A staple in Middle Eastern cuisine, hashweh (or hushwee) is a humble, flavor-packed dish made of ground meat cooked in clarified butter, browned rice then seasoned with cinnamon and toasted pine nuts. It is naturally gluten-free and paleo.
You know how certain people have their specialties in every family? Well in our family, my Aunt Paula is famous for hashweh. No matter how hard I try, mine never quite tastes like hers and ironically, she always thinks hers is missing something too. (Trust me, hers is perfect. Every. Single. Time.)
What is hushwee:
Hashweh (or hushwee) is a simple, modest recipe made with ground meat, cinnamon, and toasted pine nuts. It is the foundation of many classic Lebanese dishes such as Stuffed Eggplant or my husband’s favorite, Sfeehas (Lebanese Meat Pies).
At Christmas, we love eating it on top of mashed potatoes with a drizzle of homemade gravy. It also tastes great served over hummus and eaten with pita bread.
What’s the best way to toast pine nuts?
I have been toasting pine nuts since I was tall enough to reach the stove and let me tell you, they are very easy to burn! While I LOVE the way they taste when browned in clarified butter, it requires the type of constant attention that I can’t offer now that I have two little ones around me all the time. My solution? Bake pine nuts 350 degrees on a baking sheet for 5-7 minutes. Use your nose – the pine nuts are done the minute you smell that intoxicating, nutty flavor. The end result is a batch of evenly toasted, golden brown pine nuts. Your hummus will thank me.
What do you serve with hashweh?
We love eating in with creamy, cucumber laban and a giant Syrian salad. To eat, ditch the fork and scoop up your bites with pieces of pita bread!
What type of meat do you use with hashweh?
This recipe works with any type of ground meat you have on hand but I prefer beef sirloin, ground lamb or a combination of the two.
What family recipes always bring you back to special times in the kitchen? I’d love to hear from you.
Your fork is waiting.
Lebanese Hushwee Rice
Ingredients
Meat Ingredients:
- 1 tablespoon clarified butter also known as ghee
- 1 medium onion minced - use frozen diced onions to save time
- 20 ounces ground sirloin lamb or bison work well too
- 2 tablespoons All Purpose Lebanese Spice Blend
- 1/4 cup pine nuts toasted
- fresh minced parsley garnish
Lebanese Rice Pilaf
- 1 1/2 cups long-grain enriched white rice such as Uncle Ben's
- 1/4 cup clarified butter or ghee
- 1/2 cup vermicelli pasta broken in 2-inch pieces
- 3 cups boiling water
- 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
Instructions
- In a deep pan, melt butter over medium high heat then add the minced onion. Sautee until translucent, 4-5 minutes.
- Add ground sirloin and spices. Cook 8-10 minutes or until meat is browned, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon to break up meat. Check for seasoning and add salt and pepper to taste. Stir in toasted pine nuts and set aside.
- While the hushwee is cooking, start making the rice pilaf.
Lebanese Rice Pilaf
- Place the rice in a fine mesh strainer and rinse thoroughly using your fingers to rub off as much starch as possible. You'll know the rice is properly rinsed when the water comes out clear from the bottom. Set aside.
- In a large, deep pan heat the butter over medium heat until melted. Add the broken vermicelli pasta and brown, stirring frequently, until it is golden/dark brown. Be careful to not let burn - don't walk away from the pan. This takes about 4-5 minutes.
- Add rinsed rice to the pan and stir into the vermicelli and butter. Toast the rice for 2-3 minutes, stirring frequently. Carefully pour boiling water into the pan and stir once. Add salt and pepper then stir again.
- Bring to a boil, stir once, then reduce heat to low and cover with a lid. Cook for 15 minutes. Remove pan from the heat and fluff rice with a fork before sprinkling with fresh parsley to serve.
Toasting the Pine Nuts:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. On a small cookie sheet place raw pine nuts and cook for 5-7 minutes or until they are at a light brown in color. Keep a careful eye on them as they can burn quickly.
Chef's Notes
Nutrition
Want more healthy recipes? Head over to Pinterest!
Basmah
Parboiled rice isn’t available in my area at the moment. How should I prepare it with long grain white rice?
