Libyan Ousban

Osban is a traditional Libyan sausage. The sausage is stuffed with rice and spring onions, as well as lamb meat, chopped liver, and other lamb parts.

• Ingredients:
• 5-6 piece Sheep’s intestines
• 500g lamb liver and lamb heart finely diced
• 250g of finely chopped lamb meat
• 2 tbsp tomato paste
• ½ cup of olive oil
• 2 medium finely chopped tomatoes
• 4 cups finely chopped fresh parsley
• 3cusp finely chopped spring onions
• 1cup finely chopped fresh mint
• 1 and a 1/2 cups of short grain rice washed, soaked for 10-15 minutes and drained
• 1 tablespoon each of: dried mint, black pepper, ground cayenne pepper, turmeric, salt

1. Wash the intestines with water several times, put them in a bowl. Sprinkle with lemon juice/vinegar, and leave for 10 minutes, then rinse well.
2. In a large bowl mix well all the stuffing ingredients together.
3. Stuff the casings, leaving room for the expansion of the rice.
4. Tie off with thread to seal off the casings, at both ends. You can also use cotton string to tie each sausage at intervals (like a sausage link) to create smaller Osban.
5. Prick each sausages at intervals with a needle – be thorough to prevent the Osban bursting while cooking.
6. Put the osban in large pot, pour enough boiling water to cover the sausages (about 3cm above osban level).
7. Add 1 tb salt, 1/2 tb cayenne pepper and tb 1/2 turmeric.
8. Bring to the boil, then reduce heat to medium. cook for about one hour (prick osban again with needle if it floats).
9. Remove the osban pieces and place them under the grill or fry in little oil until browned.
10. The sausages are cut into more manageable osban segments before serving.

It is best to serve osban with couscous and salad, with a piece of lemon on the side.

I hope you enjoy this traditional Libyan food