Khobeyza masri – Egyptian malva

Ingredients

• ½ kg malva – kho-bey-za
• ½ bunch coriander, chopped – koz-ba-ra
• ½ bunch dill, chopped – sah-bat
• 1 bunch swiss chard –sal’
• 4 cups broth – ma-ra-a
• ¼ cup rice – roz
• 2 medium onions, chopped – ba-sal
• 5 garlic cloves, chopped – tom
• 4 tsp ghee or margarine – zeb-da or sam-na

Directions

• Heat two cups of the broth in a medium deep pan over medium heat and bring to a boil. Add the coriander and dill.
• Wash the rice well and drain. Add to the broth and cook until tender.
• In the meantime, clean the malva and take the leaves off the stems and discard the latter and wash well. Chop the malva and the Swiss chard and boil it in a medium size pan in two cups of broth.
• Pour the cooked malva and Swiss chard in a blender and blend until smooth. Add to the rice and boil for three minutes or until the mixture thickens.
• Melt the margarine in a skillet. Add the onion and garlic and stir until golden brown. Immediately after the mixture turns golden brown, pour the full contents of skillet into the pan with the rice and vegetables. Do not stir!!
• Take the pan off the heat and semi-cover the pan for two minutes.
• Stir the malva only just before serving. Pour the malva in a bowl and serve with meat and plain rice on separate platters.