Khashlama is a very old Armenian recipe whose main ingredients are lamb and vegetables. This dish is surprisingly easy to pull off and most important of all: it’s amazingly satisfying and delicious. The name of the dish originates from “khashel” – an Armenian word means “to boil”. Let’s discover how to make this mouth-watering dish by scrolling through the step by step instructions below!
Ingredients for Khashlama
List of ingredients
To make prepare a dish for 4 portions, here are the ingredients you need to prepare:
- Dried red chili flakes (1/2 teaspoon)
- Saffron (1 pinch)
- Safflower (1 teaspoon)
- Cloves (1/2 teaspoon)
- Black peppercorns (1/2 teaspoon)
- Bay leaf (2 each)
- Dried and powdered blue fenugreek (1 teaspoon, optional)
- Dried marjoram (1/2 teaspoon)
- Dried Tarragon (1/2 teaspoon)
- Dried basil (1 teaspoon)
- Fresh parsley (1 bunch)
- Fresh cilantro (1 bunch)
- Kosher salt (1 tablespoon)
- Small tomatoes (16, around 1.5 lb each)
- Small and young potatoes (16, around 1 lb each)
- Red jalapeno (1 each)
- Mini sweet peppers (8 each)/Large bell pepper (1 each)
- Peeled garlic (8 cloves)
- Head garlic (1 whole)
- Large onion (1 each)
- Lamb’s leg (2 lb)/lamb’s t-bones (8.1” thick)
Substitutional ingredients
Liquid: Some variants of the Khashlama use 0.5-1 cup of wine or beer instead of water. Because they help to tenderize the meat and enhance the flavor. With beer, the final taste should be balanced and not too hoppy. Both red and white wines work pretty well. But you’d want to stay away from oaked white wines. Wine will add to the final taste a little bit of tartness and fruitiness.
Vegetables: Apart from the main vegetables like tomatoes, sweet peppers, garlic and onions. You can also add green beans, turnip, eggplants or potatoes. Other vegetables also work well with the Khashlama recipe are parsnip, young golden beets and kohlrabi, as they contribute earthy and nice aromas to the dish.
Herbs and spices: It’s this group of ingredients that makes the dish really stand out. It requires some red chili peppers and they can be added as fresh sliced or dried flakes. If possible, all herbs should be fresh, or at least cilantro and parsley.
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Khashlama cooking secrets
Choose the right meat
For the regular Khashlama dish, you can choose beef shanks instead of lamb meat. But it’s emphasized by many Armenian chefs that this dish should never be cooked with chicken or pork. Also, it’s best that you choose meat with bones, as bones will make the broth more flavorful.
Layer the ingredients
All the ingredients for this dish are chopped into flat and small pieces so that they can be arranged in different layers.
Never stir the dish while cooking
We usually stir and mix stews while they’re being cooked, but this is definitely not the case. The essential key for a perfect recreation of Khashlama is to maintain the ingredient layers. Otherwise you will probably break the vegetables, potatoes or meat into pieces as they’re super tender.
Make sure the dish doesn’t boil vigorously
When cooking this dish, it’s important that it simmer gently instead of vigorously boiling. This will help the vegetables and meat to slowly stew, creating thick and rich broth.
Khashlama Cooking methods
To make this dish, it’s considered most convenient to use a crock pot or slow cooker. Another option for you to choose is to arrange meat and vegetables in an iron pot. Bring to the boil on the stove and slowly cook in the oven at 300F for 3-4 hours more.
There’s also a different cooking method for this dish, which you cook the meat first and layer it with vegetables in small clay or ceramic pots then cook in the oven. In this case, as the meat is already cooked. It only takes you 1-1.5 hours to cook vegetables in the oven.
How to make Khashlama – Step by step instructions
Step 1: After preparing all the above ingredients, cut the lamb’s leg into small cubes (about 1”). Wash and set the meat aside. Peel the onions and chop them into half ring slices. Wash the peppers, then remove the stems and seeds inside. Wash fresh herbs and peel garlic. Then measure spices and seasoning for the dish.
Step 2: Prepare a slow cooker, lay the onion slices on the bottom of the pot insert. In the center place the whole garlic head. Then add cloves, peppercorns, half of the dried herbs and vegetables. Don’t forget to tip in the spices too.
