The Lebanese lamb confit traditionally preserved in the animal’s grease is Qawarma.
Qawarma is a traditional Lebanese preserved-meat preparation made from chopped or minced lamb, salt, and rendered animal fat. The lamb is cooked slowly in the fat, which both enriches the meat and forms a protective layer that helps preserve it. The traditional fat is often taken from the tail of a fat-tailed Awassi sheep.
Before refrigeration, this technique was especially important in Lebanon’s mountain villages. Families prepared qawarma after slaughtering and fattening sheep, then stored it for use during the winter. The meat could be kept in jars or other containers beneath the solidified grease and used gradually in everyday cooking.
Qawarma is sometimes confused with basturma, which is air-dried and heavily seasoned, or shawarma, which is roasted on a vertical spit. Kafta is a fresh minced-meat preparation. Qawarma is defined instead by slow cooking and preservation in fat, and it is often reheated with eggs or added to other dishes.