shain

Mango coconut falooda of sorts. Rice noodles with orange blossom water, and a smoothie/slushy of mango and coconut milk.

Let's see... I like small utensils - small plates, dessert forks, teaspoons. I'll use them whenever I'm eating with family. It's regular sized spoons that I dislike most, I find them too large for my (not at all small) mouth. I don't like biting into fruits. Mostly stone fruits and apples. I'll usually slice them in hand and eat slice by slice. Bananas are fine to bite interested, so are figs. I really dislike cold mango, I also prefer pineapples to be at room temperature. I like dipping french fries in hummus (actually it's my favorite dip for them, mayo is second, a drizzle of lemon third, and ketchup a very far fourth). I won't say it's unagreeable, just unpopular. There was a hummus restaurant I used to frequent whose hummus I found to be improved with the pickles they served. I'd often drizzle some pickle juice on it. I'd also often have their massabacha and mix into it actual pickle slices, and often also pita pieces. The pita soaked some of the sauce, becoming juicy and the pickles added texture and flavor. I miss this place. No other hummus I know of benefits from an application of pickles, but I'll still sometimes mix pita pieces into massabacha. I dislike falafel sandwiches. I prefer it plated, using a pita to grab some sauces or vegetables and construct one biters. I like semi melted ice cream. I also love ice cream that was partially deforested then refrozen, giving it some pleasently crisp ice crystals (I won't do this on purpose though). I will never mix cereal with milk. I eat them in two bowls, grab a teaspoon full of cereal and briefly dip it in milk. I also like cornflakes and peanut butter sandwiches, but I haven't had one in years. I prefer overly oxidized wine.

Thanks! Coconut is great at highlighting the sweet fruity notes of fruits and vegetables. For grilled corn, my favorite is still mayo, it develops a richer grill flavor than pure fats.

Enchilada rojas. Home made corn tortillas. Pan fried and soaked in a sauce of grilled chilies, one grilled tomatoes, ancho chilies, garlic, and a few of spices. Filled with feta cheese and grilled onion. Rice with toasted coriander, cumin and anise. Black beans. Grilled corn in coconut oil. Mango with lime zest and chili. Sour cream and luttace.

@ambra @CeeCee There are endless variations on amba, some are more like a pickle, others like chutney, some a spice centric sauce. For sabich, you want a saucy version, in which the mango plays a background role. The unripe mango adds an acidic fruity flavor, not a sweet one. Fresh mango will likely get you an overly sweet result, so if you include it, only use a small amount for some fruit flavor. If you can't get unripe mango, you can use amchor (dried mango powder) for the acidity, if this is also not an option, use lemon. Actually, you should add some lemon anyway. The bright color is from turmeric, which is important. But most important is fenugreek which should be the main flavor component for a sauce made for sabich. You can also add many other spices - chili, paprika, black pepper, cumin. Also important, is that you must let it stand after mixing - the fenugreek powder is a natural thickener and takes ~3 hours to do so. Bottom line, in sabich, the amba doesn't have to be authentic, just make sure that its bold on fenugreek and turmeric, acidic, salty and fruity, with just slight sweetness.

I'm drooling... 😲 What are the pureed figs for? Dipping? Drink?

People here grow eating hummus by mopping it with pita bread. Using bread as a utensil is seen as perfectly polite. But even abroad, I'd feel comfortable doing so in all but the poshest of restaurants or company (which I don't really happen to frequent).

Being such a globally poplar cuisine, Italian definitely have many local variations in other countries. For example, I know of no other country in which pasta is seen as a primi as it is most often in Italy. Here in Israel, the idea of eating pasta with bread will strike most people as odd. Italian restaurants here don't serve bread other than as an appetizer to accompany various spreads, in which case the bread will likely be a warm ciabatta or focaccia. As for mopping the sauce, we usually don't. Most pastas will be served well dressed, with little sauce left not clinging to the pasta. Seafood sauces are an exception, since they are often very loose by nature, and need mopping.

A quickly made dinner. Noodles inspired by tantanmen, a Japanese take on dan dan noodles. The Japanese version is a sort of ramen, but I opted for a semi-soupy base. Sesame paste, garlic, ginger, chili oil, soy sauce, black rice vinegar, zha cai, a little sugar and MSG. The noodles are spaghetti cooked in alkaline water. Mixed in are a scrambled egg and marinated fried tofu cubes. Peas, scallions, toasted sesame, and nigella seeds. The latter are quite interesting and unusual in this flavor profile, I strongly associate it with middle eastern / Mediterranean cuisine. I will experiment with them more in Eastern cooking.

Guests over for a BBQ. Some kebabs and skewers, not cooked by me though. Fire roasted eggplants with tahini, tomatoes, and mint. Quinoa and apples salad, with poppy seeds, walnuts, herbs. Baked ricotta with peas. Over roasted eggplant creme. Sesame, nigella seed, chilies, olive oil. Rice with carrots, raisins, silan, nutmeg and spices (not as sweet as the ingredients may suggest). Crispy spiced potatoes. Vegetable salads, pickles, tahini, wine (semi-dry Gewurztraminer), beers.

