Middle East - Anthony Ham [75]
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The Spice Routes, by Chris and Carolyn Caldicott, is a fascinating overview of the history of the international spice trade and includes a number of recipes from the Middle East region.
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But for all its glories, food is only part of the Middle Eastern dining experience. Just like their Mediterranean counterparts in Spain, Italy and Greece, Middle Easterners see eating as a way of life, as an event to be shared with family and friends and to mark the most important moments in life, and as a pastime that’s worth spending hours over. In short, life revolves around food, which is, in turn, the most enjoyable way to celebrate all the good things in life.
And yet the Middle East has something that the renowned food cultures of the Mediterranean rim simply can’t offer: the hospitality that transforms eating into a celebration where everyone is welcome. Hospitality may manifest itself in a restaurant, on public transport or when you’re invited to share a family’s meal. In fact, if you’re invited to eat in a family home, you’ll have arrived in gastronomic heaven. There’s nothing that pleases an Arabic, Jewish or Turkish host more than a satisfied guest. They’ll spend hours preparing their full repertoire and then sit down with great pleasure to share it with you, all the time pressing the tastiest morsels upon you and urging you to eat until you can eat no more. That’s because the people of the Middle East consider their food to be the perfect symphonic accompaniment to life as it should be lived. We’re inclined to agree.
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EATING ETIQUETTE
Sharing a meal with a local is a great way of cementing a newly formed friendship. Most people in the Middle East are too polite to say anything if you break one of the region’s eating taboos, but to avoid making your hosts feel uncomfortable, there are a few simple guidelines to follow:
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Eating in Someone’s House
▪ Bring a small gift of flowers, chocolates or pastries, fruit or honey.
▪ It’s polite to be seen to wash your hands before a meal.
▪ Remember to always remove your shoes before sitting down on a rug to eat or drink tea.
▪ Don’t sit with your legs stretched out – it’s considered rude during a meal.
▪ Always sit at the dinner table next to a person of the same sex unless your host(ess) suggests otherwise.
▪ Use only the right hand for eating or accepting food.
▪ When the meal begins, accept as much food as possible when it’s offered to you. If you say ‘no thanks’ continually, it can offend the host.
▪ Conversely, it’s good manners to leave a little food on your plate at the end of the meal: traditionally, a clean plate was thought to invite famine.
▪ Your host will often lay the tastiest morsels in front of you; it’s polite to accept them.
▪ The best part – such as the meat – is usually saved until last, so don’t take it until offered.
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Eating in a Restaurant
▪ Picking teeth after a meal is quite acceptable and toothpicks are often provided.
▪ Be sure to leave the dining area and go outside or to the toilet before blowing your nose in a restaurant.
▪ Take food from your side of the table; stretching to the other side is considered impolite.
▪ It’s polite to accept a cup of coffee after a meal and impolite to leave before it’s served.
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STAPLES & SPECIALITIES
Mezze
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The word ‘mezze’ is derived from the Arabic t’mazza, meaning ‘to savour in little bites’.
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Mezze (meze in Turkish) ranks alongside Spanish tapas and Italian antipasto as one of the world’s greatest culinary inventions. A collection of appetisers or small plates of food, mezze allows you to sample a variety of often complementary