How can you prepare a delicious tsimes dish?

There are an incredibly wide variety of dishes in the world, and some of them may interest you. If you prefer simple, but at the same time interesting and colorful recipes, then try to cook tsimmes yourself in your own kitchen.

What is tsimes?

Tzimes refers to the Jewish national cuisine and is considered a dessert in the original traditional version. It is certainly served at the New Year’s table, considering it a true delicacy. In general, tsimes is a kind of sweet stew made of vegetables, to which berries and fruits are sometimes added. But in modern variations, you can find legumes (usually beans) and even meat in the composition, so that the dish can become the main hot or full-fledged side dish.

Interesting fact! Although the composition and preparation of tsimes is quite simple, the dish is very popular and beloved among Jews, it is considered almost a delicacy. And that’s why its name is often used in such meanings as “what is needed”, “the best.”

Cooking options

How can you prepare a delicious tsimes dish? There are a lot of recipes. Its frequent and widespread component is carrots, which impart a bright color, sweetish taste and juiciness. But the composition includes other different ingredients, and several interesting cooking variations are discussed below.

Carrot cimes with dried fruits

This dish will require the following products:

• a kilogram of carrots;
• a full glass of raisins;
• a full glass of pitted prunes;
• half a glass of sugar (better cane or brown);
• half a teaspoon of ground cinnamon;
• six to seven tablespoons of vegetable, preferably olive oil;
• five tablespoons of lemon juice;
• five tablespoons of natural honey (not candied, liquid);
• glass of water;
• pepper and salt to taste.

Description of the cooking process:

1. Carrots need to be thoroughly washed, peeled if necessary, and then cut into fairly large cubes or not into thin rings.
2. Next, heat the oil in a frying pan, fry the carrots in it until they are clearly ruddy.
3. Next, the fried carrots, along with the oil, should be transferred to a thick-bottomed saucepan or other similar container. Add pre-washed dried fruits, sugar and freshly boiled water there.
4. Place the saucepan on low heat and simmer the food for at least half an hour, stirring occasionally to prevent the ingredients from burning or getting damaged.
5. After half an hour, add lemon juice, simmer for another ten minutes, then add honey, and pepper and salt the dish.
6. In a minute the tsimes will be ready. Let it brew a little under the lid and serve.

Tzimes with beans

Spicy bean cymes can be served as a side dish for meat. And the ingredients for this dish are the following:

• two hundred grams of beans;
• four fairly large carrots;
• two hundred grams of prunes;
• 100 g of natural, not thick honey;
• 70 grams of nuts (walnuts are best);
• about 50 grams of butter;
• salt.

Instructions step by step:

1. Beans should be prepared in advance: 10 hours before cooking or overnight, fill them with cool water and leave to swell and soften. Then boil the beans in water.
2. Cut the carrots into strips or small cubes, and after chopping, first lightly fry in butter, and then simmer until almost cooked.
3. In a thick-bottomed container such as a duckling, a cauldron or a saucepan, place carrots (along with the oil remaining after cooking), boiled beans, prunes (if it is very large, then cut it), pre-chopped nuts and honey. Also pour in some water (about 150 milliliters).
4. Simmer all ingredients over low heat under a tightly closed lid for about fifteen minutes. Then add salt and mix everything thoroughly.
5. That’s it, the side dish tsimes, ideal for various main hot dishes, is ready.

Vegetable cimes with meat

If you want to cook a hot dish and a side dish at home at the same time, then this recipe will help you out. First, study the list of components:

• two kilograms of carrots;
• three large potatoes;
• large head of onion;
• about 700-800 grams of beef;
• one zucchini;
• 70 ml of olive oil;
• two-thirds of a glass of red wine (sweet or semi-sweet);
• two liters of vegetable or meat broth;
• a bunch of dill greens;
• 70-100 grams of raisins, dried apricots and prunes;
• sweet paprika;
• ground red pepper;
• a pinch of coriander;
• salt – to your taste.

Steps in the cooking process:

1. Do the beef first. It needs to be thoroughly washed, freed from all the veins, then cut into small cubes. After this preparation, fry the meat in olive oil until golden brown.
2. Next, take out the beef, immediately place it in a thick-bottomed container in which the cymes will be stewed.
3. Prepare vegetables. After washing, chop the potatoes with carrots, onions and zucchini, cut into cubes.
4. In the oil remaining after frying the beef, fry the chopped vegetables until golden brown. Then send them to the meat along with all the oil in which the products were fried.
5. Pour the broth along with the wine into a saucepan with vegetables and meat and simmer the ingredients for at least two hours over low heat under a closed lid.
6. When the beef becomes soft, you will need to add pre-washed raisins, dried apricots and prunes.
7. Simmer everything together for another fifteen minutes, and a couple of minutes before turning off the heat, add coriander, pepper, paprika, washed chopped dill and salt.
8. Done!

Pumpkin Cymes

Bright, appetizing and healthy tsimes will be made from pumpkin. The list of components is as follows:

• 800-1000 grams of pumpkin (preferably nutmeg or any other sweet);
• three onion heads;
• glass of water;
• five tablespoons of granulated sugar;
• a small piece of fresh ginger root;
• a glass of walnuts and raisins;
• an incomplete teaspoon of ground cinnamon;
• four to five tablespoons of olive or sunflower oil;
• four tablespoons of liquid honey;
• lemon;
• salt to taste.

Recipe:

1. Peel the onion and cut into half rings. After peeling, the pumpkin is cut into cubes.
2. Heat the oil well in a thick-bottomed saucepan, fry the onion on it until transparent and soft, and then add the pumpkin and fry it for a short time to add a light golden color.
3. Now pour hot water into the pan, add sugar and simmer the onion and pumpkin for fifteen minutes.
4. Squeeze lemon juice into a saucepan, put pre-peeled and grated ginger, chopped nuts and raisins in any way.
5. After ten minutes of stewing food under the lid, you can add cinnamon, salt and honey.
6. Simmer your tsimes for another five minutes, then remove from the heat.

Choose the appropriate cooking option for Jewish tsimes to pamper yourself, delight your family and surprise guests with your culinary skills!