Fusion Food Recipe | 20 Dec 2022 | Recipes: Afghan Stuffed Onions & Ras Malai | Chef Mahnoor Malik

Method
Preheat oven to 350ºF. Lightly oil the bottom of a dish.
Prepare the Onions: Trim the ends off the onions, then make a slice only halfway through each onion lengthwise. Pull off the brown papery skin. Boil onions in a large pot of water, for 10 to 20 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer onions into a large bowl filled with cold water. Pour out heated water and refresh with more cold water, and repeat again. Let onions cool in the water for a few minutes. Put onions layers in a strainer to dry.
Make the stuffing, In a pan add oil and carrots now add sugar to make a caramelised carrots and raisins now add water on a boiling point add rice and cook till water is all soaked . Heat 1 teaspoon oil in a small frying pan. Add chopped garlic (1½ teaspoons) and cumin seeds (1½ teaspoons) to pan and cook over medium heat, stirring until fragrant, about 1 minute. Turn off heat if garlic starts to turn brown. Scrape cumin and garlic into bowl with rice. Add salt (1½ teaspoons) and pepper (¼ teaspoon). Stir rice to combine with spices. Add ground lamb and Feta cheese and gently combine with rice. (I recommend using your hands)
Stuff the onions Pat the onion layers dry if need be. Add a generous heaping tablespoon of the meat mixture to the centre of an onion layer. Roll the onion layer around the meat, and put it in the oiled dish, seam side down. Continue with all of the meat. You should have 12-14 stuffed onions. Brush the tops of the rolls with some olive oil and sprinkle with some fresh ground pepper. Cover dish with lid or with a double layer of foil. Bake in the lower third of a preheated oven for 30 min to 1 hour. Briefly remove pot from oven. Turn oven up to “broil”. Remove foil from casserole. Baste onions with pan juices. Return to oven, uncovered, and cook onion rolls for an additional 5 minutes to brown them, watching carefully to make sure they don’t burn.
To cook on stove arrange large pot and follow the recipe. Put something beneath the pot to avoid direct flame.