🇪🇬 Egypt
Stuffed Pigeon
In Cairo the pigeon towers still stand over the rooftops, and a wedding without hamam mahshi barely counts as one.
🔪 Prep: 30 min🔥 Cook: 60 min📈 Difficulty: Takes love
Cooking for
4 people
✨ What makes it special
Whole pigeons stuffed with cinnamon-scented freekeh, boiled in broth, then fried or grilled to a burnished skin.
Ingredients
- 4 whole pigeons (or small squab)
- 300 gfreekeh, rinsed
- 1 onion, finely chopped
- 3 tbspghee
- 1 tspcinnamon and allspice
- 2 cardamom pods and bay leaves (for the broth)
- 50 gchicken livers, chopped (optional)
Method
- 1
Toast the freekeh in ghee with onion, spices, and livers until fragrant, then moisten with a ladle of broth.
- 2
Stuff each pigeon loosely — the freekeh swells — and sew or skewer it closed.
- 3
Simmer the pigeons in broth with cardamom and bay until just tender, about forty minutes.
- 4
Lift them out, dry the skin, and fry in hot ghee until deep gold.
- 5
Serve whole — the guest of honor gets first pick.
🍽 On your table
How this dish looks served for 4