chefzadi

I've heard of Clifford Wright before coming to this forum. But I've not read his writings. Anyway, after seeing him mentioned a few times in this thread, I did some googling and found his website. I did a keyword search on Algerian cuisine. He confirms things that I've said in this thread. But he also mentions a few things that I would not consider "typical" of Algerian cookery. In the second paragraph of the link I will provide below he states that Algerians mix in melted butter and cinnamon into semolina couscous. The statement is made within the context of distinguishing Algerian style couscous from Tunisian style couscous. I've only seen cinnamon added to semolina couscous for a limited number of sweet dishes in Algeria. The addition of cinnamon to the semolina couscous for savory meals would be a regional and very limited addition. Algerian semolina couscous is not characterized by or distinguished by the addition of cinnamon. http://www.cliffordawright.com/recipes/kaskasu.html Btw, he also talks about Israeli couscous in the first paragraph.

Beautiful photographs. I saw the one with the Spanish fly as well. Thank you for sharing them with us. $3.00?!? You should have haggled more!

Actually a topic I'm very interested in is how foods evolve through first- second- and third-generation permutations. My Korean grandmother, for example, left Korea when she was only 16 but lived in the Korean community all her life (first in Honolulu, later in LA, but long before Koreatown). She never even really learned to speak more than pidgin English. Yet her cooking, though pure Korean in every sense, would have been quite different from modern cooking in Korea today. Tastes there evolved from her time; and of course she had access to different ingredients. But she was always fiercely proud of doing things the right way. She and her friends campaigned for Korean independence and she liked to recall that she once cooked tubu tchigae for Syngman Rhee. The strong armed autoritarian and first President of the Republic of Korea, so she always claimed, sighed in ectsasy and said that hardly anyone could still cook the old traditional foods like she did. Here's another more radical bulgogi varation. Marc PS You're quite right, Jason, no Korean butchers down here in Devon! ← Interesting question. Not only do tastes evolve over time so does the availabilty of ingredients. My wife came to the State in the mid- 70's just at the beginning of the mad Korean immigration rush. There was only one Korean market in LA called Kal's or something, she thinks it was on Western Blvd. And a couple of Chinese-Korean restaurants. Anyway her mother made everything from scratch even the Jangs (Dwen Jang, Kochujang, Kanjang), Big urns in the backyard. Now in K-town in Los Angeles is huge. It's like a mini Seoul. Anyway, my wife has been back to Korea alot of times (over a hundred) over the years. She remembers the first time she went back in to Seoul 1978, she felt like she was going to starve. There was enough to eat but not much variety. Her parents had to go to a special store for her just to get cow's milk. She says the food situation in terms of availability of raw ingredients. prepared foods and number of restaurants started to change dramatically right before the Olympics in Korea and that every year it just got better and better. The Korean food we eat now is a thousand times more plentiful than what it used to be. It's changed alot. My wife gets all of her homemade jangs from her mother. She's a fantastic cook and could easily learn how to make them. But it's doubtful that she ever will. We just don't use enough of it to make it worthwhile. Another related point is that language changes. When my wife's family left Korea they were still using a lot of Japanese loan words such as dahmanegi for yang pah. Apparently there was a campaign in Korea to "clean" out Japanese words. I don't know what my kids will be cooking at home when they are older, no doubt there versions of Korean, Algerian and French food. Oh yeah. At home I prefer my bulgogi cooked in a pan. Gotta have those pan juices. That domed shaped thing is just too hard to clean.

Yes the dates. I still dream about them. The last time I had them was in France. A happy coincidence, my brother had just come back from Algeria with dates still on the branch. I thought of bringing some back to LA with me but everytime I pass through US customs I am bombarded with questions regarding food, "Do you have foie gras, sausages, etc?" Anyway so I called US customs and asked about importing Algerian dates, simple enough, they need a sample batch, test, pass, done. But that was 7 years ago. I'll post when I follow up with this. I don't recall seeing any streets named after Isabelle Eberhardt in the Algerian quarters in France. I just don't pay much attention to street names. I'll have to ask my friends over there and get back with an answer.

