One Pot Egyptian Potato Tomato Dish

Welcome to The Storied Recipe Podcast, a podcast about food, culture, and love.

This One Pot Egyptian Potato Tomato Dish recipe came from my podcast guest, Mennat-Allah El Dorry. Make sure you listen to her episode The World’s Only: Dr. Menna’s Singular Mission to Unearth Egypt’s Food Legacy while you make this One Pot Potato and Tomato Dish!

This one-pot dish is perfect for the upcoming cooler months. It is hearty and rich without being too decadent. Plus, with school starting up again and life returning to its busy pace, this simple recipe only requires one dish, a sharp knife, a cutting board, and a few basic ingredients you have around the house.

Looking for more easy, delicious recipes? Check out this recipe, Easy 5 Ingredient Hungarian Dairy-Free Potato Soup, provided by podcast guest, Dora Hurley!

Dr. Menna's Memories of Making Egyptian One-Pot Potato and Tomato Dish

The only time my parents and I cooked together was Friday mornings (weekends). Right after breakfast we would sit at the kitchen table and prepare the dish together for lunch. We had friends in the house all the time and everyone would come in time for “Deenivo”.

-Dr. Menna

Top Tips

1. Season generously. When Menna says “salt between every layer” - she means it. Also, use pepper and cumin if you’d prefer.
2. Leave lots of time. The potatoes and the meat take a while to cook - the potatoes take even longer than the meat, depending on the cut and size of the chunks. Because I doubled the recipe, it took up to 8 hours for me.
3. Definitely make the tahini sauce from Menna’s mother to pair with the “Deenivo”!

Ingredients & Substitutions

• Russet Potatoes - these are my preferred potatoes when baking because of their delicate and fluffy texture; avoid using waxy potatoes because they will fall apart
• Yellow Onions
• Tomatoes - choose your favorite but I would recommend Beefstake tomatoes or Heirloom tomatoes since they are heartier
• Stew Meat - can be a variety of cuts of beef; choose either round, chuck, or sirloin cuts
• Tomato Concentrate or Tomato Sauce
• Beef Broth

Tahini Sauce

• Tahini
• Garlic - can add diced onion as well
• Cumin - if you want a little kick, add some Cayenne
• Kosher Salt
• Olive Oil, Salt, Pepper

Instructions

1. Thickly slice potatoes, onions, and tomatoes.
2. Layer them in a large clay pot (make sure you are using a pot with a lid), starting with tomatoes or onions, alternating with meat suitable for stews.
3. Add salt between layers.
4. Finish with tomato concentrate and stock—just enough to create steam, not submerge the ingredients.
5. Bake in the oven until the meat is tender (I would say about 4 hours minimum).

Tahini Sauce:

1. Mix tahini paste and a splash of water in a bowl. Stir, adding more water and lemon juice until smooth.
2. Add a dash of white vinegar, salt, pepper, plenty of cumin, and crushed garlic.
3. Drizzle with olive oil.

Can This Be Made Vegan?

Certainly! It is quite simple to do as well. Take out the beef and replace the beef stock with vegetable stock and there you have it!

If you would like to replace the beef with a vegan alternative, try using soy curls that have more of a chicken texture, or you can use seitan which is made from wheat gluten.

Tahini: What It Is and Uses

You have most likely heard of Tahini if you've ever made hummus, and it is a staple in Middle Eastern cuisine. It is a paste made from ground sesame seeds. It has a nutty and creamy texture to it, not unlike peanut butter though less sweet, and it balances out the spices and herbs used in Middle Eastern cooking perfectly.

You can put this on really anything, but here are a few ideas for you to try:

• Salad dressing
• Dip (bread, vegetables, meats, etc.)
• Sauce for shawarma and kebabs
• Sauce for veggies

Equipment

• Large Clay Pot with Lid
• Medium mixing bowl

Storage

• You can keep your one-pot potato and tomato dish in the fridge in an airtight container for 3-4 days.
• If you have any leftovers that you won't be getting around to, you can store your one-pot dish in the freezer for up to 2-3 months.

source: State Food Safety Resources

More Middle Eastern Recipes

More Potato Recipes

Listen to Dr. Menna's Episode Now

One-of-a-kind archaeobotanist Dr. Menna El Dorry shares ancient Egyptian food heritage, ecofacts, and a cherished family recipe.

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Recipe

One Pot Egyptian Potato Tomato Dish

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Description

An easy one pot meal of meat, potatoes, and tomatoes seasoned simply and cooked slowly. Served with an Egyptian tahini sauce.

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Ingredients

Units USM Scale 1x2x3x

• 4 russet potatoes *See Note 1
• 2 yellow onions, large
• 6 tomatoes, large *See Note 2
• 2 lbs stew meat *See Note 3
• 1/2 cup tomato concentrate OR tomato sauce
• 1 cup beef broth

Tahini Sauce

• 1/2 cup tahini
• 3 cloves garlic
• 2 tsp cumin
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt
• Olive oil, salt, pepper

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Instructions

Cue Up The Episode!

1. Make sure to listen to Menna's episode of The Storied Recipe Podcast, The World’s Only: Dr. Menna’s Singular Mission to Unearth Egypt’s Food Legacy while you make her amazing One-Pot Egyptian Potato and Tomato dish!

Make The Recipe

1. Thickly slice potatoes, onions, and tomatoes.
2. Layer them into a big clay pot: tomatoes or onions go in first, and then alternate the layers with meat.
3. Add salt to taste in between the layers. *See Note 4
4. At the end, at a bit of tomato concentrate and a bit of stock. Not enough for it to be swimming in stock, just a bit at the bottom to help steam the food.
5. Leave in the oven long enough until the meat is cooked. Say at least two hours.

Tahini Sauce

1. Add the tahini paste into a bowl, and to that add a little bit of water. It will get clunky, but keep stirring and adding water and lemon juice until it is smooth.
2. You can also add a dash of white vinegar (none of the fancy white wine vinegar).
3. Add salt and pepper to taste and a lot of cumin.
4. You can also add a bit of crush garlic, but better add minced onions.
5. Drizzle a bit of olive oil on top.

Notes

• Note 1: Russett Potatoes are my preferred potatoes when baking because of their delicate and fluffy texture; avoid using waxy potatoes because they will fall apart, but can be substituted with All-Purpose potatoes that are in between Russett and waxy potatoes.
• Note 2: I would recommend Beefstake tomatoes or Heirloom tomatoes since they are heartier for baking.
• Note 3: There can be a variety of cuts of beef; choose either round, chuck, or sirloin cuts.
• Note 4: Season generously. When Menna says “salt between every layer” - she means it!
• Make sure to listen to Menna's episode of The Storied Recipe Podcast, The World’s Only: Dr. Menna’s Singular Mission to Unearth Egypt’s Food Legacy while you make her amazing One-Pot Egyptian Potato and Tomato dish!

• Category: Beef Dishes, Main Dish
• Cuisine: African, Egyptian, Middle Eastern

Nutrition

• Calories: 2.949
• Sugar: 39
• Sodium: 3.283
• Fat: 113
• Saturated Fat: 25
• Carbohydrates: 240
• Fiber: 32
• Protein: 255
• Cholesterol: 562