Lebanese Hushwee Rice

An easy one-pan meal, Lebanese Hushwee Rice is a beef and rice mixture and is a Lebanese staple made with cinnamon, toasted pine nuts, and rice pilaf cooked in clarified butter. Naturally gluten-free, this is the ultimate comfort food!

Course Dinner, Entree

Cuisine Lebanese, middle eastern

Keyword ground beef, ground lamb, lebanese hashweh, rice pilaf

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 25

Total Time 35

Servings

Calories 508kcal

Author Liz DellaCroce

Ingredients

Lebanese Rice Pilaf with Vermicelli

1 ½ cups white rice long-grain enriched
¼ cup clarified butter
½ cup vermicelli broken into small pieces
3 cups boiling water
1 ½ teaspoons salt
½ teaspoon pepper

Lebanese Hushwee

1 tablespoon clarified butter
1 medium onion minced
20 ounces ground sirloin or lamb
2 tablespoons All Purpose Lebanese Spice Blend
¼ cup pine nuts
minced parsley optional garnish

Instructions

Lebanese Rice Pilaf with Vermicelli

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.

Lebanese Hashweh - Ground Beef with Pine Nuts

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.

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.

Combine the Hashweh and the Lebanese Rice Pilaf

To serve, combine both the hashweh and the rice pilaf in the same pot and garnish with fresh minced parsley to serve.

Notes

To toast pine nuts simply spread in an even layer on a baking pan and bake at 350 degrees for 5-7 minutes or until golden brown.

If you don’t wish to make your own clarified butter (also known as “ghee”), you can find it online or in most health stores.

For lasting freshness, store pine nuts in the freezer to keep them fresher, longer.

Nutrition