Basic instinct: Yotam Ottolenghi�s recipes fromBethlehem | Life and style

This week's recipes come from Bethlehem, a city more famous for its long religious history than itsculinary heritage. Even so, it's one of the Middle East's most important food hubs and home to someof the most celebrated Palestinian dishes.

Located 10km south of Jerusalem, Bethlehem is a green, fertile oasis on the edge of a desert thatstretches all the way to the Dead Sea. Pilgrims throughout history have marvelled at the lushness ofthe land, with its fig and olive trees, herbs such as za'atar and sage, its wild wheat and greens. Evenwine grapes are grown here: the only vineyard in Palestine, Cremisan, is in Bethlehem district.

Film-maker Leila Sansour, who grew up in the city and runs the Open Bethlehem campaign, aimedat preserving the city's identity and multi-faith heritage in the face of recent hardships (notably thewall Israel is erecting in the West Bank), has kindly shared with me some of her family recipes forthis week's column. Whole wheat, cracked wheat and flour products have always been staples forfamilies such as Leila's. Her great-grandmother, like generations of Palestinian women before her,used to make pasta ("raqaq" in Arabic) by hand, for adding to soups and stews such as today's lentiland pasta dish. Freekeh (whole or cracked green wheat), as well as maftoul (a local couscous), havelong been hugely popular in the city, even though wheat hasn't been cultivated in serious quantitiesfor many years.

Generally speaking, local agriculture is in decline due to the separation of the city from thesurrounding countryside; but the diet is still very much based on traditional local ingredients - broadbeans (a staple for millennia), olive oil, tomatoes and cucumbers, chickpeas, garlic and lemons.

Cooking with and in yoghurt is another Bethlehem trademark. Nomadic Bedouin would frequent thecity market on their way to and from the desert, bringing with them sheep and sheep's produce. Oneof my favourite dishes is mansaf, which is made by slow-cooking lamb in rehydrated dried yoghurt,then serving it on a bed of flatbread and rice or bulgur, and finishing off with a scattering of toastedalmonds.

For me, the brilliance of these dishes lies in the way they take a few humble staples - wheat, rice,lentils, broad beans, chicken, chickpeas - and transform them into something fresh throughthe clever use of key aromatics - and, of course, liberal quantities of olive oil.

Braised broad beans in their shells, with chilli and garlic

Normally, we pod broad beans and throw away the skins, which can be tough and fibrous. Butstart with beans that are fresh and tender, and there's really no need: when cooked, thecontrast between skin and bean is a revelation. A lemony tahini sauce would be a good condimentfor this dish: drizzle some over the beans when serving. Or add a generous dollop of Greek yoghurtto temper the heat and add some welcome richness. Serves four, as a mezze or side dish.

500g young broad beans in their pods

80ml olive oil

1 large chilli, cut in half lengthways, deseeded and finely chopped

10 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed

Salt and black pepper

5g coriander leaves, roughly chopped

1 tsp lemon juice

1 tsp cumin seeds, toasted and roughly crushed

Top and tail the beans, then pull away the fibrous threads on the sides of the pod and chop into 5cmpieces.

Add the oil to a large saute pan for which you have a lid, and place on a medium-high heat. Once hot,add the chilli and garlic, and fry for two to three minutes, until the garlic starts to turn golden. Addthe beans, half a teaspoon of salt and a good grind of black pepper, and stir through for a minute.Add 60ml water, turn down the heat to low, cover and leave to simmer slowly for 45 minutes.Remove from the heat, stir through the coriander, lemon juice and cumin seeds, and serve.

Raqaq u addas

This dish is like an old friend to me, and features two of the foods that comfort me most - lentils andpasta; the other ingredients are pretty much a roll call of my favourite things. This is a quick supperfor two that's ideal for a school night.

