Ingredients
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Meat Siniya
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1/2kg(1.1 pound) Ground Beef
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1 sliced Tomatoes
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1 chopped Onions
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2 Garlic Cloves
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1/2 TSP Baharat
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1 TBSP Extra-Virgin Olive Oil
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Atlantic Sea Salt
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Freshly Ground Black Pepper
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Vegan Siniya
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1/2 head Cauliflower
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handful Mushrooms
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1 sliced Onions
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1 optional Carrots
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Cumin
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Atlantic Sea Salt
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Black Pepper
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Turmeric Powder
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Tahini
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1/2 cup Sesame Seed Paste (Tahini)
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about 1/2 glass Ice Water
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1/2 lemon Lemon Juice
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1 Garlic Cloves
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Atlantic Sea Salt
Directions
The mix keto siniya is the perfect one-pot meal. I took the fabulous meat siniya recipe and the vegan siniya mixed and baked them together with Tahini on top for a perfect lunch or dinner meal. I love this mix because it’s a low cab Meditteranean dish that is also keto-friendly. If you are vegan you can bake the vegan siniya separately and enjoy it as a main dish. The mix keto siniya is a perfect complete healthy meal.
What is Siniya?
Siniya sounds like an exotic dish that might be hard to make but it’s not true. Siniya is a Meditteranean dish very popular in Palestine, Israel, and other kitchens in the region. The name comes from the metal plate it used to be made in, but claypot is very popular too. Some will say it’s the Mediterranean version of the famous shepherd pie.
There are 2 main types of siniya:
- Meat version – usually made with lamb or a mix of lamb and beef meat. It’s perfectly tasty to make it out of ground beef (try to get fatty ground meat)
- Vegan version – basically the meat is replaced with vegetables usually cauliflower.
Both dishes are layer dishes. The meat version 1st layer is the meat, then tomatoes, tahini, and pinenuts on top. The vegan versions i love to make is a mix of cauliflower with onion, carrots, and mushrooms fried together in olive oil until softened. Then we bake it in the oven and add the tahini. Pinenuts are optional. Over time along with the traditional lamb siniya a lot of vegan versions started to pop out. I took the best of two and created the mix keto siniya.
The siniya is a healthy dish made at home and fits for keto life. This is the perfect low carb Meditteranean dish. When mixing together we have a complete mix keto siniya meal that is satisfying and festive. You can easily impress guests with Siniya.
Preparation:
To make the mix keto siniya you need a big enough clay pot or any oven-safe pyrex. You’ll also need a pan to soften the veggies in before sending it to the oven. We need to work on the veggies and meat together so we can make sure it’s all prepared at the same time. While the meat goes into the oven covering half of the clay pot, we will heat up a pan with olive oil and add the veggies to soften while stirring occasionally. After about 15 min, take the meat from the oven and get rid of excess liquids. Add the tomatoes over the meat and on the other side of the pyrex or clay pot add the veggies from the pan. Bake for 10 min. After the 10 min, take out the pyrex from the oven and pour the tahini over the veggies and meat. Bake for another 7-10min and the mix keto siniya is ready.
Making the meat Siniya
Basically, as mentioned Siniya is a layered dish. I start with baking the ground meat and spices for 15-20 min (i used beef but you can mix with lamb). After 15-20 min I’m adding sliced tomatoes to cover the meat and the veggies for the vegan side. Bake for another 10 min. The last step is to pour the Thani over everything and send it back to the over for the last 7-10 min. The pine nuts will go on top when cooking is done (It’s possible to make the dish without the pine nuts if you don’t have any or want to serve it to small children). Also, I suggest checking the source of pinenuts you are buying.
Making the vegan Siniya
There are 3 simple steps to make vegan siniya. Before you start you need to decide which veggies are you going to use. I used onions, cauliflower (which is the base of the dish), mushrooms, and carrots. Sometimes i use eggplants too. You can leave out the carrots if you are strict keto.
- Prepare the veggies. Cut them to easy bite sizes. Heat olive oil in a pan. On a small heat, fry all the veggies while covered in the pan until softened. it will take about 10-15 min. Stir occasionally so it won’t get burnt. Just before you are ready to move the veggies to the oven. Season with salt, pepper, cumin, and turmeric. You can also add garam masala. Stir everything together and move it to an ovenproof skillet. Add the veggies to the oven when you add the tomatoes on top of the meat side.
- While the veggies in the oven, prepare the Tahini. You’ll need 1 garlic clove, cold water (this is the secret), raw tahini, salt, and lemon. Stir together that raw tahini with cold water until you get the texture you desire. Add the garlic after you crashed it and cut it to tiny as possible pieces. Season with high-quality Himalayan pink salt or other quality hand-harvest sea salt. Squeeze the lemon stir together taste and fix the seasoning if needed.
- After 10 min, take the meat and veggies out and pour the Tahini on top. Return everything to the oven until the Tahini is baked on top about 10 more minutes.
Depending on your preferences you can serve the mix keto siniya in 2 different pots or one.
Steps
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1
Done
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1. Cut all the veggies for the vegan siniya. Mix the ground meat with the spices, onion, and garlic. Mix it with your hands well. |
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2
Done
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Tahini1. Add the water to the Tahini and stir until getting the desired texture. The Tahini should be relatively liquid |
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3
Done
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1. After 15 min, take the tray out of the oven and pour all the liquids from the meat. |
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4
Done
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1.Take the tray out again and pour the Thaini on top of everything. Put back in the oven for the last 10 min |
