Ingredients

• 4 1/4 cups chicken stock preferably home made
• 28 ounces molokhai (jute mallow, Egyptian spinach, etc.) leaves
• 1 chicken stock cube
• 6 garlic cloves, crushed into paste
• 1 Tbsp olive oil

Instructions

1. In a large pan, place the chicken stock and set the heat to medium/high to bring the chicken stock to boil. Once boiling, reduce heat to low.
2. Add the molokhai to the boiling broth.
3. Allow to simmer uncovered for 15 - 20 minutes.
4. In a small skillet, heat a tablespoon of olive oil on medium heat. When hot, reduce the heat to low, then add the crushed garlic paste and fry, stirring frequently for 5 - 7 minutes or until the garlic begins to brown. You have to ensure the garlic does not get burnt.
5. Ladle a large spoonful of the molokhia soup into the skillet containing the fried garlic. Mix thoroughly to ensure all the garlic is in the molokhia mixture on the ladle.
6. Transfer the contents of the skillet (garlic and spoonful of molokhia) back to the pot. Mix well to ensure the garlic infuses the whole pot of molokhia.

Ingredients

• 1 cup peanut oil, lard or other vegetable oil
• 1 cup flour
• 2 cups chopped onion
• 1 cup chopped green bell pepper
• 1 cup chopped celery
• 4 cloves garlic
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 Tbsp Cajun seasoning (see below)
• 1 ham hock (optional)
• 10 cups water
• 3 pounds assorted greens (i.e. kale, collards, mustard greens, turnip greens, spinach, chard, parsley, dandelion greens, beet greens), chopped (about 14 cups)
• Salt
• 1 pound smoked andouille sausage (optional)
• File powder to taste (optional)
• Cajun Spice Blend
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 teaspoon cayenne
• 1 teaspoon celery seed
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 2 teaspoons dried oregano
• 1 Tbsp garlic powder
• 2 Tbsp sweet paprika

Instructions

1. Make the roux: Start the gumbo by making a roux, which will add a lot of flavor and thicken the gumbo. Heat the cup of peanut oil or lard (both are traditional roux ingredients) over medium heat for a minute or two and then stir in the flour. Mix so there are no lumps.
2. Cook the roux over medium-low heat until it is the color of chocolate. It is your choice how dark you let your roux go. The darker it is, the better, but once the roux gets dark it can burn easily, so you must stir constantly and keep and eye on it.
3. Heat water to a simmer: While the roux is cooking, bring the 10 cups of water to a simmer.
4. Add onions, celery, green pepper, then garlic to roux: When the roux is dark enough, mix in the chopped onions, celery and green pepper and turn the heat to medium. Let this cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables soften. Add the garlic and cook another 1-2 minutes.
5. Add bay leaves, spice, hot water: Add the bay leaves, the Cajun spice and slowly stir in the hot water. The roux will seize up at first, but keep stirring and it will all come together in a silky broth.
6. Add ham hock, greens, cover and simmer: Add the ham hock and all the greens. Taste for salt, but remember the ham hock will be salty, so let the broth be a little under-salted for now. If you want to add more Cajun spice, do so now. Cover the pot and simmer gently for 1 hour and 15 minutes.
7. Remove meat from ham hock bones, chop and return to pot: Check the ham hock. If the meat is falling off the bone, remove it, discard the bones, chop the meat and return it to the pot. If the hock is not ready, keep simmering the gumbo; ham hocks don't always cook at the same rate.
8. Add andouille sausage: Once the hock is ready, add the andouille sausage and cook for another 15 minutes.
9. Serve with file powder at the table.

Notes

Ingredients

• 1 kilo young bamboo shoots
• 1/4 kilo whole shrimp
• 1/4 kilo okra, sliced into half-inch pieces
• shrimp stock or 1 pc. shrimp cube
• 2 pcs. coconut, shredded
• 1 can corn kernels
• 1 bundle jute
• 3 large cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
• 1 pc. small onion, coarsely chopped
• a dash of salt to taste

Instructions

1. Boil the bamboo shoots until they become tender & fragrant. Drain & set aside.
2. In a bowl, squeeze out the extract (or milk) from the shredded coconut. If almost dry, add a bit of water and squeeze out again. Take out as much of the coconut milk as you can. Set aside.
3. Put the bamboo shoots in a casserole with just enough water and let it simmer for a minute.
4. Add garlic and onions. Simmer for another three minutes.
5. Add coconut milk, shrimp and shrimp stock or shrimp cube to the soup. Bring to a boil.
6. Add corn, okra and jute leaves. Bring to a boil again. Add salt to taste.