200g green lentils

75ml olive oil

4 large cloves garlic, peeled and crushed

1½ tsp organic vegetable stock powder

2 tbsp sumac

130g egg tagliatelle, broken up into smaller pieces with your hands

Salt and black pepper

1 tsp cumin seeds, toasted and crushed

5g coriander, roughly chopped

½ lemon

80g Greek yoghurt

Bring a medium pan of water to a boil, add the lentils and cook, uncovered, for 15 minutes, until justcooked through. Drain, return the lentils to the pan and set aside.

Pour the oil into a small pan and place on a high heat. Once hot, add the garlic and fry for about 20

seconds, just until the garlic starts turning golden; make sure it doesn't go brown. Pour the oil andgarlic over the lentils, then stir in the stock powder, sumac, tagliatelle and half a teaspoon of salt.

Add 350ml of water, return the pan to a high heat and bring to a boil. Press down the lentils andpasta, so they're just covered in liquid, turn the heat to low, cover and cook for seven minutes, untilthe pasta and lentils are both cooked through. Remove from the heat and set aside, covered, for fiveminutes, then stir in the cumin, coriander and a good grind of pepper. Serve warm with a squeeze oflemon juice and the yoghurt alongside.

Sweet spiced chicken stew with maftoul

Yotam Ottolenghi's sweet spiced chicken stew with maftoul: 'Maftoul is super-sized Palestiniancouscous.' Photograph: Johanna Parkin for the Guardian. Food styling: Claire Ptak

Maftoul is a super-sized Palestinian couscous. It's becoming more widely available here, especiallyonline. If you can't find it, substitute with giant or even regular couscous. Serves four.

8 chicken drumsticks

Salt and black pepper

5 tsp freshly grated nutmeg

60ml olive oil

1 large onion, peeled and roughly chopped

¾ tsp ground allspice

15 cardamom pods, gently crushed

3 carrots, peeled, trimmed, quartered lengthways and cut on the diagonal into 0.5cm-wide slices

2 red peppers, core and seeds removed, flesh cut lengthways into 0.5cm-wide strips

7 large plum tomatoes, skinned and quartered

2 strips orange skin

250g maftoul (or giant couscous)

150g freshly cooked chickpeas, rinsed and dried (or tinned)

1 banana shallot, peeled and coarsely grated

5g parsley leaves, roughly chopped

Mix the chicken in a large bowl with half a teaspoon of salt and a teaspoon of nutmeg. Add twotablespoons of oil to a large saute pan and place on a medium-high heat. Once hot, add the chickenand fry for eight minutes, turning regularly until the drumsticks are golden-brown. Pour over1.2 litres of water and boil for 30 minutes, until there is about 350ml of liquid left in the pan. Takeoff the heat, lift out the chicken and set aside; reserve the stock.

Pour two tablespoons of oil into a large saucepan for which you have a lid, and place on a mediumheat. Once hot add the onion and fry for six minutes, stirring from time to time, until soft andgolden-brown. Add the allspice, cardamom and three teaspoons of nutmeg, and cook for a minute.Add the carrots, peppers, tomatoes, orange skin, a teaspoon of salt and half a teaspoon of pepper.Fry for 15 minutes more, stirring from time to time, until the vegetables are starting to soften.Reduce the heat to medium-low, pour over 150ml water, cover and leave to simmer for 40 minutes,stirring occasionally, until the vegetables have softened. Put the chicken in the sauce, stir, cover andsimmer for another 20 minutes.

While the chicken is simmering, put a medium saucepan for which you have a lid on a medium-highheat. Once hot, add the maftoul and toast for two minutes, until it starts to brown. Add the chickpeasand pour over the liquor from cooking the chicken and 300ml water (or 400ml, if using giantcouscous) and bring to a boil. Turn down the heat to medium and leave to bubble gently for 10minutes, stirring every now and then. Stir in the shallot, remaining teaspoon of nutmeg, half ateaspoon of salt and a good grind of black pepper, and cook for three to four minutes, until all theliquid has evaporated and the maftoul is cooked. Remove from the heat, cover and leave to stand forfive minutes.

To serve, divide the maftoul between four plates, top with the chicken and tomato sauce, andsprinkle parsley on top.

o Yotam Ottolenghi is chef/patron of Ottolenghi and Nopi in London.