Lebanese Pasta Sauce
Lebanese Pasta Sauce is a Tomato based Sauced seasoned with Baharat/Bharat Seasoning for a Lebanese take on Spaghetti or any other type of Pasta. It’s a Lebanese Style Pasta and Sauce.
A really special Pasta Sauce that just has to be had once in a while. It’s like the Classic Italian Pasta Sauce but uniquely Lebanese Flavored. I serve this up with Garlic Bread, Twisty Bread or Garlic Fingers.
Pasta
For this recipe, we are making a classic Spaghetti with a Pasta Sauce that is Lebanese Seasoned.
This dish can also be made with Short Pasta for a Pasta Bake, which is Short Pasta and Sauce with Meat and other ingredients portioned into single serving Au Gratin Dishes or Casserole Dish. With or without Cheese.
Lebanese Pasta Sauce Base
The Base Sauce is Tomato Paste, Crushed Tomatoes and Tomato Juice or Sauce. Salt & Sugar with Black Pepper to taste and a good amount of fat. Preferably animal fat.
The Black Pepper added should be at least noticeable or more for a slight Spicy Pasta Sauce.
Meat
Ground Lamb is preferable. This can be substituted with Ground Beef. For Spaghetti, nothing beats a mix of three different meats. I often use Ground Beef, Steak and Sausage for and Italian version of Spaghetti. For a Lebanese style, I omit the Sausage. Although, a Lebanese Style Sausage can be used, such as Makanek. I use a Pork Chop in place of.
The mix of meats offers superior texture contrast that is wonderful in dishes like Spaghetti.
FAT
I often use Ground Beef instead of Ground Lamb. But I do use Lamb Fat for the Flavoring. If you don’t have this. Then Beef Suet, Pork Fat, Chicken Fat or even Olive Oil can be used. Although rendered animal fat will offer up more flavor.
I use about 100 g of Lamb Fat or more, which really makes this sauce fantastic. Render the fat out until the bits are crisp and set this aside to chop up fine to include in the Pasta Sauce.
Vegetarian Lebanese Pasta Sauce
For a Vegetarian take on this. Omit the Meat and substitute the Fat with Olive Oil.
My preference for doing a vegetarian version is to skip the Crushed Tomatoes and Juice. Instead, peel and seed the whole Tomatoes (Garden Tomatoes) and combine it with the coarsely chopped vegetables into a Casserole dish tossed with Olive Oil and the remaining ingredients, except the tomato paste. Cook for about 1 hour or more for good caramelization, and then run everything through a food mill or blender. Empty the Contents into a sauce pot and add in the Tomato Paste. Cook until desired consistency.
This version has a fantastic fresh and caramelized taste to the Sauce.
Vegetables
You can add in any vegetables you want. For Spaghetti the common vegetables are Onion, Garlic, Carrots, Celery and Peppers.
Lebanese Pasta Sauce Seasoning
The main seasoning is Lebanese Style Baharat Seasoning. This spice blend is used quite often to season a wide variety of dishes. From what I can decipher it seems like Baharat Seasoning and Lebanese 7 Spice are in fact different, with 7 Spice usually containing Allspice.
It is typically made up of the below Ingredients. In ratios that are different from source to source. Some have additional ingredients such as Allspice, Fennel Seeds, Bay Leaves etc…
- Black Pepper
- Cardamon
- Cinnamon
- Clove
- Coriander
- Cumin
- Nutmeg
- Paprika
I have my own blend for Baharat Seasoning and since Baharat Seasoning does vary in ratios of the spices. It is recommended to add a bit. Then taste and adjust, or else it could throw the whole dish off. If unsure, reserve the Baharat Seasoning for the End where you can add it to the Sauce let cook for a bit and then taste it to see if more can be added.
The Other Seasonings that go in are Parsley and Thyme.
Lebanese Pasta Sauce
Ingredients
Meat
- 1/2 lbs Ground Lamb or Beef
- 1 Beef Steak
- 1 Pork Chop - or 2-4 Lebanese Sausage like Makanek
- 100 g Lamb Fat - or more, chopped into small bits
Baharat Pasta Sauce
- 4 C Crushed Tomatoes
- 1 C Tomato Juice - or more for Consistency
- 1/4 C Tomato Paste
- 2 Tbl Baharat Seasoning
- 2 Tbl Sugar & Parsley
- 1 Tbl Salt
- Black Pepper to Taste
- 1/2 tsp Thyme
Vegetables
- 5 Garlic Cloves - Chopped
- 2-4 Stalks Green Onions - Chopped
- 1 Onion - Diced
- 1 Celery - Diced
- 1 Carrot - Shredded
- 1/2 Red Pepper - Diced
- 1/2 Green Pepper - Diced
Instructions
- Start by prepping all the Vegetables and set aside.
- Over medium heat in a Large Wok or Sauce Pot, Render the Lamb Fat. Once the Lamb is crisp, remove from the pan and set aside. When the Lamb Crackling is cooled, chop very finely and add back into the Sauce at the end.
- Cook the Beef Steak and Pork Chop or Sausages and set aside.
- Cook the ground Lamb or Beef until half way done. Add in all Vegetables and Baharat Seasoning and cook until the Ground Meat is done. Add in Tomato Paste and mix well. Cook for a few minutes, then add in remaining ingredients.
- Simmer for about 1 hour. Taste and adjust the seasoning and serve with Pasta.
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