For better or worse Algeria was the most "French" of the three Maghreb countries. There is certainly a French flair for presentation. This is probably why the Algerians often serve couscous and tajines the way do, seperately. I spent alot of time in the city of Oran. The Spanish influences there are apparent. It was actually founded by an Andulusian and ruled by the Spanish between 1509-1708. Algerian spiced Paellas and Algerian spiced Bouilliabaisse are eaten there. And yes they are called Paella and Bouilliabaisse. When Ms Wolfert mentioned Biskra I immediately thought of dates.

I'm an Instructor at Le Cordon Bleu as well. At the campus I'm at sometimes there are classes especially designed for the public. Mostly demo, a few basics and there is usually a theme. It's a safe guess to say that your classes will be like this.

There are two predominate schools of thought on Roasting chicken. One side prefers higher heat and quicker roasting. Then there is the side that I'm on. The whole point of Roast Chicken for me is the slow cooked flavor from the bones. Depending on the oven I keep the temp at 325-350 degrees. Salt and pepper on the chicken, inside and out. Maybe some garlic, maybe some lemon, if I feel like it I drizzle some olive oil on the outside. The secret to a moist meat throughout and crispy skin is frequent basting. Works everytime. Super tender, most meat and thin crispy skin. So simple and satisying. Great pan juices.

Are you talking about kalguksu? Were the noodles thick and slighty chewy? Do you need a recipe for the noodles as well? The noodles are made from wheat flour (you can use AP), water and salt. Knead untill smooth as if you were making Italian pasta. Let rest, roll out and cut like paparadelle. The broth was probably a mild anchovy and dashima broth. Water, Korean dried anchovy (the bigs ones), dashima is Korean for Kombu. If there is a Korean market in your area Pulmuone makes really good fresh Korean noodles. You can also buy a powdered base for the broth. There are online Asian markets as well. Add garnishes of your choice, such as scallions. Sorry about the allover the place recipe. .. but I'm in the middle of working on a writing project....

Where do you get Middle Eastern groceries in LA? I usually go to the Pakistani store on Vermont Blvd for spices and couscous. I finally found a really good kefir at an Iranian market. They sell bulk couscous at Whole Foods. My favorite packaged brand so far is Rivoire & Carret.

If you want to TOTALLY get artisanal go to a farmer's market. The one that came to my village when I was a kid (but it's still there) had all sorts of handmade cheeses made by very small farmers. It was artisanal made to the EXTREME. The first time my wife saw these cheeses she was mesmerized. She told me felt like she was having a true cultural experience. I feel like crying now I miss French food so much.

I grew up in the Beaujolais region. La fete du Beaujolais wasn't surrounded by much hoopla at all when I was a kid. Funny how someone's marketing scheme travels across the world. I get asked about this fete all the time. I'll probably even have to give a lecture on it this year. I know that I will be asked about the "real" celebrations in Beaujolais. What will I say, basically that a bunch of French farmers get together and get drunk?

FYI- bragard.com they have sales offices allover the world.

Come on the schlep to Pte Clgnancourt is worth it! There are kiosks by the Seine that sell all sorts of vintage prints and postcards near the center. But since I am not in Paris now and have not been back for three years someone else should probably answer this question. As for ras el hanout make sure you get the one with Spanish fly in it.

I like Korean/Japanese curries very much. My wife likes it spicy. The kids and I like it very, very mild. So we always win, 3 against 1. We don't make it often, but for some reason our 20 month old son will only eat carrots cooked in this type of curry sauce and carrots cooked in an Algerian tajine. Go figure.

