User:Goingtosafar/Mansaf

Mansaf

Mansaf (Arabic: منسف) is a traditional Jordanian dish made of lamb, and cooked in a sauce of fermented dried yogurt called jameed. It is served with rice or bulgur.

It is a popular dish eaten throughout the Levant. It is considered the national dish of Jordan, and can also be found in Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Syria. The name of the dish comes from the term "large tray" or "large dish". The dish evolved greatly between the 1940's and late 1980's, undergoing changes in the recipe as well as in the preparation process.

Evolution

Evolution in the Dish

Prior to 1945, Mansaf was made up of three main components: the bread, the meat and the clarified butter. The bread that was used is called khobz al-shrak. It is a whole wheat bread that is described as “thick”, “flat” , “paper-thin” and “crumb-less” . Mansaf was made using whole wheat flour because wheat was an easily accessible crop at the time. The specific type of bread varied based on local regions. The next main component of Mansaf was the meat. It was boiled in water in order to clean it from dirt and film that developed on its surface. After the meat was fully cooked, it was added on top of the bread, and the meat broth was poured over the bread. The final step was pouring the clarified butter, called samin beladee, on top.

The first evolutions to change this initial recipe were a decrease in the amount of broth added to the base, and adding bulgur wheat to the meal. This is because bulgur became a widely grown crop around 1945. The wheat was cleaned, boiled, then spread on a clean surface and left to dry in the sun for a few days. Once the drying process was complete, the wheat was ground up, which is what turns it into bulgur wheat. Finally, the bulgur wheat was cooked similar to how rice is cooked today.

Around the 1950’s, replacing bulgur wheat with rice started to rise in popularity when making Mansaf, due to a city in Jordan called Hartha’s proximity to Syrian and Palestinian borders. This resulted in better access to trade networks.

In the early 1960's, new toppings were introduced to the recipe of mansaf. Those include roasted almonds and pine nuts. A few years after that, the clarified butter and the broth were replaced with jameed, which is a yogurt sauce. People also started cooking the meat in this yogurt sauce, which resulted in a more “robust flavor” which marinated the meat during the cooking process.

Evolution in the Preparation Process

A Jordanian family enjoying mansaf for lunch.

Prior to the 1970's, mansaf was cooked in a large copper cauldron that was placed over a fire in the courtyards of one's home. The cauldron was so large that people had no choice but to cook the this dish outdoors. Once the ingredients were fully cooked, they would be placed on a large copper platter and carried indoors.

After the 1970's, many changes occurred to the original recipe and preparation of mansaf. The bread was replaced with rice, and the platter used for the mansaf changed from traditional copper to a florally decorated enamelware or aluminum platter. These changes happened due to advancements in technology, which made it possible for mansaf to be cooked indoors, in smaller amounts for smaller groups of people like families.