Bazeen

Instructions

1. 1 Heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium-high heat, add the lamb cubes and brown them on all sides for about five minutes. Add the diced onions and cook until softened and lightly golden.
2. 2 Stir in the tomato paste, turmeric, cayenne pepper, and fenugreek, cooking for two minutes until the spices are fragrant. Add enough water to cover the meat generously, then bring to a boil.
3. 3 Reduce the heat to low, cover the pot, and simmer the lamb stew for forty-five minutes until the meat is very tender. Add the quartered potatoes during the last twenty minutes of cooking.
4. 4 While the stew simmers, combine the barley flour and wheat flour with a generous pinch of salt in a large heatproof bowl. Gradually pour in boiling water while stirring vigorously with a sturdy wooden spoon.
5. 5 Continue adding boiling water and stirring forcefully until the mixture forms an extremely stiff, smooth, and cohesive dough. This requires significant effort and the dough should be very hot throughout the process.
6. 6 Shape the hot dough into a smooth dome on a large round serving platter by pressing with oiled palms and rotating in circular motions until the surface is even and the edges flare gently outward.
7. 7 Ladle the tomato lamb stew around the base of the bazeen dome, arranging the meat pieces, potato quarters, and peeled hard-boiled eggs attractively around the edges of the platter.
8. 8 Pour additional broth over the dome to moisten the surface. Serve immediately with fresh chillies and lemon wedges on the side, eating communally by pinching off pieces of dough by hand.