My wife makes chachang myun sauce with onions, squash and carrots. Sometimes she adds ground beef or some seafood. Sautee the veggies first, add the protein, add the sauce. Okay the trick to getting to taste like restaurant versions is alot of sugar and oil. You can also get some pretty good fresh noodles at the Korean market. In answer to the question about favorite Korean noodle dish. Mine is makguksu (somen) in anchovy and dashima broth. The kids love it and I do too. Top it with julienned egg omelet, julienned gim and some chopped scallions.

My heart did sink a little when the class title was changed. But I got over it pretty quickly. And I can explain the differences in class. The change was more for advertising purposes. I'm also scheduled to teach classes on French cooking, including a Bastille Day menu. So one day I'm the North African Chef, the next day I will be the French Chef. Actually my professional cooking experience is with French cuisine and I graduated from a culinary school in Paris. I also teach at Le Cordon Bleu in Los Angeles. I was born in Lyon, France to Algerian parents. I have of course visited Algeria. And I am very familiar with the cuisine. Anyway, Algerians like harissa as well. It's not so automatically as the Tunisians. When I invite my Algerian and French friends over for couscous, they expect harissa to be on the table. But to put harissa on a delicately flavored pumpkin couscous? To each his own, but it makes me hurt just to think about it? Sort of like Tabasco sauce on Sea Bass with a Beurre Blanc sauce. You know we can all be so refined when it comes to one type of cuisine than act like apes when it comes to another.

This thread is more a richly textured web. Andie, your personal and poetic stories of first tasting couscous and then enjoying it with friends at an informal restaurant are so vivid I can “taste” similar moments that I’ve had. Zeitoun, olives, is there a richer symbol of Arab/Mediterranean culture and cuisine? The ancient olive tree that is still standing after hundreds and hundreds of years, the olive branch as a symbol of peace and of course olive oil with all it’s mythical and medicinal properties. Your enthusiasm is infectious. Ms Wolfert, thank you for embracing North Africa. You documented so much that was not written about before. You will no doubt be remembered in history as an important scholar of North African and Mediterranean culinary traditions. As I mentioned before, I am neither a historian nor a scholar. My musings on food are more of a “slice of life’. So here are more of my observations on Algerian Cookery… In Algeria couscous is also called ta’am, which means “food”. The word tajine is hardly ever used. In some restaurants you won’t find the words couscous or tajine on the menu at all instead you will find dishes that can be translated as “Food with Meat” or “Food with Chicken.” Not very poetic or descriptive. But the word tajine is not very descriptive either. So many dishes can be called a tajine that it’s about as meaningful or meaningless as calling a dish a curry. The term tajine is used liberally in France and America. It’s not one that I personally use much at all, unless I’m teaching. In Los Angeles, Moroccan cuisine has been and is becoming increasingly trendy. Out here the types of tajines that are in demand are the ones served with couscous. As for Poulet aux Citron, Algerian versions tend to have quite bit of sauce and they are served with couscous. So in answer to Zeitoun’s questions regarding tajines being served with couscous, I jumped the gun with my answer. It’s confusing for me too, because tajine (as is the case with words in general) has denotative and connotative meanings. Because I’m now in Los Angeles I just got into the habit of thinking of it the way it’s commonly used out here. Actually all the questions regarding different types of tajines makes me think that I should do a bit more editing in my cookbook. More from me later…

EDITED: DELETED for the reason above

The celebrity machine and lust for media attention is alive and kicking in New York as well. I'm always perplexed when I hear such extreme statements such as "NYC is the epicenter of the culinary universe." The universe is a REALLY big place. Perhaps it's more accurate to say that there is a consensus amongst a group of food writers who are mostly if not all Americans who have not traveled the entire universe that New York has the more to offer than other U.S. cities. (I know run on sentence. But English is far from my native language). Another extreme statement is that "LA is a sad culinary backwater compared to New York." Come on. I don't defend the culinary standards here but it's a pretty big city with some good things in terms of food to offer.

