Bahrain

The dish

Balaleet is a sweet noodle dish topped with eggs. The noodles are cooked with sugar, saffron, cardamom, and rose water. I used angel hair pasta broken into short pieces.

What we thought

This dish is very easy to make and very good, provided you don’t include the rose water. The rose water is traditional, but I do not like floral tastes in my food. I’d give it a 4.2/5 without the rose water but a 2.5/5 with it. Not a bad meal to make when you want something fast and different.

Ingredients and directions

Ingredients

For the vermicelli

• 1/2 tsp saffron threads or powder
• 1/4 cup rose water or another flavored water
• 3 tbsp vegetable oil (divided)
• 2 cups vermicelli (I used angel hair pasta broken into 1-inch pieces)
• 1 tbsp butter
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 tsp turmeric
• 2 tsp cardamom powder
• pinch of black pepper
• pinch of salt

For the eggs

• 4 eggs
• 1 tbsp milk
• 1/2 tbsp butter
• pinch of saffron (optional)
• pinch of cardamom
• salt and pepper to taste

Note: Rose water is traditional, but 1/4 cup water with 1/4 tsp vanilla works even better. Plain water with no flavoring also works. Vermicelli is hard to find, but angel hair pasta works as a substitute.

Directions

For the vermicelli

1. Dissolve the saffron into the flavored water and set aside to steep for 10 minutes. Boil about 4–5 cups of water.
2. Heat 2 tbsp of the vegetable oil over medium-high heat in a pot or deep skillet. Add the noodles and toast, stirring, until lightly browned.
3. Pour the boiling water over the noodles until submerged. Boil until you reach the preferred tenderness per the package instructions. Drain the noodles.
4. Add 1 tbsp butter and 1 tbsp oil to the pan over medium heat. Once hot, add the noodles back to the pan along with the sugar, turmeric, cardamom, black pepper, and salt.
5. Cook until the sugar is dissolved and the water has evaporated.

For the eggs

6. Whisk the milk, eggs, salt, cardamom, saffron, and pepper together in a bowl.
7. Heat 1/2 tbsp butter in a skillet. Cook the eggs in the skillet until firm.
8. Serve the noodles topped with the eggs.