recipe-1

Recipe-1 › Curries of the world › Saloona

The Gulf (UAE, Qatar, Kuwait), United Arab Emirates

Saloona

The everyday stew of the Gulf: chicken, lamb or fish with vegetables in a light tomato gravy, spiced with baharat and made sour with dried black lime (loomi). Every family has its own version; it is the Gulf’s home-style curry.

Close to the base recipe Mild

New here? How this page works

Recipe-1 is one simple curry recipe in nine steps: fry onions and green chillies, add your vegetables or meat, add chilli powder and turmeric, then water and salt, and boil. With small changes the same nine steps make curries from all over the world.

This page takes those nine steps and shows what to change to make Saloona. You don’t need to read anything else first: every base step is written out below. The changes are worked out on paper from what is typical for this dish; not yet kitchen-tested. Cooked it? Tell others how it went.

Green: the base recipe step (crossed out = do not use it for this dish)Red: what to do instead for Saloona

See the full base recipe (with timers and tips) · See all curries on the world map

You’ll need

How many people?4

The amounts change with the number of people; cooking times stay about the same (use a bigger pot for more). Taste as you go: you can always add more chilli or salt, but you cannot take it out.

Main ingredient: 750 g Chicken, lamb or fish.

From the base recipe

  • 2 Onions
  • 1 Green chillies
  • 3 tbsp Cooking oil
  • ½ tsp Red chilli powder
  • ½ tsp Turmeric
  • 1 tsp · 750 ml Salt and water
  • 1 tbsp Ginger garlic paste
  • Cloves, cardamom and cinnamon not used
  • Garam masala (optional) not used

Add for Saloona

  • 3 · 2 tbsp Tomatoes and tomato paste
  • 1–2 tbsp Baharat (Gulf spice mix: cumin, coriander, cinnamon, cardamom, black pepper, cloves)
  • 2 Dried black limes (loomi), pierced
  • 500 g Potatoes, carrots, courgette or aubergine
  • 1 handful Fresh coriander

Leave out

  • Garam masala (baharat takes its place)

The nine steps, with the changes

Where a step has a red line, do the red line and not the crossed-out green base step. Steps with only green are done just as in the base recipe.

  1. Base step: do not useCut onions and chillies.

    Saloona: do thisChop the onions; one green chilli is enough.

  2. Fry in some oil for around 4 minutes on medium-high heat.

  3. Base step: do not useCut the vegetable(s) of your choice.

    Saloona: do thisCut potatoes, carrots, courgette or aubergine into large chunks.

  4. Base step: do not useAdd them and fry for around 4 minutes on medium-high heat.

    Saloona: do thisAdd the meat first and brown it, then the vegetables, then the tomatoes and tomato paste.

  5. Base step: do not useAdd red chilli powder and turmeric.

    Saloona: do thisAdd turmeric and 1–2 spoons of baharat, with only a little chilli powder.

  6. Keep frying until just before they start browning.

  7. Base step: do not useAdd some water.

    Saloona: do thisAdd water to cover, and the pierced dried limes.

  8. Add salt.

  9. Base step: do not useBoil until the gravy is as thick as you like.

    Saloona: do thisSimmer until the meat and vegetables are tender; keep the gravy fairly thin. Finish with coriander.

Serve: With white rice or Arabic bread.

For meat and seafood, make sure it is cooked through: chicken until no pink remains inside; mutton, goat and beef need long, slow cooking.

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