Notes

Ingredients

• 1/2 large Chicken
• 1 medium Onion, quartered
• 12 pods Green cardamom
• 1 Cinnamon stick
• 1 Bay leaf
• 1 teaspoon Salt
• 5 cups Water
• 2 Tablespoons Extra virgin olive oil
• 500 grams Fresh molokhia
• 2 cups Egyptian short-grain rice
• 2 Tablespoons Ghee (clarified butter)
• 1 teaspoon Lemon juice

Instructions

1. Add the chicken, onions, cardamom, cinnamon, bay leaf salt and water to a stock pot that's just large enough to hold the chicken. The chicken should be completely submerged. Cover and bring to a boil, then remove the lid and skim off any scum that accumulates on the surface. Keep skimming until there's no more foam coming up. Turn the heat down to a simmer, and cook the chicken for 20 minutes.
2. To make the Taqliya, combine the garlic, coriander and olive oil and salt and mash together into a paste.
3. Prepare the molokhia, by removing the leaves from the stems, and then washing thoroughly to remove the grit that accumulates on the leaves. Use a mezzaluna or chef's knife to mince the leaves. You can also put the leaves in a food processor and pulse.
4. When the chicken is done, transfer it to a bowl using tongs and cover the chicken with plastic wrap to keep it from drying out.
5. Thoroughly wash the rice and cook it according to the direction on the package, but substitute the chicken stock for the water.
6. When the rice 15 minutes away from being done, preheat the oven to 230 C (450 degrees F) spread about 1/3 of the Taqliya on the chicken skin, sprinkle with salt, and then place the chicken on a roasting pan. Bake the chicken for 15 minutes, or until the skin is golden brown.
7. Add half the remaining Taqliya to a pot. Fry the mixture until fragrant and browned. Add the 1 1/2 cups of reserved chicken stock along with the minced molokhia. Gently simmer, stirring occasionally until the molokhia is cooked (about 10-15 minutes). If you like your molokhia thinner, add more chicken stock. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
8. Add the remaining Taqliya to a small frying pan along with 2 tablespoons of ghee. Fry until the garlic has browned.
9. Add the lemon juice to the molokhia and stir it in.
10. To serve, put the rice in a large platter. Section the chicken into pieces and place them on top of the rice. Serve the Molokhia in a separate bowl to pour on the rice and chicken.

Notes

Ingredients

• 300 oz jute mallow leaves
• 1 cup cilantro, chopped (1 bunch)
• ¼ cup onion, diced (half an onion)
• 2 Tablespoons garlic, minced (7-10 cloves)
• ¼ cup lemon juice
• 3 Tablespoons olive oil
• 1 jalapeno, diced
• 6 cups chicken stock
• 1 cup of pulled chicken or half a chicken (cooked)
• 2 teaspoons sea salt (adjust to taste)
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
• Vinegar-marinated onions
• 1 sweet onion, finely diced
• 1 cup apple cider vinegar
• Pinch of salt
• Chicken stock
• 1 half chicken (use a whole chicken if preferred)
• 6 cups water
• 2 bay leaves
• 5 cardamom pods
• Generous pinch of salt

Instructions

1. Jute leaves are sold in bunches, like parsley or mint. To prepare for this stew, pick the leaves off the stems and roughly chop them. If they're chopped finely, they will become stringy, so stay with the rough chop. You will need about four bunches to make enough to serve four. They wilt like spinach. Set aside the chopped leaves. Finely dice the onion, jalapeno and garlic and saute in the pot with the tablespoons of olive oil. Finely chop the cilantro and add to the pot. Once all wilted, add the chicken stock and start adding the mallow leaves a handful at a time, alternating with the lemon juice until all the leaves are in. Stir them in the stock to submerge them. Add salt and pepper and the pulled chicken and let simmer for 10 minutes on low heat. Serve with steamed rice and vinegar-marinated onions with the vinegar (about 2 tablespoon per plate).
2. For the chicken stock, place all ingredients in the water, bring to a boil, cover and let simmer for 40 minutes. Turn off heat and let cool before working on the chicken.

Notes