NEED MENA CULINARY EXPERTISE!!!!

[chaishai 1]

here's an interesting one:

zucchini salad with raisins and pinenuts

1 pound zucchini, thin slice

4 T evoo

2 T pine nuts

1 T raisins or currants

1 clove garlic, minced

salt and pepper

2 t dried mint

juice of 1/2 lemon (or more)

saute zucchini in the oil with the pine nuts, raisins, and garlic. add salt and dried mint. stir over medium until zucchini is just cooked.

serve hot or cold with lemon juice squeezed over.

this sounds great!!! did you get it from a site? did it have ratings?

[♥JP♥ 5]

well hummus of course. but you probably already know how to make that. and baba ghanough? tabbouleh?

there are tons of moroccan salads: orange/olive, carrot salad, zaalouk (spicy eggplant), roast pepper/tomato salad,

what about fattoush? thats one of my favorite middle eastern salads. toasted ripped pieces of pita, cut romaine, tomato, cucumber, onion, raw peppers, lemon juice, evoo, sumac, salt, and pepper. YUM!

also what about muhammara? wait let me find some of my MENA books. i'll be back

i would like a recipe for the salads you mentioned above

the salads i make regularly are matboucha (moroccan but maybe just jews?), baba gan... i buy hummus because i have a brand i LOVE but i make fava beans to put on top.

fattoush sounds great! i love lebanese fattoush. and my husband is making pita for the event so it might be really yummy

muhammara:

1-1/4 c shelled walnut

1-1/2-2 T tomato paste

1 slice whole wheat bread, crust removed, toasted

1/2 C evoo

2 T pomegranate molasses/syrup

1 t coarsely ground red pepper flakes

1 t cumin

2 t sugar

salt

blend to a ROUGH chop (not smooth) in a food processor.

is this good???? have you made before? i cant believe i have never heard of this before!

We make this all the time although I've never used the pomegranate syrup but that stuff is good. I think we also use alot more red pepper and we use the paste not flakes...but this stuff is GOOD and SPICY!

JP can I have your recipe so I dont have to trek to the lebanese store to buy the pom syrup?

thanks!

Here is the recipe I use, I started makign this last year when my husband came to america and it was a hit. Been making it ever since. Many people don't know what this is because its Lebanese or Syrian in origin.

3 medium onions, finely chopped

1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon olive oil

3/4 cup crushed walnuts

3/4 cup breadcrumbs blended with cold water to a purée

2 tablespoons paprika (or 1 teaspoon chili powder for a very hot muhammara) or 1 small can hot pepper purée

a pinch of ground cumin

salt

1 tablespoon pine nuts sautéed in a little oil

Using a deep skillet, sauté the onions gently in the oil until soft and golden. Add the walnuts, the breadcrumb purée, the pepper (chili or purée), the cumin and salt to taste. Continue to sauté gently on a low heat until the ingredients are well blended - about 12 minutes.

Remove from the heat, place in a bowl and garnish with pine nuts.

Muhammara is eaten as a dip with bread. It can also be used as a spicy dip with kebabs, grilled meats and fish. The Lebanese also eat it as a spread on toast.

Serves about 6.

[sereia 0]

i have tons of recipes for muhammara but all of them (i believe) include pomegranate syrup. i'll have to try yours though, jp! muhammara is soooo yummy!

i'll try and get more recipes for you, chai. and as far as the zucchini salad... i typed it up for you from a cookbook i have by claudia roden (a very famous MENA cookbook writer)

[♥JP♥ 5]

i have tons of recipes for muhammara but all of them (i believe) include pomegranate syrup. i'll have to try yours though, jp! muhammara is soooo yummy!

i'll try and get more recipes for you, chai. and as far as the zucchini salad... i typed it up for you from a cookbook i have by claudia roden (a very famous MENA cookbook writer)

LOL i was think I wanted to try yours too because I have a bottle of pomegranate syrup at home that is still unopened! ALso the baby seems love spicy food

[chaishai 1]

i have tons of recipes for muhammara but all of them (i believe) include pomegranate syrup. i'll have to try yours though, jp! muhammara is soooo yummy!

i'll try and get more recipes for you, chai. and as far as the zucchini salad... i typed it up for you from a cookbook i have by claudia roden (a very famous MENA cookbook writer)

thanks girl! i am going to try the zuchhini and pomegranate free muhammara for sure. next time i am at the lebanese store tho i am definately going to get some pom syrup and try it with!

[sereia 0]

they sell it at my regular big supermarket here. i thought you were in a big city? check it out!

