Haneeth

Haneeth is whole lamb, or goat, slow-cooked in a covered earth pit, and a traditional meat dish of Yemen. Its Arabic name is حنيذ. The meat is cooked whole and left to cook slowly, so the flesh becomes tender and moist, and the dish is served with rice and bread as its traditional accompaniments.

What it really is

Haneeth is a whole animal, lamb or goat, seasoned with salt, cumin, black pepper and garlic before it goes into the pit. The pit is covered with earth and the meat cooks slowly over a long period, so the outside takes on colour while the inside stays soft and juicy. The meat is the dish. The rice and bread are served alongside it and are not cooked into it.

How it's served

• Carved from the whole animal and served hot.
• With rice and bread, the traditional accompaniments, which are separate from the meat.
• Carved and shared, with the rice and bread taken as the diner wishes.

How to write it on the menu

• Name the meat: lamb, or goat if that is what you serve, and state the portion weight.
• Flag the wheat in the bread served with it.
• Ask the kitchen whether the rice or bread is cooked with butter or ghee, since both contain milk.
• The classic seasoning is salt, cumin, black pepper and garlic, and the meat itself contains no declarable allergen.
• Explain the earth-pit cooking in a line, since most guests will not know the method.