Pigeon, squab, مسلوق حمامة Hamam Masloo

I have only had the blog up for a couple of weeks now and this week  while I  was having a bit of a think about what recipe would be interesting to put up I received an email, a request really, to make the next one about pigeon. So this week is Pigeon week instead of Ghee - which will now have to wait.

 Pigeon or squab ( حمامة Hamam) is not something I have had often but I have quite a vivid memory from my childhood concerning pigeon.  I travelled to Egypt with my family at the age of 12 and while the whole country and the way of life was foreign to me (as an Australian born Egyptian), I was excited to meet my relatives and experience their way of living. 

 One day we went to a market and my sister and I painstakingly selected out our pigeons along with half a dozen others.  We took them back to my aunt’s house where over the course of a week we would visit them and feed them as they lived it up in the bathroom of her apartment.  Each day my father would take us out to explore the region and each day on our return we would check in on our pet pigeons.

 Then, one fateful day, we returned from our day of exploration to find the bathroom spotlessly clean and – no pigeons!!!! Distressed and disturbed we made our way to the dinner table and, lo and behold, there on the table were little chicken-like bodies that looked disturbingly like our missing pets!

 The reality is that pigeons are farmed and eaten as commonly in Egypt as we eat chickens.

Having only had pigeon at home one or two times I had not really felt the inclination to cook it myself (and perhaps I am still emotionally scarred from the incident in Egypt!), however I felt that seeing as I am trying to get recipes together for a cookbook of the food I ate growing up it really had to have pigeon in it. 

So off to the market I went.

I didn’t realise that there was a season for pigeon and being out of season the only option was to buy a frozen one.  I chose one of the two birds available and took it home to cook, but not before asking the butcher how they would cook the bird.  They said that if I was roasting the bird I would need to cook it with some liquid as it is a small bird and could easily be overcooked and dry.

At home however I engaged the expertise of my step mother as to how a pigeon should be cooked.  Perhaps not so surprisingly it is boiled and then fried so it won’t dry out.  Make sure that the pigeon is cleaned thoroughly (I have only seen it sold already prepared).  Then stuff the pigeon with the partly cooked ferique and sew up the hole or use toothpicks to keep the stuffing in.  The meat is darker than chicken and in my opinion tastes closer to duck than chicken.

I bought commercially raised or farmed pigeon (squab) for $20 each.  These take less time to cook than wild birds, and are better for roasting, grilling, or searing.  If you cannot source these birds farmed or prefer to use wild pigeon, then the meat may be older and is generally tougher than farmed birds and therefore better suited in casseroles and slow-cooked stews. 

Serves 1 -2

1 or 2 pigeons (Squab)

1½ tablespoon ghee (clarified butter)

1 whole onion, peeled with a cross cut into the top plus ½ an onion very finely chopped

¼ cup of ferique (also known as Freekeh and farika.  This is a grain harvested from green or immature durum wheat)

¼ cup white rice

1 bay leaf

Salt and pepper to taste

Fried quail eggs to serve, if desired.

 In a saucepan fry the chopped onion with the ½ tablespoon of ghee.  Add the ferique and rice along with ¾ cup of water (this is plenty of stuffing for 2 birds). Cook for15 minutes or until the water has been absorbed (the grains will not be fully cooked yet).  Remove from the heat. 

 In a pot big enough to fit all the birds bring water to the boil.  Add the whole onion, salt, pepper and bay leaf.   Put the birds in and reduce the heat to low (the birds should be covered with water so add more if required) and simmer for 15 - 20 minutes.  The time will vary depending on the number of birds.  To test if they are cooked use a skewer inserted into a thick part of the bird.  The juices should run clear.

 Once boiled, remove from the water and set aside.  Heat 1 tablespoon of ghee or butter in a pan and fry the birds turning frequently until they are a lovely golden brown colour.  Serve with fried quail eggs, if desired.

Pigeon, squab, مسلوق حمامة Hamam Masloo

Pigeon, squab, مسلوق حمامة Hamam Masloo

Pigeon, squab, مسلوق حمامة Hamam Masloo