the ground meat on top of that. Sprinkle with dried mint and serve immediately.

Makes 25 dumplings.

here I'm pressing the edges of the dumpling firmly together to form a tight seal

here I'm bringing the two longest points of the triangle together and pinching them at the top like a fancy napkin fold

here you can see the water gently boiling after i've just added the first few dumplings

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MELT IN YOUR MOUTH COOKIES - AWB-E-DANDAN

By Katie

The direct translation from Dari into English of awb e dundawn, the name of these delectable Afghan cookies, is “water from the teeth”. I'm guessing that's the Afghan way of saying, “melt in your mouth". And these cookies will melt in your mouth. They should: Each one packs a hefty tablespoon of butter and oil.

Cooking fats are considered quite precious in Afghanistan. One of the ways Afghans, who are famous for their hospitality, honor their guests is to serve them the fattiest cut of meat, the dish brimming with the most oil. Butter is particularly dear on Afghan soil and not likely used for baked goods. Indeed the original recipe for this cookie, which I adapted from Helen Saberi’s book Afghan Food & Cookery, calls for vegetable oil. The use of butter in the recipe below is my own greedy addition.

I have to admit that I nearly stopped in my tracks when I first read the recipe for awb e dundawn. The instructions recommend kneading the dough for at least a half hour, ideally an hour. An hour of kneading anything is a baking deal breaker. Then it struck me that my kitchen, and hopefully yours, is outfitted with something even the most well-to-do Afghan woman lacks: a stand-up mixer. Whether my version of the cookies would measure up to Helen’s standards, I can’t be sure, but they disappeared from my own cookie tin in short order.

“Melt in your Mouth” Afghan Cookies

Awb e Dundawn

3 cups all-purpose white flour

1 cup confectioner’s sugar

1 ½ tsp. baking powder

½ tsp. ground cardamom

½ tsp. salt

½ cup unsalted butter, melted

¾ cup vegetable oil

1 tbsp. rosewater

1 tbsp. ground pistachios*

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Sift the flour, sugar, baking powder, cardamom and salt into the bowl of a stand-up mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. With the mixer turned to low add the butter and oil to the flour mixture in a slow and steady stream. Then, add the rosewater. Mix the dough on medium speed for 10 minutes.

Form the dough into smooth, round balls, about the size of a whole walnut, and distribute onto two baking sheets. Use your thumb to make a distinct imprint in the top of each cookie.

Bake for 10 to 12 minutes. The bottoms of the cookies will be lightly browned, the tops should remain pale. Remove from the oven and sprinkle the ground pistachios over the tops of the cookies. Allow them to cool and store in a tin with a tight lid.

*Grind the pistachios in a mini food processor or with some vigorous chopping using a chef’s knife.

Note: If you don’t have a stand-up mixer, you can do this by hand with a bit of elbow grease by first mixing the liquid and dry ingredients together in a bowl, and then kneading it by hand for a good long while.

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AFGHAN RISOTTO SLOW COOKER - SHOHLA-E-GOSHT

By Humaira

This is the last of our slow cooker series recipe. We have really enjoyed experimenting with the recipes to make them slow cooker friendly. Your positive comments have encouraged us to do slow cooker recipes in the future.

Ever since starting this blog I find myself obsessively talking about Afghan food and recipes with any Afghan who happens to cross my path. In one of those sessions, my friend Yasmene mentioned that her aunt makes shohla, Afghan risotto, in a slow cooker. So, I thought we should give it a try too.

This dish is not most photogenic, but it tastes heavenly. Shohla e goshtee is definitely one of my favorite Afghan dishes. I remember on cold winter days when our cook would make shohla, and I would eat spoonful after spoonful until I couldn't move. It’s a warm, hearty dish, perfect for fall or winter dinners.  

I have served this dish at my last few dinner parties and I must say it has been a big hit with the first timers as well as the scary crowd, Afghans Serving Afghan food to my mom or other Afghan guests always makes me a little uneasy (they have many constructive “comments”). But I bit the bullet last November and when I did some of the cooking for my sister Nabila’s birthday party, which we hosted at my house. The menu consisted of numerous dishes and since I have only four burners on my stove, I made the shohla in the slow cooker. I didn’t have to worry about it burning or not being ready on time -- a dream for entertaining.

There are different kinds of shohla; some are sweet, others are savory. Shohla e goshtee is savory and like most savory shohlas it is cooked with meat and beans. Sweet shohlas such as rice pudding are usually served as dessert. I make my shohla e goshtee with boneless beef stew meat since my husband Jim hates to futz around with bones. You can also use lamb or choose a cut that does well slow cooked on the bone. Cooking the dish low and slow really brings out the flavors of the meat and adds rich dimension to the soft, chewy rice, mung beans, and split peas. I like to eat the shohla with a dollop of plain yogurt and a salad.

Afghan Risotto

Shohla e Goshtee

2 large yellow onions, peeled and quartered

5 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 lb. beef or lamb stewing meat, cut into medium chunks

1 cup dried mung beans, rinsed

1 tbsp. tomato sauce

1/3 cup olive oil

2 cups beef broth

¼ cup yellow split peas

2 cups short-grain white rice, rinsed and drained in a colander

1 jalapeno pepper, stem removed, quartered and seeded

3 tsp. salt

½ tsp. ground black pepper

2 ½ tsp. dried dill

¼ tsp. turmeric

6 cups water

Plain yogurt

Large oval or round slow cooker

Puree the onions and garlic in a food processor. Put the onion/garlic puree, meat, mung beans, tomato sauce, olive oil and beef broth into the slow cooker. Mix well and cook on low for 4 hours until the meat is cooked through and most of the liquid is absorbed.  The sauce be aromatic and it will have a rich brown .

Add all the rest of the ingredients except the yogurt to the slow cooker. Stir thoroughly; continue to cook on low for 2 more hours. Cook until the meat is tender enough to easily cut with a fork and all the water is absorbed.  If all the water is absorbed but the rice is still crunchy, add another cup of water, stir well, and cooks for another 15 minutes. Serve hot with a spoonful of plain yogurt.

Serves 8

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