If you’re wondering what to cook for iftar during Ramadan, today I’m sharing a realistic week of meals from our family home, along with four easy recipes you can try yourself.
Iftar doesn’t have to mean preparing an enormous feast from scratch every evening. During Ramadan I like to make things easier wherever I can. Sometimes that means using samosas and spring rolls I’ve prepared for the freezer, sometimes it means turning leftovers into something new, and sometimes it means getting a takeaway!
For this particular week, I’m sharing what we ate from Monday to Friday.
There was grilled chicken and rice, keema aloo, loaded fries made from leftovers, Cajun chicken with potato pilau, a cheesy lamb mince pasta bake and, finally, a Friday night takeaway.
Here are four of the homemade dishes from our week.
1. Keema Aloo – Lamb Mince & Potato Curry
Keema aloo is such a simple and comforting family meal. It’s essentially a lamb mince curry with potatoes, and it’s particularly handy when you’re cooking for a larger family.
Ingredients
- 1kg lamb mince
- 3 tbsp sunflower oil
- 1 tsp coriander seeds
- 1 tsp cumin seeds
- 2 medium onions, sliced
- 1 tin chopped tomatoes
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp garam masala
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp ground coriander
- 1 tsp garlic granules
- ½ tsp ground turmeric
- ½ tsp red chilli powder
- 500g potatoes, quartered
- 500ml water
Method
Start by cooking the lamb mince in a large pan.
My mince released quite a lot of liquid, so once it was cooked I drained off the excess and set the mince aside.
In another large pan, heat the sunflower oil and add the coriander and cumin seeds.
Add the sliced onions and cook until nicely browned.
Next, add the chopped tomatoes and cook them down before adding the salt, garam masala, cumin, coriander, garlic granules, turmeric and chilli powder.
Normally I’d use garlic & ginger paste, but I didn’t have any that day, so garlic granules did the job!
Add the cooked mince and mix everything together.
Add the quartered potatoes followed by approximately 500ml water. You want enough liquid for the potatoes to cook and become tender.
Bring everything to the boil before reducing the heat and simmering for approximately 20 minutes, or until the potatoes are soft.
We had ours with parathas.
Bonus idea: Turn leftover mince and chips into loaded fries
I kept some of the cooked lamb mince aside and used leftover chips from the previous evening to make some quick loaded fries for iftar.
I cooked the mince with a little oil, peri-peri seasoning and lime juice before adding some halved baby plum tomatoes.
I then topped the leftover fries with the seasoned mince, jalapeños, mozzarella and grated cheddar and baked them until the cheese was melted.
A very easy way to turn leftovers into something everyone actually wants to eat!
2. Cajun Chicken Drumsticks
The next evening I wanted to try some Cajun seasoning I’d recently bought, so I used it to make these really simple oven-baked chicken drumsticks.
Ingredients
- 2kg chicken drumsticks, skin on
- 2 tbsp Cajun seasoning
- 1 tbsp garlic & ginger paste
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 tbsp onion granules
- ¼ cup sunflower oil
Method
Cut a few slits into each chicken drumstick. This helps the marinade get further into the chicken rather than simply sitting on the skin.
Combine the Cajun seasoning, garlic & ginger paste, lemon juice, onion granules and sunflower oil.
Coat the chicken thoroughly in the marinade.
If you have time, leave it for a couple of hours before cooking. Preparing it the night before and leaving it to marinate overnight would be even better.
Arrange the drumsticks in roasting tins and bake at:
220°C / 200°C fan for approximately 30 minutes.
Once mine had baked, I turned the chicken pieces over, sprinkled over a little more Cajun seasoning and put each tray under the grill briefly.
This gave the chicken a lovely golden, sizzling finish.
We served the Cajun chicken with homemade potato pilau.
3. Easy Potato Pilau
This potato pilau made the perfect accompaniment to the Cajun chicken.
Browning the onions a little more deeply than usual helps give the finished rice that lovely pilau colour.
Ingredients
- 1 tsp coriander seeds
- 1 tsp cumin seeds
- 3 bay leaves
- 1 star anise
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 4 cloves
- 4 whole black peppercorns
- 4 green cardamom pods
- 3 tbsp sunflower oil
- 2 medium onions, sliced
- 3 tomatoes, sliced
- 1 tbsp garlic & ginger paste
- ½ tbsp salt
- 1 tsp garam masala
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp ground coriander
- 1 tsp ground turmeric
- ½ tsp red chilli powder
- 500g potatoes, quartered
- ¼ cup low-fat Greek yoghurt
- 500ml water
- 700g basmati rice, soaked & drained
- 900ml hot boiled water
Method
Heat the sunflower oil in a large pan and add the coriander seeds, cumin seeds, bay leaves, star anise, cinnamon, cloves, black peppercorns and cardamom pods.
