Recipe
🍽️ DINNER
Murabyan
Spiced Gulf shrimp folded through rice cooked in their fragrant broth, layered with dill and dried lime.
Kuwaiti · medium · serves 6
prep 25 min · cook 40 min
~455 cal · 34g protein · 76g carbs · 1g fat · 3g fiber · 3g sugars · 0g sat fat (estimated, per serving)
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Murabyan is a beloved Kuwaiti shrimp and rice dish, Gulf shrimp cooked with tomatoes, dried lime, and spices, then folded through rice cooked in their fragrant broth. Seafood is central to the cuisine of the Gulf coast, and this dish celebrates the prized local shrimp.
The rice absorbs the flavor of the shrimp and the tangy warmth of dried lime ('loomi') and baharat spice, a hallmark of Kuwaiti cooking. It reflects the maritime heritage of a nation long tied to pearl diving and the sea.
Served at family and celebration meals across Kuwait, murabyan is warm and aromatic.
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Make it yours
✓ Naturally gluten-, dairy-, egg-, nut- and pork-free. No swaps needed.
Toggle a diet and the ingredients rewrite themselves with regional substitutes.
🥕 Vegetarian
🌱 Vegan
🌾 Gluten-Free
🥛 Dairy-Free
🥜 Nut-Free
🥚 Egg-Free
🐖 Pork-Free
Dietary labels are a cooking guide, not allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we count coconut as a tree nut, following FDA labeling), fish, and shellfish; we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, read the label on every product you use, and note that a kitchen can cross-contaminate in ways a recipe cannot control.
Ingredients
US
Metric
Serves 6
1.5 lb shrimp, peeled (shells reserved)
2.5 cups basmati rice, soaked
2 onion
4 cloves garlic
2 tomato
1 tbsp baharat
1 tsp turmeric
2 dried lime (loomi)
a big handful fresh dill
a big handful cilantro
Instructions
1
Simmer the reserved shrimp shells in water for 15 minutes to make a quick stock, then strain (or use vegetable stock for the vegan version).
✎ Chef’s note
Do not throw out the shrimp shells; simmering them makes a deeply savoury stock that cooks into the rice and carries the whole dish.
2
Soften the onion and garlic, then add the tomato, baharat, turmeric, and pierced loomi (dried lime) and cook to a thick base.
3
Stir the shrimp (or mushrooms) through the base for 2 minutes, then lift out half to keep them from overcooking.
4
Add the drained rice and the hot stock, bring to a boil, then cover and steam on low for 15 minutes.
5
Fold the reserved shrimp and most of the dill through the rice, rest 5 minutes, and serve topped with the remaining herbs.
Kuwait City tradition.
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🌏 While it simmers, know your destination
📍
Kuwait City. Harees is the Ramadan fixture, wheat and meat cooked down for hours and beaten until they become one smooth thing, and it turns up across the Gulf under the same name. The saffron and rosewater in the rice and the sweets are the visible half of centuries of Persian and Indian trade through this port.
🗺️
Kuwait. The Kuwaiti signature within the machboos family is the prawn version, machboos rubyan, because Gulf shrimp were landed here in quantity long before oil. The dried black lime is pricked with a fork before it goes into the pot so its sourness can leach out, and bzar, the local spice blend, does the rest.
🌍
Asia. Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, and its food spans the delicate seasonality of Japanese washoku, the chili-fired curries of India and Thailand, and the wheat-and-lamb traditions of Central Asia. Rice, noodles, soy, and fermentation recur across its regions, while ancient spice routes and religious traditions shaped distinct grammars of flavor. Whether from a street-cart wok or a monastery kitchen, eating is deeply communal and ritual-rich.
The story behind this dish is up top, worth a read while the pot works.
More from Kuwait
KhameerSoft, lightly sweet date-and-cardamom yeast breads, griddled and eaten with cream or cheese.
Mutabbaq SamakSpiced fish served over caramelized-onion rice with dried lime, a classic Kuwaiti and Gulf seafood dish.
Gers OgailyA fragrant saffron and cardamom sponge cake topped with sesame and nigella seeds, a Kuwaiti celebration classic.
Browse all Kuwait recipes →
Good to know
You’ll need: Steamer.
Storing it: Cool leftover rice quickly and refrigerate within an hour. Keep up to 2 days and reheat until piping hot all the way through.
Make it a Kuwait meal
Gers OgailyDessert
Mutabbaq SamakLunch
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Frequently asked questions
What is Murabyan?
Spiced Gulf shrimp folded through rice cooked in their fragrant broth, layered with dill and dried lime.
Where does Murabyan come from?
Murabyan is a Kuwaiti dish from Kuwait City, Kuwait.
Can Murabyan be made vegan, gluten-free, or dairy-free?
This Murabyan recipe includes substitution suggestions for vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free, egg-free, and pork-free versions, including several at once such as gluten-free and dairy-free together. Treat them as a starting guide rather than a guarantee, and see the allergen note below.
Is Murabyan safe for people with food allergies?
Our dietary labels and substitutions are a cooking guide, not medical or allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we count coconut as a tree nut, following FDA labeling), fish, and shellfish, but we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, always read the label on every product you use, and remember a home or commercial kitchen can cross-contaminate ingredients in ways a recipe cannot control.
How long does Murabyan take to make?
About 65 minutes total (25 minutes prep, 40 minutes cooking), serving 6.
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