National Dishes of the World

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Bariis iskukaris
Photo: Richard Faulder, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons

main dish

Bariis iskukaris

Fragrant rice with goat or lamb and the xawaash spice blend, served with a banana on the side.

Eaten in: Djibouti, Somalia

Prep
25 min
Cooking
1 h 20 min
Total
1 h 45 min
Servings
4

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About the dish

Bariis iskukaris is a celebratory Somali dish of basmati rice cooked with meat, onion, tomato and xawaash, a spice blend of cumin, coriander, cardamom, cinnamon, cloves and black pepper. The meat, usually goat or lamb, is braised separately, and the rice is often topped with raisins, fried onions and peas. A banana eaten bite for bite with the rice is the signature side, along with a hot green sauce of coriander and chilli. It is served on Fridays, at weddings and during the Eid holidays.

Main ingredients

  • basmati rice
  • goat or lamb
  • onion
  • tomato
  • xawaash spice
  • raisins

Djibouti: In Djibouti a similar spiced rice with lamb is called skoudehkaris and regarded as the national dish.

More: Wikipedia (en)

Recipe

Bariis iskukaris

https://foodmap.ominuvo.com/dish/bariis-iskukaris

Ingredients

4 servings

4 servings

Method

  1. Rinse the rice several times and soak it in cold water for 30 minutes.

  2. Cut the meat into pieces and brown it in half the oil with one chopped onion, the garlic and a tablespoon of xawaash.

  3. Add one chopped tomato, cover with water, season with salt and simmer, covered, for about an hour until tender.

  4. In another pot soften the second onion in the remaining oil with the cardamom and cinnamon, then add the second tomato and the rest of the xawaash.

  5. Add the drained rice, stir, pour in 600 ml of the meat broth (topped up with water) and season with salt.

  6. Cook, covered, over very low heat for 15–18 minutes until the rice has absorbed the liquid, scattering the raisins on top near the end.

  7. Serve the rice with the meat on top, with a banana and hot sauce.

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