Liz DellaCroce
Same way! :)
Tina
The missing ingredient is rice. We have made this dish with rice for generations.
Liz DellaCroce
Hi Tina – We make it with rice also but that’s a separate recipe. :) https://thelemonbowl.com/lebanese-hushwee-rice-with-toasted-pine-nuts/
Danielle
Oh my goodness, this was absolutely divine! We added some sultanas to it during the cooking, which gave it a little sweet pop, but… ohhh my. I can’t begin to describe how amazing this was. I am not a massive parsley fan, but it really was amazing in this, and I added lemon juice at the end just to cut the fat of the lamb. I actually forgot about the chicken, but it didn’t need it. :)
Liz DellaCroce
Oh I love the lemon juice idea at that end!!!!!!
Sabrina Silver
This was delicious. I served mine over cooked spinach, less salt and more ghee. Ahhh. My husband had his over butternut squash. I can think of many ways to eat it. Thank you.
Liz DellaCroce
What a great idea! So glad you enjoyed it!
Jeanette
This might sound crazy but can this be made without the nuts as my dialysis diet doesn’t allow nuts?
Liz DellaCroce
Yes totally just leave them out!!
Denise Dayie
Liz, 1 1/4 teaspoon of salt is way too much. You must love a lot of salt. You really don’t need the salt with the other spices mixed.
Liz DellaCroce
Hi Denise – I always do 1 teaspoon of salt per one pound of meat but you’re welcome to adjust to your personal taste! Enjoy!
Denise Dayie
I make the Hashwe with the 5 spices but I use much less salt in the spices. This is great in pita bread with a Lebanese salad.
Arlen
This recipe is a fave in my family, and my kids are very finicky. Thanks for sharing this.
Liz DellaCroce
I’m so glad you enjoy it!!! We love it too.
Holly
Could this be made with ground turkey? I can only eat poultry due to food allergies and really want to try this!
Liz DellaCroce
Yes it absolutely could but it will be a bit on the drier side. Enjoy!
Holly
Would adding some ghee help that?
Liz DellaCroce
Yes absolutely!!
Basmah
Hey, i only have stir fry rice noodles. Will this method work? Or should i soak them in water per the box’s instructions?
Liz DellaCroce
Oooo that sounds tasty too. I would cook them according to package instructions!
Christine
My husband made this for our family tonight. My grandmother was Lebanese and I have missed the food immensely since I had to pack up my Lebanese cookbook several months ago. So glad I found you today; there’s no telling how mediocre our meal would have been without your hushwee! Thank you very much!
Liz DellaCroce
Oh I’m so thrilled you enjoyed it!!!
Carm
Made it…Loved it. And, it’s so easy. It’s all about those spices.
Liz DellaCroce
So glad you enjoyed it!! The spices are the best aren’t they?
Jordan Baker
Lovely recipe, perfect for some of our spices, nutmeg and beef always go great together a little Chipotle Chilli Powder would add to the taste too!
Liz DellaCroce
Good idea!!!
Sue Bunton
My mom was pretty much a plain Jane when it came to cooking but was a wonderful baker. My favorite cookie of hers was the Brown Christmas cookie. It is a cutout ginger/molasses cookie. It was “brown” and made at Christmas time….thus the name!! I think my mom got the recipe from these little holiday cookbooks that the Michigan Consolidated Gas Company published WAY back in the day (like the ’50s and ’60s). I was the “froster” and even when I had moved out of the house and had a “big girl” job, I took a day off of work in December to perform my frosting job!! I miss those days!! I am making your hushwee recipe tonight and am thankful for the Beirut Baking in Redford, MI for scooping out some ghee from their giant can in the kitchen and putting it in a little container for me :) Serving it on hummus with pita bread and fattoush salad!!
Liz DellaCroce
Oh my goodness this makes me so happy!! I love the memory of baking with your mom and I love that you found ghee!! How did it turn out?!
Sue Bunton
It turned out amazing and so easy to make! Everyone loved it! I posted it on Instagram if you are interesting (suebunton5)!!
Liz DellaCroce
I’m so thrilled!
julia
Reminds me of my Grandma’s cooking! I just love this dish and toasted pine nuts make everything better in my book!
