Haneeth

Homemade Haneeth from Bareg, Saudi Arabia

Haneeth (Arabic: الحنيذ‎‎) is the traditional dish of Yemen. It is now very popular in the rest of the Arabian Peninsula and in many other Saudi cities such as Bareg and Al Qunfudhah.

Preparation

Haneeth is usually made from basmati rice, meat (lamb), and a mixture of spices. The meat used is usually a young and small sized lamb to enhance the taste further. The main thing which differentiates mandi is that the meat is cooked in the tandoor (taboon in Yemeni), which is a special kind of oven. The tandoor is usually a hole dug in the ground and covered inside by clay. To cook mandi, dry wood is placed in the tandoor and burned to generate a lot of heat turning into charcoal. Then the meat is suspended inside the tandoor without touching the charcoal. After that, the whole tandoor is closed without letting any of the smoke out.

Haneeth is considered as the main dish served at special events such as weddings and feasts. Margh is a kind of plant that is put under the meat to give it a special taste.