Chamin (חמין)

Chamin (חמין)

Chamin (חמין)
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Serves: 5
 
This is a traditional north African dish that is so delicious and so easy to make. Traditionally, it is served with couscous and freshly squeezed lemon juice on top of it. Very important: All the cooking should be done in a big pot that can be placed in the oven. So make sure the pot you use has no plastic parts. Traditionally, this dish is cooked late at night and left in the oven to continue cooking slowly overnight. It is eaten for lunch the next day.
Ingredients
  • 2 cups of a mixture of red beans, white beans and garbanzo beans (typically these legumes are used, but you can use any other combination)
  • 1 chopped onion
  • 2 potatoes (cut to large pieces)
  • 1-2 cups of squash / pumpkin (cut to large cubes)
  • ¼ cup of wheat grains (not mandatory)
  • 2-3 tablespoons olive oil
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • ¼ teaspoon black pepper
  • 2 teaspoons of paprika
Instructions
  1. Rinse the legumes in water over night. I actually prefer and recommend to leave them in water for 2-3 nights (replacing the water 2-3 times a day).
  2. Fry the onion in the olive oil until slightly golden.
  3. Add the legumes and potatoes, pour water until it properly covers everything. Let boil.
  4. Once boiled, add the spices and the squash, mix well and cook in low temperature for 20-30 minutes.
  5. Add the wheat grains into the center of the stew.
  6. Now the important part:
  7. Make sure the water covers all the ingredients in the pot. Place the pot in the oven (yes yes, the pot with all the ingredient in the oven…) at a temperature of 120 Celsius or 250 Fahrenheit. Leave it in the oven for 8-9 hours until most of the water has been absorbed.
  8. It’s OK if there’s a little bit more water in the pot. Just make sure the legumes are soft and start eating already… This will drive your taste buds crazy.