Step 3: Add the whole fresh herbs and arrange them in order to cover the vegetables. Then arrange the meat (lamb’s leg already cut into cubes) on top. You can choose to serve the lamb meat with or without bones. Season the ingredients, then tip in the rest of the spices and herbs.
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Step 4: Place the tomatoes on top of the meat. Pour in water to fill the pan until it comes to the top of the lamb meat.
Step 5: Cook Khashlama at high temperature for 1-1.5 hours. After bringing to boil, cook for 5 more hours with a low temperature. Remember to keep the lid on while cooking.
Step 6: Serve on a plate, while vegetables and meat are still hot and stir the broth in a small bowl. Discard the bay leaf and herbs. As for the lamb t-bones, you can use a fork or a spoon to separate the meat easily from the bones. This dish comes with fresh herbs and regional flat bread.
Hope you can make a Khashlama dish all by yourself with the full recipe that we just introduced. Apart from the classic recipe, there are also some variations of this dish. And of course, you can always change or add some other ingredients to make a secret recipe of your own, as long as it fits your taste buds. Don’t forget to visit Bourbon O‘s website daily to discover more cooking recipes and instructions!
PrintKhashlama Recipe
Khashlama is a very old Armenian recipe whose main ingredients are lamb and vegetables. This dish is surprisingly easy to make and amazingly delicious.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 1 hour
- Total Time: 1 hour 20 minutes
- Yield: 6 SERVINGS
- Category: Soup and Stew Recipes
- Method: Stew
- Cuisine: Armenian
Ingredients
- Dried red chili flakes (1/2 teaspoon)
- Saffron (1 pinch)
- Safflower (1 teaspoon)
- Cloves (1/2 teaspoon)
- Black peppercorns (1/2 teaspoon)
- Bay leaf (2 each)
- Dried and powdered blue fenugreek (1 teaspoon, optional)
- Dried marjoram (1/2 teaspoon)
- Dried Tarragon (1/2 teaspoon)
- Dried basil (1 teaspoon)
- Fresh parsley (1 bunch)
- Fresh cilantro (1 bunch)
- Kosher salt (1 tablespoon)
- Small tomatoes (16, around 1.5 lb each)
- Small and young potatoes (16, around 1 lb each)
- Red jalapeno (1 each)
- Mini sweet peppers (8 each)/Large bell pepper (1 each)
- Peeled garlic (8 cloves)
- Head garlic (1 whole)
- Large onion (1 each)
- Lamb’s leg (2 lb)/lamb’s t-bones (8.1” thick)
Instructions
Step 1: After preparing all the above ingredients, cut the lamb’s leg into small cubes (about 1”). Wash and set the meat aside. Peel the onions and chop them into half ring slices. Wash the peppers, then remove the stems and seeds inside. Wash fresh herbs and peel garlic. Then measure spices and seasoning for the dish.
Step 2: Prepare a slow cooker, lay the onion slices on the bottom of the pot insert. In the center place the whole garlic head. Then add cloves, peppercorns, half of the dried herbs and vegetables. Don’t forget to tip in the spices too.
Step 3: Add the whole fresh herbs and arrange them in order to cover the vegetables. Then arrange the meat (lamb’s leg already cut into cubes) on top. You can choose to serve the lamb meat with or without bones. Season the ingredients, then tip in the rest of the spices and herbs.
Step 4: Place the tomatoes on top of the meat. Pour in water to fill the pan until it comes to the top of the lamb meat.
Step 5: Cook Khashlama at high temperature for 1-1.5 hours. After bringing to boil, cook for 5 more hours with a low temperature. Remember to keep the lid on while cooking.
Step 6: Serve on a plate, while vegetables and meat are still hot and stir the broth in a small bowl. Discard the bay leaf and herbs. As for the lamb t-bones, you can use a fork or a spoon to separate the meat easily from the bones. This dish comes with fresh herbs and regional flat bread.
Notes
Khashlama cooking secrets:
- Choose the right meat
- Layer the ingredients
- Never stir the dish while cooking
- Make sure the dish doesn’t boil vigorously
- To make this dish, it’s considered most convenient to use a crock pot or slow cooker. Another option for you to choose is to arrange meat and vegetables in an iron pot. Bring to the boil on the stove and slowly cook in the oven at 300F for 3-4 hours more.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 100 gr
- Calories: 77.7 kcal
- Sugar: 9.5 g
- Fat: 4.3 gr
- Carbohydrates: 9.8 g
- Protein: 4.4 gr
Keywords: Khashlama
