Saturday, August 13, 2005
Slow Food Vol 1
Kebabs On An Empty Mind
I suppose many of our fantasies revolve around food, and many of our daily activities involve munching, crunching, and stuffing; Some would even consider food a sport (Kebabs as Javelines
To start with, the word Kebab equates to many things one of which is a grilled, and sweet smelling lavash bread- a thin, flat, large piece of bread that is molded and baked by hand in most parts of Iran, Turkey, Azerbaijan, Afghanistan. Traditionally, these breads are the staple for all people, from the rich to the poor, lavash is a MUST. When there is no lavash accompanying kebabs, it could be considered an offense, a social error... It’s delicious though, easy to digest and thin enough to barely melt.
With the Kebabs, come the greens. Often times, central Asians and people of the 
These are washed, and set in a bowl at the table, and it’s first come first serve with this appetizer, or antacid. It’s known that the food fibers in such fresh vegetables decrease the assimilation of fat in the stomach. These vegetables are almost always fresh, and almost never GE, because Central Asians don’t have the technology or the financial assistance to run modern farms and never accept vegetables that are droopy or frozen.
(It is a common cultural more that Central Asians will eat anything and everything that is organic, so long as it is in good moderation, and mixed with other foods to balance their diets)
It is practically impossible to find Kebabs without a tiny dish of finely ground, burgundy-colored spice called Sumaq (soo-mAgh). This spice is spread over the white rice and ground meat kebabs as one of the “Balancers” that help to moderate the fat. The spice, in olden days, was used to lighten up the stomach, and counter the heavy fatty starchy meat and rice. It’s a light spice because it is not hot, not sweet, not bitter, but sour.
Lemons or Lemon Juice can also be found by the Sumaq. Many Central Asians enjoy the fruit of love as well, the Pomegranate, and its seeds as an ancient ritualistic food (Zoroastrianism) and healthy addend to the colder seasons. Other drinks are Doogh, a carbonated skimmed milk drink, combined with sea salt, and ground mint, edible flowers, and spices. This drink is not easy to get used to, it took me a whole year to like this drink; salt and milk are not popular among Westerners.
Long, long ago, before Coca-Cola and Pepsi agreed to globalize their drinks in
Garlic and Torshi have a respected place on the Kebab menu. Garlic is the King for those of us who enjoy the effects of a long, sweet, and healthy life. Not only does it lower the level of cholesterol in the body, it also improves blood circulation.
Imagine eating garlic on a moderate but daily basis, it’s improvements to the cardiovascular system would mean more blood to more organs. Imagine having lovely hair all your life, great skin, great gums, and easy breathing. Garlic was once the Elixir of Life for the alchemists of old. Hah, it even helps those of you who suffer short-term memory.
(Garlic can be mixed with fresh onions, and poured over with white vinegar, and left for about a minute to soak then eaten with kebabs; believe me when I say it’s memorable-no pun intended-)
Don’t forget, Bread and Rice are served on the table, but only because of the easy access, and relative lower prices that both are served at the same time. It is now purely socially illegal to serve Kebabs without both, but it was once considered to be a total waste of foods. Bread was considered as second choice compared to rice, and rice was never eaten with bread as it was a substitute of value for wheat. Kebabs were to once be consumed by either one, and not by both. Today, it is still considered a health risk to eat both together; the serving of both is only a gesture of hospitality and richness. Bread is eaten more than ever before, but it is not a tradition to eat too much of it, especially with kebabs.
(The traditional method is to eat the kebabs and take small bites of the bread, a scoop of yoghurt, and if you still have room, greens and garlic at the same time)
By the way, drinks can range from sherbets, to doogh, to wine. There are too many to list in sherbets, and so much more, but it’s rare to find wine on Central Asian tables, especially if they are popularly Muslim ethnic groups such as in Turkey, Iran, Afghanistan—It could be more proliferate in Azerbaijan and Yerevan and others, but it’s not the kind of wine people eat at an outdoor café in Nice, or Paris; these wines are homemade and rarities. Ever had Pomegranate wine?;)
Take a look at some recipes
RIP