One large focaccia, or pizza. 485g bread flour (or 470g AP flour mixed with 15 g vital wheat gluten) 390g tepid water 15g salt 15g sugar 4g dry or instant yeast One to four days before baking: In a stand mixer bowl, mix water, sugar and yeast. Add flour and salt. Mix slowly until combined. Knead for 3-5 minutes. Let rest for 7-10 minutes. Repeat kneading and resting the dough for a total of 3-4 kneading cycles. Cover and refrigerate. Before baking: Knead the dough in its bowl (in a stand mixer, or with a spatula / large spoon). Lightly grease one large parchment paper. Pour the dough on the paper. Cover, with something that won't stick to the raising dough (I use a deep oven baking sheet). Let raise for 1.5 to 2.5 hours. ~ Preheat the oven with a baking steel or baking stone in it, to 250 d C, at least 45 minutes before it's time to bake. With wet hands, poke the dough to evenly distribute air bubbles and give it a roughly rectangular or circular shape. Place any toppings, such as herbs (rosemary's my go to), thinly sliced vegetables, etc. You can also use it to make pizza. Only put sauce at this point - cheese should be added only after the first bake. Place the parchment directly on the steel / stone and bake until the bread has risen, and only starts to deepen in color at spots, apx 8-10 minutes. Place on a cooling rack and remove parchment. Cool the breads at least partially, a minimum of 15 minutes. It can be frozen at this point. When ready to serve: Brush the bread with olive oil, the more the merrier. For pizzas, only brush the bottom side. If making pizza, this is the stage to add cheese. Place in a hot oven, 210dC to 230dC. Bake until the bread is crisp and reddish-golden, 7 to 15 minutes. Serve while warm, with olive oil for dipping, cheeses or as a sandwich.

Thanks I think that I used a total of 750g flour for all four. The largest was roughly 30cm wide. The rest are each nearly half the size. We had family for that dinner, and us four people ate half of it. The rest is frozen. Being white bread, it would otherwise stale quickly. Our freezer is currently stuffed with various breads and flatbreads, so while we eat some bread everyday, the focaccia is still mostly untouched. In case someone was wandering, our freezer currently holds half a loaf of walnut rye bread, oatmeal sandwich bread, a package of pitas (most important!), some laffahs, a box of injera, a box of dabo bread, one lachouch, one spinach fatayer (the large flat type, not the triangle), a few simiths, a few rolls, and the focaccias. Only the latter made by me. And since it's rosh hashanah I'll probably end up making a challah too... And then I wonder why we never have freezer space...

Sort of shakshuka of fire roasted vegetables (onion, chilies, tomatoes), chickpeas, some spices (garlic, coriander, cumin). Feta. Grilled pita bread.

Vegetable salad - tomato, cucumber, onion, spring onion, chilies. Tahini, lime, fish sauce, peanuts, crisp peas, puffed rice, fried shallots. Eggs.

Phone camera for food pics. I'd take out my old mini DSL only for trips and events.

Fried rice with shrimps, eggs, a little cabbage and onion, some garlic, chili, scallions, rice wine, light soy sauce. For dessert, dousha (adzuki bean paste) guo bing. Crisp, lightly sweet, with strong sesame flavor that goes well with the chestnut-esque red beans.

"Jerusalem salad" as it came to be called in our house. Tomatoes, cucumbers, onion. Warm chickpeas and egg. Olive oil, lemon, parsley. Tahini sauce, sumac, zaatar. Crisp simit (or more often croutons).

Zucchini stuffed with freekeh wheat with onions and baharat. In a sauce of yogurt with garlic, herbs, lemon. Grilled vegetable patties (onion, tomato, mushroom) with garlic, eggs, feta cheese, smoked paprika, cumin, cinnamon, coriander, mint. Grilled tomatoes, chili and onions with pomegranate syrup. Turshi pickles, grilled pita breads, tahini and beer.

I think a large part of this is that us Westerners are much more exposed to restaurant style cooking and street food than we are to home cooking. This is also visible in going for particular type of dishes (e.g. stir fired noodles, dumplings) rather than others (e.g. broths, simple cooked vegetable dishes). As to cheaters wok hei, I often brush a few of the ingredients with oil before lightly charring them on a flame. Then I chop them as needed and stir fry over high flame as usual. This usually gives enough of the smoky flavor for my taste.

Recent lunch. Crisp warm bun. Boiled egg, chickpeas, tomatoes, onion, pickles, lemony tahini sauce, lots of red zchug.

Focaccias. High hydration dough. Baked once, then cooled. Before serving, brushed with olive oil and baked to crisp and warm. This also keeps more of the olive oil flavor. Served with olive oil for dipping (of our own tree's last year harvest), Sirene cheese, Georgian dry Saperavi wine. Rosemary Tomatoes and thyme. Zucchini, onion, sesame, sumac (the sumac is added after baking, so it's not in the picture) Garlic and fried onions (folded into the dough). Greek salad (of the non authentic style). Flavored with olive oil, wine vinegar, Kalamata olives, soft feta, fresh thyme and oregano. Salad of chickpeas, herbs (basil, spring onion, mint), local white-mold sheep milk cheese, onion, grapes, olive oil, pepper. Ricotta with roasted peppers, mildly spicy.

Fattah. Warm yogurt, lightly flavored with garlic, cumin, silan, lemon, sumac, olive oil. Some tahini. Hot tender chickpeas, fresh pita and crisp pita chips, tomatoes, chili, nuts, mint.

Menemen. With feta, chives (eggs loves chives, tomatoes with cheese loves chives, and chives loves them back). Store bought mild-sourdough, rye with wheat. Not my first choice of bread for this dish, but that's what we had on hand.

Thanks, I love seeing cusine boundaries broken.