So, we’ve survived lockdown eating nothing but pasta, rice and homemade banana bread. That’s possibly why I’ve been hungry for something a little different. Middle Eastern flavours rarely disappoint with their warmth and fragrance. There are a bunch of sites online where you can find recipes for making your own Baharat spice mix, or they are readily available in supermarkets. I am fortunate enough to have mine handmade by a work colleague who has not, as yet, divulged the recipe.

One thing that lockdown has reminded me of is the benefit of having local suppliers who sit outside of the mainstream food chain. We all remember the paucity of food on the shelves in April, and I’m not even going to start on the lack of loo roll.

My big find in recent months is a relatively new farm food ordering service. For this dish the lamb was purchased from www.antrobusfarms.co.uk 

Locally reared, with incredible depth of flavour, I can not recommend them highly enough. Well worth the little trip to Fillongley to collect your orders 

Serves 4

Ingredients 

• 4 lean lamb leg steaks, trimmed of all fat and very thinly sliced
• 3 teaspoons of Baharat Spice blend
• 2 teaspoons vegetable oil

For the Tabbouleh 

• 200g uncooked bulgar wheat
• 4 large spring onions, cleaned and sliced
• 1/4 cucumber
• Large sprig of curly parsley, finely chopped
• 6 halves of dried apricots, thinly sliced

Method

Having trimmed and sliced the lamb, place it in a bowl and add the vegetable oil. Mix thoroughly, ensuring all of the lamb is covered.  Add the Baharat spice mix and stir in. 

Put the lamb in the fridge for about an hour.

Rinse the bulgar wheat well and add to a pot with 800ml boiling water and a pinch of salt. Bring back to the boil and then set on a low simmer for 15 minutes. 

Once the spring onions, apricots and parsley have been prepared as above, quarter your portion of cucumber lengthways. Carefully remove the central seeded part and discard. Cut the remains of the cucumber quarters into four long batons before chopping the batons into fine pieces. 

Just before you drain the bulgar wheat after it has simmered for 15 minutes, take a heavy bottomed pan and place over a very high heat on the hob.

Drain the bulgar wheat and set aside in a large bowl. 

Throw the lamb in the preheated pan and stir continuously. You are aiming for the lamb to be just cooked, no more, as it is important that it remains really tender and juicy. This takes just a couple of minutes as the lamb is thinly sliced.

As soon as the lamb is cooked serve it on a warmed dish. 

Add the parsley, apricot, spring onions and cucumber pieces into the bulgar wheat, stirring to mix it completely and add to your plate. 

Apart from the marinade time, this wonderful dish can be achieved in less than 30 minutes. 

As always any and all comments are welcome at piratespantry@gmail.com