TAHWICHEH OR KAMMOUNEH
LEBANON
Kammouneh (meaning “made with cumin”) or tahwicheh (meaning “foraged”) is more of an herb and spice mixture than just a spice mixture. It is specific to south Lebanon and, when prepared with fresh herbs such as marjoram, basil, mint, and parsley, it is known as tahwicheh while, when made with dried herbs, it is known as kammouneh. Both mixtures also include dried rosebuds, spices, bulgur, and onions. The mixture can be used as a spread over ground meat, or it can be mixed with the meat. When the tahwicheh or kammouneh is spread over the ground meat, the dish is known as malseh and when mixed in, it is known as kibbeh frakeh.
MAKES ABOUT 2 CUPS (250 G)
1 tablespoon cumin seeds
1 small onion (3½ ounces/100 g), quartered
¼ bunch flat-leaf parsley (2 ounces/50 g), bottom stems discarded
1 ounce (30 g) marjoram, leaves stripped off the stems
Small handful of basil leaves, plus more for garnish
Small handful of mint leaves
2 dried rosebuds, petals only
Zest of ½ unwaxed lemon
Zest of ½ unwaxed orange
½ cup (100 g) fine bulgur, rinsed under cold water and drained
Sea salt and finely ground black pepper
Put the cumin seeds, onion, herbs, and rosebuds in a food processor and process until very fine. Transfer to a large bowl. Add the lemon and orange zest and bulgur. Season with salt and pepper to taste and mix well. Store in a cool dark place in a hermetically sealed jar. Use with minced meat as explained below.
NOTE: The quantities I give above are enough for 10½ ounces (300 g) freshly ground lean lamb. (And please don’t buy preground meat, which will be too fatty. Also, you will not know which cut has been used.) Ideally, the meat to use for kibbeh should come from the top part of the leg. You can ask your butcher to mince it for you or if you have a meat grinder, you can mince it yourself using the fine attachment on the meat grinder and passing the meat twice through it. Once you have minced the meat, put it in a food processor, add salt to taste and 3 or 4 ice cubes, and process for a few seconds to make the meat really smooth. Scoop it out and spread on a platter. Spread the tahwicheh over the meat, leaving the edges free for malseh, or mix it with the meat and spread the mixture on a platter for frakeh. It is very important that you do either immediately before serving as the minced meat will change color very quickly and become less pink.