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Molokhia (Egyptian Jute Mallow)

Molokhia (Egyptian Jute Mellow Soup): الملوخية

Molokhia is a scrumptious iconic soup made of deep green leaves packed with anti-oxidants and fiber. Molokhia has a richly flavored broth as a base, and is spiked with fried-in-ghee paste of dry coriander and heaps of garlic.
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Total Time 25 minutes
Course Main Course
Cuisine Egyptian
Servings 6 people
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Ingredients
  

  • Frozen bag of minced green Molokhia, 400 grams, see notes
  • ¼ cup fresh minced cilantro, optional
  • 2 ½ cups broth, chicken broth, beef broth or vegetable broth
  • 1 garlic clove, crushed
  • Tasha
  • 5 whole garlic cloves
  • 1 tablespoon coriander seeds
  • Salt and pepper

Instructions
 

  • Defrost the frozen Molokhia: Defrost the Molokhia overnight in the fridge.
  • Warm the broth: Add 2- 2 1/2 cups of broth of your choice to a medium pan and warm over low heat. The broth should be just warm to touch and not too hot.
  • Add the Molokhia to the broth: Add the defrosted Molokhia to the warm broth and blend them together well using a wire whisk, until the Molokhia is totally incorporated into the broth. At this point you can add the fresh minced cilantro, if you're using, and whisk so well. Add 1 crushed garlic clove and whisk again and let the Molokhia gently simmer over low heat. Don't cover the Molokhia and don't let it boil.
  • Make the tasha:  In a mortar and pestle, pound together 1/4 teaspoon of salt, 5 whole gloves of garlic and 1 tablespoon of dry coriander seeds to a fine paste. Toss 2 tablespoons of ghee in a medium skillet over medium heat. Once the ghee is hot, toss in the coriander-garlic paste.  Add the Molokhia-cilantro paste to the hot ghee and stir continuously for a minute or two over low heat until the paste becomes  fragrant, crispy, and orange tinted. Immediately toss the Tasha into the simmering Molokhia soup. To catch all the strayed bites of garlic and coriander, add a ladle of Molokhia soup to the skillet where you fried the Tasha, swirl and add back to the Molokhia soup pan, and serve the Molokhia immediately.
  • Serve the Molokhia: Transfer the Molokhia to a deep serving dish. Don't cover it. Serve it in individual soup bowls and garnish with pickled red onions (recipe follows). Usually Molokhia is served with vermicelli rice, roasted chicken, or kabab Hala (Egyptian meat stew).

Pickled Onions

  • In a medium jar, combine the red vinegar, salt, pepper, olive oil, sumac and sliced red onions. Tightly seal the jar and shake until the dressing is well combined and the onions are evenly coated with the dressing. Let it rest for 1 hour at least in the fridge and use it to garnish the Molokhia or to use it in other dishes.

Nermine's Notes

  1. If you are using whole frozen Molokhia leaves or whole fish Molokhia leaves, then blend the leaves first with 1 cup of warm broth and then add them to rest of broth 1 1/2 cup and follow the rest of the steps.
  2. Tasha (aka Taklia) is a significant cooking asset in the Egyptian traditional cuisine.  Simply put, Tasha or Taklia is the process of frying coriander, and garlic in hot ghee and then adding them to a dish. The heat of the hot ghee unlocks the flavors of the coriander and the garlic. When this sizzling mixture of garlic and coriander is added to the Molokhia, it imparts its aromas and flavors and seals the dish with a unique taste and smell.
  3. Don't cover the molokhia or the color will darken and loose its vibrancy.
Keyword Egyptian recipes, festive recipes, soup recipes, superfood recipes, vegetarian recipes