Feast is a worldly guide to Islamic cuisine
Released in the midst of Ramadan, Feast: Food Of The Islamic World ($75, Ecco) is the ninth book by Beirut-born cookbook author and journalist Anissa Helou, who specializes in Middle East, North Africa and Mediterranean cuisines. While the price tag is higher than the average cookbook, Feast comes in at just over 500 pages and is packed with a comprehensive list of 300 recipes covering the vastness and regional differences of Islamic cuisine.
This book is for the experienced cook. Many recipes are complicated with multiple steps. For some of the meat dishes, you’ll need to visit a butcher .
There are a few ingredients that are new to me, such as an Indian kebab spice blend called lazzat-e-taam and black dried limes for an Arabian meat stew. This is a great pick for a home cook tired of the quick-andeasy recipe trend.
Granted there are a handful of recipes that I won’t tackle, such as the pita dough. Why wait two hours for it to rest when I can get freshly made pita at a supermarket?
Nonetheless this is an interesting read and essential for home cooks wanting to learn about a cuisine that makes up such a large part of the global culinary landscape.
Koshari Star Tested
This Egyptian dish is made of rice, macaroni, vermicelli and lentils served with a spicy tomato sauce and fried onions. While koshari has existed since the 19th century and is a common household and street food, it gained prominence in 2011 as demonstrators subsisted on the cheap and carb-heavy dish during the uprising at Tahrir Square. This dish is also good for those observing Ramadan as it’s a complete meal, perfect for breaking the fast.
The vermicelli here is not the same as in Vietnamese pho. Vermicelli in Middle Eastern cuisine are ultra thin and golden-brown in colour. Find them at Middle Eastern or Indian grocers.
The book calls for soaking the lentils and chickpeas beforehand, but dried lentils don’t take that long to cook so I just cooked them from dry. I also rarely remember to soak chickpeas a full day before so I opted for canned chickpeas. Helou prefers Bomba rice, a shortgrain rice used in paella, but any short-grain rice will do.
Lastly, the book calls for ghost pepper flakes or Aleppo pepper for the tomato sauce. I couldn’t find ghost pepper, which is fine with me because I can’t handle a lot of heat and ghost peppers are one of the hottest peppers on earth. The more mild Aleppo pepper, however, can be found at Middle Eastern grocers such as Arz Fine Foods in Scarborough. If you can’t find either, use red chili flakes. For the tomato sauce 3 tbsp (45 mL) olive oil 1 small yellow onion, finely chopped 2 finely minced garlic cloves 28 oz (796 mL) can diced tomatoes
1/4 tsp (1 mL) ghost pepper flakes, 1 tsp (5 mL) Aleppo pepper or red chili flakes, to taste Kosher salt, to taste In a medium-sized pot, heat oil over medium heat. Add onions and saute until translucent and golden, about 5 to 8 minutes. Add garlic. Stir for 1 minute. Add tomatoes and pepper flakes. Stir. Add salt to taste. Bring to a rapid simmer then turn heat down to low and simmer gently for 25 minutes uncovered until sauce thickens. Cover and keep warm on lowest heat until ready to serve. For the koshari 1 cup (250 mL) dried brown lentils Kosher salt, for boiling pasta 5 cups (1250 mL) water, plus more for boiling pasta 1-1/4 cup (310 mL) dried elbow macaroni 2 tbsp (30 mL) olive oil 1 oz (30 g) vermicelli, broken into 1-inch (2.5cm) pieces 1 cup (250 mL) short-grain white rice Wash and drain lentils and pick out any debris. Transfer lentils to a large pot. Add 3 cups (750 mL) water. Bring to a simmer over medium heat. Reduce heat to low and cook on a gentle simmer for about 20 minutes, or until lentils are tender but not mushy. Drain, transfer lentils to a large bowl and set aside.
Wipe pot clean. Bring salted water to a boil over mediumhigh heat. Add macaroni. Turn heat down to medium. Cook pasta until al dente. Drain, transfer macaroni to bowl of lentils and set aside.
Wipe pot clean. Heat oil over low-medium heat. Toast vermicelli until golden, about 2 to 3 minutes. Add rice and stir for 1 minute. Add 2 cups (500 mL) water. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Turn heat to low.
Cover and let cook until rice is tender and liquid has mostly absorbed, about 20 minutes. Remove lid. Fluff rice with a fork. Add cooked lentils and macaroni to rice. Stir. Season with salt to taste. Cover and keep on lowest heat until ready to serve. For the garnish Vegetable or canola oil
2 large yellow onions, halved and thinly sliced 1 cup (250 mL) canned chickpeas, rinsed and drained Fill a large, deep skillet with oil until it reaches 1-inch (2 1/2 cm) deep. Heat over medium-high heat until hot. Add half of sliced onions and fry, turning occasionally with a slotted spoon until golden brown and crispy, careful not to let onions get too dark in colour as they continue to cook when removed from oil. Remove onions with a slotted spoon and let rest on a plate lined with paper towel. Repeat with remaining onions.
To serve, transfer koshari to a serving platter. Spoon tomato sauce on top. Garnish with chickpeas and fried onions. Serve immediately.
Makes 4 to 6 servings.