ramadan

although consumed throughout the middle east, and regions surrounding the mediterranean sea, tabbouleh is the first thing that comes to mind when i think of lebanese cuisine. it’s a cold salad-like dish, often served as a meze. its colors are like that of the lebanese flag: red, white and green.  parsley, tabbouleh’s main ingredient, is … Continue reading Tabbouleh

we ate desi food often growing up and it was almost sacrilegious for my mom to make pakora or samosa without making this chutney. it’s delicious and can be modified to to accompany a wide array of dishes and palettes (unless, of course, you’re one of those pitiful people who have a genomic trait or … Continue reading Cilantro Chutney

tabla roll: knafeh cheesecake. your worlds are colliding right now, am i right? two of the greatest desserts: knafeh and New York cheesecake come together to make this beaut. it’s east meets west (and all other orientalized fantasies (what am i becoming?))–a layer of knafeh replaces the graham cracker crust for this New York cheesecake, … Continue reading Knafeh Cheesecake

chicken cutlets, or farrakh panne are a great addition to any dish (literally anything). the addition of the onion and garlic marinating step is unique to egyptians, as far as i know (please let me know if otherwise) and is a game changer. this is my mothers recipe and we use it to accompany macarona béchamel … Continue reading Egyptian Chicken Cutlets

when i was younger, after isha prayer at a mosque in bensonhurst, my father and i would would go to the local egyptian-owned butcher and grocery store to buy the items that my mother had requested. as my dad conversed with his friends in the store, i wandered the aisles, looking at the bulk bins filled … Continue reading Basil Seed Honey Drink

exactly a year ago today, i trekked out to east elmhurst, queens to meet a friend of mine, Koutar, so she could teach me how to make one of her favorite dishes: djaj mhamer. little did i know, a few months later, i would be traveling through morocco with her, trying different variations of this … Continue reading Djaj Mhamer

 butter chicken is as good as it gets. in undergrad, i made the healthy choice of biking to and from school, but would often make an unhealthy, but very delicious, detour on my way home to mashallah sweets. i was there so often, the staff would often try to guess whether i was ordering muli … Continue reading Butter Chicken

 koshari is egypt’s national dish. it’s a cheap eat and in cairo, you’ll often find it being served up at street stands, hole-in-the-walls, restaurants and basically everywhere. it’s carb on carb goodness that reminds you of your mother’s cooking…even if, like me, your non-egyptian mother never really made it. Continue reading “Koshari”