Lubieh bi Laham, also known as Lubee or Lubia, is a traditional Lebanese dish that consists of green beans, lamb or beef and onions cooked in a tomato sauce and typically served over rice. Growing up, this dish was a staple weeknight dinner in my family and always made for the best leftover nights.
For this dish, I prefer frozen green beans, Italian cut specifically, since they make for less work without having to cut and string them, plus it gives you more time to dice the onion which is always the most difficult part for me. Another tip is to keep an eye on and continuously stir the meat and onions when initially cooking them to ensure they do not burn.
Lastly, make sure you are using a big enough pot because the full recipe makes enough food for about 4-5 people, but again, makes for great leftovers.
Ingredients
- 2 lbs green beans
- 1lb lamb or beef (stew meat), cubed
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 1 can whole tomatoes
- 1 small can tomato sauce
- 1 ½ tsp salt
- ½ tsp pepper
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 2 tbsp butter
Steps
- First, add meat and onions to a cast iron pot and brown them with spices for about eight minutes, or until onions have softened, on medium to medium-low heat.
- Stir frequently until meat has browned. Don’t worry about cooking it all the way through as it will finish cooking later on.
- Add beans and tomatoes and mix together until it’s all combined.
- After adding in tomatoes, fill the tomato sauce can with ¼ cup water to get the rest out.
- Cover and cook over low heat for at least one hour, stirring occasionally, until the meat and beans are cooked all the way through.
- Serve over rice with pita bread.