Now, I am a little confused . If I understand you correctly, the tajine dishes you see on menus in the US or even in France are not traditionally served this way in North Africa? Take for instance a dish like a "tajine au poulet et citron confit", you are suggesting that traditionally, this kind of tajine would always be served with couscous and not alone? ← I'll have to answer this one a little later when I get back on line...

Clifford Wright has this to say about one of the possible origins of this style of couscous. "The coriander seed-type appears to be a form of pasta secca, called maccarone in fifteenth century Sicily, that later became known as maghribiyya in Syria, also known as the name of a dish, and the muhammas of Tunisia and the burkukis of Algeria." An early mention of it is in the 13th century Muslim Andalus recipe collection, which would suggest a Berber origin. However, I have heard of millet 'couscous' style preps from the Sub-Sahara, so maybe there is a non-Berber origin as well. ← Adam- Throughout the history of the Mediterranean there has been a tremendous amout of travel back and forth, sometimes for the purposes of war and colonizing, for trade and commerce, political refugees, nomads... Sometimes the Arabs ruled parts of the Euorpean side of the Basin and other times the Europeans ruled parts of the African and Middle Eastern sides. Near my family farm in Algeria there are Ancient Roman ruins. Makes me dream about the rich history there. By the way Arabs controlled Sicily for a while. My wife and I went to a bakery run by a Southern Italian family once and when she saw the cookies and pastries she said, "it looks Arab and French." She did some research and sure enough Sicilian pastries were influenced by the Arabs and Normans. I'll look for the article(s) and post the link here.

Zeitoun- Badger me with all the questions you want! I've never had or prepared a tajine that was not served with couscous. Also I said that tajines are thin stews or thick soups. Tajines can be cooked on the bottom section of a couscousier or a cooking vessel that is also called a tajine or in a big pot. There's really no significant difference in the preparation process. If you don't have the time to prepare the semolina couscous you can eat a tajine with bread. It's not traditionally North African. But the Algerians in France will often times serve baguettes AND couscous with tajines, eat a sweet couscous for dessert than serve a second dessert course of French pastries. I would be more than happy to post some Algerian recipes here, along with pictures when available.

Edited: Deleted. Not worth the effort

Hey chef, you're almost as mixed up as me! But as my Mexican friends always say, una ensalada mixta is infinitely more interesting than just plain lettuce or tomatoes... I live in SW England, about as far away from Scotland as you can be. But (today at least) just as rainy... Gastro888, though these days for us all MSG may be an absolute no-no, I'm sure if used judiciously it could probably intensify flavour without the hangover effects. But it's still something we'd probably all prefer to avoid, right? Or maybe not. Does anyone admit to using it? ← It's used in a lot of restaurants for sure. Also if you go to a Korean or Japanese supermarket and see the prepared sauces, alot of them contain MSG. The powdered soup bases also contain MSG. Most of the prepared foods at Korean markets in LA list MSG as an ingredient. My mother-in-law's mantra has always been "absolutely no MSG," almost like it's poison. Although she's a fantastic cook, she's also a bit of a Yangban food snob. Anyway, to answer your question. We don't use it to cook at home and my wife is a maniac about reading labels on prepared foods, but we've enjoyed many foods that contain MSG. You really can't avoid it in East Asian cooking unless you NEVER eat out and make EVERYTHING from scratch. A little MSG can perk up flavors and there's nothing wrong with that. Too much MSG and you can "taste" it and it makes foods taste artificial.

Is this Miso cake for commercial purposes or personal pleasure? If it's for personal satisfaction, then you just need to play around with the suggestions below and whatever it is that pleases your palate. If it's for commercial purposes, what's your niche customer base? How much miso does one need to taste in a cake before one proclaims, "wow that sure is a miso cake" or how little miso do you need to add before one proclaims, "this is an intriguing cake, a hint of something savory and salty, delicious." How many people really want miso as opposed to chocolate in a cake? To each his own when it comes to personal taste preferences. But it would help me to know whether or not this cake is purely personal consumption or you intend to serve/sell it commercially. I really can't make suggestions without knowing this.