Liz DellaCroce
Oh I’m so thrilled you approve of this one!!
Kirsten
Liz,
We’re getting one step closer to the ground meat and rice dish I’d get, along with some chicken shawarma and hummus, at the Lebanese butcher down the road from my son’s wheelchair basketball practice gym. It’s on the list of foods I crave since we moved to Ohio.
I’ve got plenty of ground beef in the freezer (and leeks in the freezer too, wonder if they would sub for frozen onions) as well as a few more weekly trips to sled hockey (7 minutes away from the closest Costco, which is down in Cincinnati). This is on the list. Thanks!
Liz DellaCroce
Let me know if you try the leeks!! I bet it would be good!
Phi @ The Sweetphi Blog
Love love love the sound of this recipe! And you made it look so pretty! I also have a love for toasted pine nuts, so i’m definitely going to add this to the dinners-to-make list!
Liz DellaCroce
Who hasn’t over toasted pine nuts??! :)
Gaby
Liz, this looks fantastic!
Joanne
For me, that meal is my mom’s mac and cheese…but I could totally see this being a CRAZY COMFORT FOOD. I love cinnamon in savory places.
Meredith
So amazing!
Liz DellaCroce
I hope you try it!!
Alyssa (Everyday Maven)
So, is this the same recipe your Aunt uses? I am so curious as to what she does different and why they come out different? It looks pretty amazing to me Liz!
Liz DellaCroce
The biggest difference is the amount of clarified butter we use. ;-) Let’s just say she isn’t watching her waistline like I am these days – haha. Also she uses frozen onions which I swear make a difference but I never have them around (can’t find them!)
irene
Try chopping your onions first and soaking them in cold water until you need them. That might reproduce the mildness of frozen onions without any extra work. And none of us want any extra work.
Thanks for the pine nuts tip. I needed that.
Liz DellaCroce
Good idea!
Norma | Allspice and Nutmeg
Oh yes, I love hushwee! I’m drooling now just thinking of it with hummus. Pass the pita.
Liz DellaCroce
I have got to serve it over hummus soon!! I want that right now!
Aggie
I’ve been craving this since you originally told me about it. Looks so delicious!
Ps…I’m the queen of burnt pine nuts.
Liz DellaCroce
I have burnt so many batches!!! So easy to do. :)
Samantha @FerraroKitchen
You know I am madly in love with this dish. And I never ever use pine nuts! I don’t know why..they’re v=pretty amazing.
Liz DellaCroce
I am obsessed with pine nuts!! I buy them in bulk at Costco. :)
KalynsKitchen
I’m loving the sound of this. (I think I must have lived in the middle east in a previous life. All the food from there just speaks to me.)
Liz DellaCroce
I completely get it!! It’s my favorite food ever!!
Vijay @ NoshOn.It
This looks delicious Liz! Definitely going to try it with lamb one of these days.
Liz DellaCroce
Lamb is the best!!! Definitely a little fattier but so so good.
tanya
I absolutely love the cinnamon in this dish! It reminds me of so many of my moms Greek dishes.
Liz DellaCroce
Oh my goodness I adore Greek food for that reason!! Do you have many Greek recipes on your site??
Tanya Schroeder
Only a few adaptations of my mom’s Greek cooking. As with many good dishes, they take so long to prepare!
Cassie
I wish we were neighbors so I could benefit from your amazing Lebanese cuisine!
Liz DellaCroce
I wish you were too – I need more taste testers!!
Tina Muir
This looks wonderful Liz, how original! I would love to give this a try! Toasted pine nuts are looovveellly! Thanks for the recipe :) Excited to try it!
Liz DellaCroce
You would love this protein-packed dish!! Great for running!!
Kim | Just For Clicks
I LOVE finding new dishes to make my family. Your Slow Cooker Chicken Curry was a HUGE (https://thelemonbowl.com/2013/05/slow-cooker-chicken-curry.html) hit in my family – and curry was something I’d never made before. So I’m anxious to make this one! Thanks for all the tips (including the frozen onions). I agree on the pine nuts… in a matter of seconds they go from being “done” to “DONE”. :-)
Liz DellaCroce
Oh I love that curry too!!! I’m so glad you guys like it!!!