🍚 Muaddas
Muaddas is an Emirati rice dish cooked together with brown lentils and topped with onions fried until deep golden. Turmeric and cumin give it a warm colour and an earthy flavour, and a spoon of ghee makes it rich. The rice and lentils turn soft and comforting. It is served as a hearty side or simple main course.
Diets
Allergens
Contains (in a typical recipe):
What it is made of
Recipe
Ingredients
- 300 g basmati rice, soaked 20 minutes
- 150 g brown lentils
- 2 onions, thinly sliced
- 2 tbsp ghee
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1/2 tsp turmeric
- Salt
- About 700 ml water
Method
- Boil the lentils in water for 15 minutes until half-cooked, then drain.
- Fry the onions in the ghee until deep golden; set half aside for topping.
- Add the cumin and turmeric to the pot, then the drained rice and lentils, salt and 700 ml water.
- Bring to the boil, cover and cook on low heat for 18–20 minutes until the water is absorbed.
- Rest for 5 minutes, fluff and serve topped with the reserved onions.
How to make it lighter
- Use 1 tbsp of ghee instead of 2 — 1 tbsp ghee ≈ 120 kcal.
- Increase the lentils and reduce the rice for a more filling plate with more protein.
- Pair a modest portion with a large salad or cooked vegetables.
History
Rice and lentil dishes are cooked across the Gulf, the Levant and South Asia, and muaddas is the Emirati home-style version. It remains an everyday family dish in the UAE and neighbouring Gulf countries.
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Values are estimates per 100 g for a typical recipe; home and restaurant versions vary. Diets and allergens are worked out from the ingredients of a typical recipe — always check with whoever cooked the dish. Not medical advice. Nutrition data: Me Nutrition dish database v13. How we count →