#chouta

In other news, my twin is funnier than me

This past weekend was my birthday celebration, and in my family, the tradition is that the birthday person gets to pick whatever dinner they want. So we made our own rendition of that famous herdazian street food, chouta. Let me tell you... It was amazing. It turned out so much better than I was expecting and I was just flying by the seat of my pants. So, here are the recipes I created if anyone else would like to try. I will warn up front, that it was a bit labor intensive, as street food tends to be when making them at home. I hope you enjoy it as much as we did.

Meatballs

1 lbs Ground Pork*

1 lbs Ground Turkey*

1 medium shallot, minced

2-4 cloves garlic, minced

1 tbs fresh thyme, minced

1 egg

¼ cup Panko

1/3 cup cooked and cooled barley

1 tbs soy sauce

Salt & Pepper to taste

Mix all. Form into ping-pong sized balls. Heat deep fryer to 350℉. Cook meatballs in batches, 5-7 minutes, until internal temperature reaches 165℉.

*Pork and turkey can be substituted with same amount of ground/finely minced, raw shrimp (no egg required) for a “cremling” variation. Coat shrimp balls generously in corn starch before frying.

*Use extra firm tofu, patted dry and crumbled for a vegan/soulcast option. Be especially careful lowering tofu balls into the deep fryer as they are especially delicate and want to break apart.

Chouta Gravy

Neutral oil

¼ cup flour

2-3 celery stalks, diced

2-3 carrots, diced

1 medium onion, diced

2-3 cloves garlic, minced

1 tbs fresh thyme (4-6 sprigs)

2 cups stock*

2 tbs dark soy sauce, optional

Salt, pepper, chili flakes, msg (to taste)

In a large, heavy bottomed sauce pan, add ¼ oil over medium high heat. Whisk flour constantly until roux is medium brown because I am a coward(you can go darker if you want). Add veg and sauté for a few minutes. Add garlic and thyme, stir until fragrant. Add stock, stirring to make sure no clumps form. Bring to a simmer and reduce heat. Add seasonings (use more pepper than you think you need). Simmer 20 minutes stirring occasionally, until veg is completely soft. Smash with a potato masher or stick blender to desired consistency. Taste for seasoning before serving.

*As far as I can tell, any stock is quite tasty in this, but seafood stock seems especially appropriate for Rosharan food.

Spiced Lavis

1 cup pearl barley

2 tbs olive oil

2 stalks celery, chopped

1 green pepper, chopped

1 medium onion, chopped

2-3 cloves garlic, minced

1 tsp toasted and ground cumin

4-6 sprigs fresh thyme

2 cups stock

½ tbs pepper

Cayenne pepper and salt to taste

Toast cumin in a dry pan, grind and set aside. Toast barley in oil. Set aside. Sauté veg until softened and onions are starting to turn a little brown. Add everything to the pan, bring up to a simmer. Cover tightly, reduce heat. Simmer for 30 minutes, undisturbed.* Check for doneness. Remove thyme sprigs. Use 1/3 cup as the cooked barley in the uncooked chouta meatballs.

*Alternatively, bake in 375℉ oven for same amount of time.