Lahm bi karrafs

Name: Lahm bi karrafs
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 1 h 30 min
Total time: 1 h 45 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: Egypt / Levant
Ingredients: 700 g lamb shoulder or neck, bone-in, cut into large pieces; 6 stalks celery, cut into 3cm pieces (include the leaves); 400 g cooked chickpeas (or 1 x 400g tin, drained); 1 large onion, roughly chopped; 4 garlic cloves, roughly sliced; 2 tbsp olive oil or clarified butter (samn); 1 tsp ground cumin; 1 tsp ground coriander; 0.5 tsp ground cinnamon; 0.25 tsp ground allspice; 0.25 tsp freshly ground black pepper; 1 tsp salt; 600 ml water or light lamb stock; 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice, to finish; 2 tbsp fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped, to garnish

Arab braised lamb with celery and chickpeas: a medieval dish of Levantine and Egyptian cooking

Origin: Egypt / Levant

From the journey of Celery.

Lahm bi karrafs (لحم بالكرفس, 'meat with celery') is one of the classic dishes of medieval Arab cookery and remains a living tradition in Egyptian, Syrian, Lebanese, and Iraqi home cooking. The dish appears in several medieval Arab cookbooks, including recipes close to it in the 13th-century Kitab al-Wusla ila al-Habib (The Book of the Bond of Friends), compiled in Aleppo and Cairo. Medieval Arab gastronomy was sophisticated and far-reaching; Arab physicians and cooks valued celery (karrafs, كرفس) as both a medicinal and culinary ingredient, noting its diuretic properties, its ability to aid digestion, and its ability to add a distinctive aromatic character to braised meats. The cooking tradition in which lamb or mutton is slowly braised with celery, chickpeas, and warm spices is one that has been practised continuously in the Arab world for at least eight hundred years, making lahm bi karrafs one of the oldest celery-based meat dishes still prepared today. The dish is typical of the Levantine and Egyptian table: warming, aromatic, simple in execution but complex in flavour, and deeply satisfying alongside bread or rice.

Ingredients

Meat

700 g lamb shoulder or neck, bone-in, cut into large pieces

Celery

6 stalks celery, cut into 3cm pieces (include the leaves)

Legume

400 g cooked chickpeas (or 1 x 400g tin, drained)

Base

1 large onion, roughly chopped
4 garlic cloves, roughly sliced

Fat

2 tbsp olive oil or clarified butter (samn)

Spice

1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground coriander
0.5 tsp ground cinnamon
0.25 tsp ground allspice
0.25 tsp freshly ground black pepper

Seasoning

1 tsp salt

Liquid

600 ml water or light lamb stock

Finish

1 tbsp fresh lemon juice, to finish

Garnish

2 tbsp fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped, to garnish

Method

Heat the olive oil or clarified butter in a heavy pot over high heat. Brown the lamb pieces on all sides in batches: do not crowd the pan. Remove and set aside.
Reduce heat to medium. Add the onion to the same pot and cook for 6 minutes until softened. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute.
Add all the spices (cumin, coriander, cinnamon, allspice, and pepper) and stir for 30 seconds until fragrant.
Return the lamb to the pot. Add the water or stock, salt, and celery. Bring to a boil, skim off any foam, then reduce to a gentle simmer. Cover and cook for 1 hour.
Add the chickpeas. Continue cooking, uncovered, for 20–25 minutes until the lamb is completely tender, the broth has reduced to a concentrated, flavourful sauce, and the celery is completely soft.
Finish with lemon juice. Taste and adjust seasoning. Scatter parsley over the top and serve over plain rice (ruz) or with flatbread.

Notes

This dish is considerably better the next day (the lamb, celery, and spices integrate overnight and the flavour deepens substantially. Reheat gently over low heat, adding a splash of water if needed. For a more traditional Egyptian preparation, omit the chickpeas and add a whole peeled tomato with the water, producing a lighter, tomato-tinged broth. The use of bone-in lamb is important for the richness of the broth) boneless shoulder can be substituted but the result will be less gelatinous.

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Journey Point Map Key

Ingredient originTrade or transit route

Became a culinary stapleColonial / trade control