Extra Schmaltz!

This meal is hearty, chock-full-of-nutrients, and fairly quick. The meat recipe is one I picked up along the way and the bulghur recipe is from the Almost Turkish blog. The yogurt sauce on the side is optional but it adds a nice balance to the meat. If you want to make the recipes separately, the meat sauce can be served over rice or macaroni, and the bulghur would make a nice side to any meat dish. Feel free to get creative with spices on the meat sauce--I used a seasoning mix from Morocco last time I made it. Afghani Meat Sauce 1 1/2 lb. ground lamb or beef 1 medium onion, diced 3 Tbsp. tomato paste 1/2-3/4 c. hot water 2 tsp. salt, or to taste 1 Tbsp. ground coriander 1 tsp. black pepper 1 pinch red pepper flakes 1 clove garlic, crushed oil for cooking If you have a pressure cooker, use it to cook the meat. If not, a regular frying pan with a lid will work. Heat a little oil in the pan and add the meat. Break it up thoroughly while browning. Cook until excess moisture is gone. Add t...

This is one of those surprise recipes that emerged from what I had on hand and turned out both delicious and beautiful, much to my surprise. It's a hybrid of a few of my favorite Thai recipes. If you're able to find Kaffir lime leaf, you can keep it in the freezer and it still tastes great. In fact, many Asian groceries keep it in the freezer already. Thai basil is optional, but I had some on hand (if you leave it out, use more lime leaf). 1.5-2 lb. ground beef 4 cloves garlic, minced 2-3 hot Thai peppers, sliced 1/2 red bell pepper, diced (optional but pretty) 4-6 Kaffir lime leaves, julienned very finely 1 small handful Thai basil leaves, chopped (optional) 1tsp. salt 2 Tbsp. fish sauce a couple of dollops of oyster sauce 4 green onions, cut into 1" pieces oil for cooking Brown the meat in a frying pan and break it up as finely as possible. (OR if you have a pressure cooker, cook it for 12 minutes--this makes it extra tender). Place a colander over a bowl and dump the me...