Mujaddara (Arabic: مجدرة mujadarah, also known as mejadra, moujadara, mudardara, or megadarra) consists of cooked lentils together with groats, generally rice, and garnished with roasted onions that have been sauteed in olive oil or butter.
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Mujaddara is the Arabic word for smallpox; the lentils among the rice resemble pockmarks.[1][2] The first recorded recipe for mujaddara appears in Kitab al-Tabikh, a cookbook compiled in 1226 by al-Baghdadi in Iraq.[2] Containing rice, lentils, and meat, it was served this way during celebrations.[2] Without meat, it was a medieval Arab dish commonly consumed by the poor, reputed to be a derivative of the "mess of pottage" Jacob used to buy Esau's birthright.[1] A saying in the Eastern Arab world perhaps inspired by the Biblical story is, "A hungry man would be willing to sell his soul for his a dish of mujaddara."[3]
Cooked lentils are popular all over the Middle East and form the basis of many dishes. Mujaddara is a popular dish throughout the Arab world, and is generally made using brown (sometimes green) lentils and rice, that can be seasoned with cumin, coriander, or mint.[1] It is topped with fried onions and is generally served with yogurt, among other other vegetables and side dishes, either hot or cold.[1]
When made with brown lentils and rice, it is known as mudardara in Lebanon; imjadra there generally refers to a dish made with green (and sometimes brown) lentils and bulgur; it is also topped with fried onions, melted butter, and served with yogurt.[1]
Arab Christians traditionally eat mujaddara during Lent.[1] The dish is also popular among Jewish communities of Middle Eastern origin, in particular those of Syrian and Egyptian backgrounds; it is generally made with rice rather than wheat. It is sometimes nicknamed "Esau's favourite".[4] Jews traditionally ate it twice a week: hot on Thursday evening, and cold on Sunday.[5]
In Egyptian cuisine, lentils, rice, macaroni, and tomato sauce cooked together are known as kushari. In Indian cuisines, lentils cooked together with rice are known as khichdi (see also kedgeree).
The comforting quality of the humble dish plays an important role in Ameen Rihani's novel The Book of Khalid (1911), the first Arab-American novel.