[chaishai 1]

they sell it at my regular big supermarket here. i thought you were in a big city? check it out!

i am and i have, we dont have it here! we can get the cortas brand at the lebanese store. actually i think its kinda crappy - you can get tons of stuff from israel, eastern european countries, mexico - but the only place you can really get arab ingredients are the arab markets. maybe it will make its way into the supermarkets because back 10 years ago you couldnt get israeli products in the mainstream supermarkets like you can now.

but i check all of the time because there are a few other ingredients i use regularly that i buy from there ie grape leaves, a specific grade of semolina, orange blossom water, etc....

does anyone have a good recipe for mechouia/meshwia? my MIL is from tunisia and makes this but hers sucks! but my hubby has aunts that make it really well.

how about an impresive rice side dish (no meat in it tho because i am making the bisteeya, chicken kebab, kefta kebab and spicy sausages)

[♥JP♥ 5]

they sell it at my regular big supermarket here. i thought you were in a big city? check it out!

i am and i have, we dont have it here! we can get the cortas brand at the lebanese store. actually i think its kinda crappy - you can get tons of stuff from israel, eastern european countries, mexico - but the only place you can really get arab ingredients are the arab markets. maybe it will make its way into the supermarkets because back 10 years ago you couldnt get israeli products in the mainstream supermarkets like you can now.

but i check all of the time because there are a few other ingredients i use regularly that i buy from there ie grape leaves, a specific grade of semolina, orange blossom water, etc....

does anyone have a good recipe for mechouia/meshwia? my MIL is from tunisia and makes this but hers sucks! but my hubby has aunts that make it really well.

how about an impresive rice side dish (no meat in it tho because i am making the bisteeya, chicken kebab, kefta kebab and spicy sausages)

Rice dish, you can always make mujaddarah (rice w/lentils) You can make plain white rice (salted ofcourse) and sautee some frozen peas and carrots and mix those in and then fry up some almonds and pine nuts and sprinkle over the top. We do this alot at my house. We usually have some ground lamb or beef with the peas and carrots but it can be omitted.

[chaishai 1]

they sell it at my regular big supermarket here. i thought you were in a big city? check it out!

i am and i have, we dont have it here! we can get the cortas brand at the lebanese store. actually i think its kinda crappy - you can get tons of stuff from israel, eastern european countries, mexico - but the only place you can really get arab ingredients are the arab markets. maybe it will make its way into the supermarkets because back 10 years ago you couldnt get israeli products in the mainstream supermarkets like you can now.

but i check all of the time because there are a few other ingredients i use regularly that i buy from there ie grape leaves, a specific grade of semolina, orange blossom water, etc....

does anyone have a good recipe for mechouia/meshwia? my MIL is from tunisia and makes this but hers sucks! but my hubby has aunts that make it really well.

how about an impresive rice side dish (no meat in it tho because i am making the bisteeya, chicken kebab, kefta kebab and spicy sausages)

Rice dish, you can always make mujaddarah (rice w/lentils) You can make plain white rice (salted ofcourse) and sautee some frozen peas and carrots and mix those in and then fry up some almonds and pine nuts and sprinkle over the top. We do this alot at my house. We usually have some ground lamb or beef with the peas and carrots but it can be omitted.

that sounds good the latter suggestion. i dont liek the way i make mujaddarah. my husband used to make it all of the time when i met him 10 years ago and hasnt made it since. he made it great....

pine nuts make everything yummy!!!!! i have had people at my house who "dont like pine nuts". im not worried about it!

[Nasturtium 500]

Chicken Taratoor is one of my favorites.

Just boil some chicken with salt, pepper, and a whole onion. Once it's tender, shred it. The sauce is made from Tahini, lemon, garlic, parsley, and serrano peppers, all to taste. Drizzle over the chicken. Eat with pita or pita chips.

LOL!! I was trying to describe this to Ammar who claimed to have never heard of it. So just now, I looked it up, and it's what he made for me 3 days ago. He made his own fried chicken with it though, just plain flour on the chicken.

[♥JP♥ 5]

Chicken Taratoor is one of my favorites.

Just boil some chicken with salt, pepper, and a whole onion. Once it's tender, shred it. The sauce is made from Tahini, lemon, garlic, parsley, and serrano peppers, all to taste. Drizzle over the chicken. Eat with pita or pita chips.

LOL!! I was trying to describe this to Ammar who claimed to have never heard of it. So just now, I looked it up, and it's what he made for me 3 days ago. He made his own fried chicken with it though, just plain flour on the chicken.

I don't know if thats the same thing, this dish is actually Lebanese/Syrian in origin. There is a fried chicken dish we make with this garlicy sauce though, maybe thats what he made you?

[Nasturtium 500]

I don't know if thats the same thing, this dish is actually Lebanese/Syrian in origin. There is a fried chicken dish we make with this garlicy sauce though, maybe thats what he made you?

The thing he made was fried chicken, then he made a sauce with garlic, lemon juice, tahina, and parsley. Now he swears this is sooo vastly different than what you posted.

[♥JP♥ 5]

I don't know if thats the same thing, this dish is actually Lebanese/Syrian in origin. There is a fried chicken dish we make with this garlicy sauce though, maybe thats what he made you?

The thing he made was fried chicken, then he made a sauce with garlic, lemon juice, tahina, and parsley. Now he swears this is sooo vastly different than what you posted.

Does he make fried potatoes with it too?

[Nasturtium 500]

Does he make fried potatoes with it too?

Yep. His village is up on the Syrian border (less than 2km) so this may be why they have it... or he may have brought it back from Syria himself.... but I think it's something his family was doing before he went to Syria.

[♥JP♥ 5]

Does he make fried potatoes with it too?

Yep. His village is up on the Syrian border (less than 2km) so this may be why they have it... or he may have brought it back from Syria himself.... but I think it's something his family was doing before he went to Syria.

We make the same dish. I don't think it has anything to do with where his village is located. Most arabs make the same foods.