Add the sliced onions and cook until they’re a nice deep brown.
Add the sliced tomatoes and continue cooking until they’re soft. If you find the mixture beginning to stick to the pan, add a small splash of water.
Next, add the garlic & ginger paste, salt and powdered spices.
Mix thoroughly before adding the potatoes.
Stir in the Greek yoghurt and add 500ml water.
Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and cook gently for approximately 25 minutes, or until the potatoes have softened.
Add the soaked and drained basmati rice followed by 900ml hot boiled water.
Give everything a good stir and bring it back to the boil.
Cover and cook over a low heat for approximately 10 minutes, or until the rice is cooked and the liquid has been absorbed.
We served this with the Cajun chicken, along with some samosas I’d already prepared for Ramadan.
4. Lamb Mince Pasta Bake
After buying quite a large amount of lamb mince, I was trying to find different ways of using it rather than making curry every time.
A cheesy pasta bake was the answer!
This is a lovely family-friendly dinner and you can add whatever vegetables you have available.
Ingredients
For the pasta and mince:
- 1kg lamb mince
- 250g frozen mixed vegetables
- Up to 1kg pasta
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 2 red onions, sliced
- 1 tbsp garlic & ginger paste
- ½ tbsp salt
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp mixed herbs
- 1 tsp red chilli flakes
- 500g passata
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- A little water, as needed
For the cheese sauce:
- 50g butter
- 50g plain flour
- 500ml milk
- ½ cup grated cheddar
- Salt and coarse black pepper, to taste
Optional toppings:
- Grated cheddar
- Baby plum tomatoes
- Jalapeños
Method
Cook the lamb mince along with the frozen mixed vegetables.
Once everything has cooked and softened, drain away any excess liquid.
Heat the olive oil in a pan and add the sliced red onions.
Add the garlic & ginger paste, salt, paprika, mixed herbs and red chilli flakes.
Return the lamb mince and vegetables to the pan.
Pour in the passata and add the lemon juice. Add a little water if necessary to keep the mixture moist.
Meanwhile, cook your pasta according to the packet instructions.
I started with 1kg of pasta but didn’t actually use all of it because it wouldn’t fit into my baking dish, so add as much as you need for the size of dish you’re using.
Making the White Sauce
Melt 50g butter in a saucepan.
Add 50g plain flour and mix until you have a smooth paste.
Gradually pour in the milk while whisking continuously.
Bring the sauce towards the boil, continuing to whisk so you don’t end up with lumps.
Season with salt and coarse black pepper before adding the grated cheddar.
Stir until you have a smooth cheese sauce.
Assemble the Pasta Bake
Add the cooked pasta and lamb mince mixture to a large baking dish and mix together.
Pour the white sauce over the top.
Finish with some extra grated cheddar.
I also topped mine with sliced baby plum tomatoes and jalapeños.
Bake until everything is heated through and the top is lovely and golden.
We had ours with chicken strips on the side.
A Realistic Week of Iftar Meals
One of the things I like about this particular week is that it’s a pretty realistic representation of how we eat during Ramadan.
Not every iftar needs to be an elaborate homemade feast.
On Monday, my husband prepared ready-marinated chicken from the supermarket and grilled it. We had it with rice, chips and some of the spring rolls and samosas I’d prepared before Ramadan.
On Tuesday, I made the keema aloo and used leftovers to make loaded fries.
Wednesday was Cajun chicken with potato pilau.
Thursday was lamb mince pasta bake.
And then on Friday?
Takeaway night!
We had KFC because there was an offer running at the time, followed by cake and custard for dessert.
That’s real family food – a mixture of cooking from scratch, using what’s already in the freezer, reinventing leftovers and occasionally letting somebody else do the cooking!
Making Iftar Easier During Ramadan
One reason I prepare snacks such as samosas and spring rolls before Ramadan is precisely for weeks like this.
When you’ve already got a few things in the freezer, you don’t have to make every component of your iftar from scratch.
You can concentrate on making one main dish and simply add something you’ve prepared earlier alongside it.
The same applies to leftovers. Rather than throwing away leftover chips or cooked meat, see whether you can turn them into another dish the following evening. Loaded fries are perfect for this.
For me, Ramadan meal planning isn’t about creating the most impressive table every evening. It’s about feeding the family while making the workload manageable so that food preparation doesn’t take over the month.
I hope these four recipes – and our very normal Friday takeaway! – give you a few ideas for your own iftar meals.
What is one meal your family always enjoys during Ramadan?
May Allah bless our Ramadan, accept our fasting and worship, and allow us to make the most of this beautiful month. Ameen. 🌙❤️
