Basai Badawi (Onions With Lentils, Nuts And Parsley)
This is a vegetarian version of a Bedouin dish. If you
serve it with rice, try adding saffron or turmeric to the
rice before cooking. It adds a distinctive flavor as well
as color, creating ‘red’ rice.
Peel the onions and place them in a large pan of boiling water. Reduce the heat and let them simmer for 15-20 minutes, covered, until they are fairly tender. When they are ready, take them out and set aside to cool.
Now remove the centre section of each onion, to leave a shell about 3/4 inch thick.
In a bowl, mix together the lentils, pepper, salt, yogurt, dates, walnuts, raisins or sultanas and bread crumbs.
Fill the onions with this mixture. Keep any that remains and mix it with the chopped discarded onion centres.
Place the filled onions in an oven proof dish, spoon any remaining mixture around them and cook for about 20 minutes.
Garnish with parsley ands serve with bulgur or ‘red’ rice