Around the World in Foodventures (Qatar: MACHBOOS)

Next on the list of countries picked by my friends is Qatar, a tiny little peninsula in the Middle East that apparently has the highest per capita income in the world!  Its national dish is one they share with Bahrain and Kuwait -- so I suppose when I get to those places I will be choosing different things to try, which is A-okay with me (and also the whole point of this project - 👍).  Machboos a basic rice and meat dish, as I am sure many foods I encounter on this journey will be (or stews, right?) -- but that doesn't mean it's not delicious or that it doesn't have its own unique flavor profile.

Being similar in method and ingredients to most any pot of rice and meat, machboos is pretty simple to cook -- though I did get to make a spice mixture that I'd never heard of ("baharat") and learned about a whole new ingredient (dried limes, one of which is pictured here) in the process.  I don't think it makes for the best photograph, but I do like the way the light reflects off the plate creating that cool glow effect. 😃

Here is the recipe I used: https://www.willflyforfood.net/2017/11/16/qatar-machboos-a-delight-that-will-make-you-crave-for-more/ -- the only change to which was that I used boneless chicken thighs instead of whole chicken pieces.  I don't think this affects the taste (which is what really matters here -- and I should also note that the rosewater brings a nice finishing touch), plus it's just easier to serve and eat this way, especially for the potluck I will be bringing it to tonight.

This post is part of my project: "Around the World in Foodventures" (I decided I want to expand my culinary horizons even further by making the national dish or a popular recipe, or some signature food or traditional meal from every country in the world. Maybe it'll happen alphabetically, or by region, in random order, or something else. I figure if we can't (yet?) travel everywhere, we at least have the luxury of being able to taste it. It’ll be fun and interesting, but obviously, will take a long time to get through -- as I'll only be doing it once a week or so at most. I am chronicling the journey here.)

“If I’m an advocate of anything, it’s to move…Walk in someone else’s shoes or at least eat their food.” --Tony Bourdain

Around the World in Foodventures (Ireland: PORTER CAKE)

In doing research of what to cook from Ireland, it dawned on me just how Irish the part of the country I'm from really is.  Having been in or around Boston most of my life, I never gave it much thought -- but as I read through the options (Mutton Stew, Colcannon, Guinness Stew, Soda Bread, Corned Beef with Cabbage, Shepherd's Pie, Brown Bread, Scones....I could extend this list for days) I realized that I'd either made or eaten these things dozens of times over, and therefore don't feel a need to include them in my Around the World in Foodventures journey.  I also simply wanted to avoid anything stereotypically potato-based.  So I decided to choose something Irish that is, frankly, different and intriguing and completely new to me.  I was originally leaning towards Black Pudding (for which I could probably get the ingredients at a local butcher shop, but find it just as well to purchase pre-made) or something made with Dulse (seaweed that tastes like bacon? yes please)....but then Porter Cake called out to me -- partly because it seems perfectly fitting for the current Fall season and partly because I haven't done a dessert since the beginning of this project.  So here it is:

A form of fruit cake much lovelier than traditional, brick-like, butt-of-holiday-jokes loaves, Porter Cake contains warm spices, is delightfully boozy, and brings comfort.  It's as if that traditional fruit cake and a beer bread had a baby.  It was pretty easy to make (here's the recipe I used: https://www.craftbeering.com/porter-cake-irish-dessert/) and along the way I even got to learn how to create real candied fruit slices from scratch because the recipe called for them and I couldn't find them in our local grocery store.  The recipe was correct that it tasted better the next day, and the idea of "feeding" it with some whiskey was nice, too.

This post is part of my project: "Around the World in Foodventures" (I decided I want to expand my culinary horizons even further by making the national dish or a popular recipe, or some signature food or traditional meal from every country in the world. Maybe it'll happen alphabetically, or by region, in random order, or something else. I figure if we can't (yet?) travel everywhere, we at least have the luxury of being able to taste it. It’ll be fun and interesting, but obviously, will take a long time to get through -- as we'll only be doing it once a week or so at most. I am chronicling the journey here.)

“If I’m an advocate of anything, it’s to move…Walk in someone else’s shoes or at least eat their food.” --Tony Bourdain

Around the World in Foodventures (Brazil: FEIJOADA)

We went to a Halloween party this weekend, so Brazil happening to be next on the list allowed me to bring a hearty, warm, very tasty, crock pot compatible dish as our party pot-luck contribution.  In other words, another South American country meant another meat-filled bowl . . . and no one was sad about it.  

Feijoada, if I had to describe it to someone who didn't know, is basically Brazil's version of chili, but with a much higher meat-to-beans ratio than you'd expect from American chili.  It has Pork Shoulder, Linguica, Chorizo, Carne Seca, and a Smoked Ham Hock! 

Luckily, there are lots of ethnic and specialty grocery stores where we live, so finding ingredients isn't usually too much trouble; and in fact this foodventure caused me to have to hit up one that I frequented as a child, plus another (one of Julia Child's favorite shops, as it turns out) that I'd never had occasion to check out -- so that was a pretty cool trip down memory lane.

I used this recipe (https://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/feijoada_brazilian_black_bean_stew/) in which there is apparently some debate about whether tomatoes belong, but I decided to use them (why not, right?).  And because it's not very specific about how much salt to add combined with there being 4 kinds of already-prepared, salt-containing meats in there - I personally think it came out a little too salty.  Others thought it was good, though.  If you decide to make this, I would simply suggest you taste it before adding *any* salt.
 
This post is part of my project: "Around the World in Foodventures" (I decided I want to expand my culinary horizons even further by making the national dish or a popular recipe, or some signature food or traditional meal from every country in the world. Maybe it'll happen alphabetically, or by region, in random order, or something else. I figure if we can't (yet?) travel everywhere, we at least have the luxury of being able to taste it. It’ll be fun and interesting, but obviously, will take a long time to get through -- as we'll only be doing it once a week or so at most. I am chronicling the journey here.)

“If I’m an advocate of anything, it’s to move…Walk in someone else’s shoes or at least eat their food.” --Tony Bourdain

Around the World in Foodventures (Russia: BORSCHT)

I posted on Facebook asking if anyone wanted to pick the country for my next foodventure . . . and 😮 did I get more comments than I expected!  So, I decided to use those responses in the order they were received -- and that will be the next 15 or so places I cook from.  First up on that list is Russia, from which I am honored to be able to follow a family recipe that a dear friend provided a long time ago and now I'm finally getting around to using it.  Can't get much more authentic that that, right???

I present to you now, then, "Ma Melekh’s Famous Vegetarian Borscht."

This was a relatively easy process, completed in just about an hour and a half (start to finish from raw, whole veggies to sitting on the couch eating a hot, delicious bowl of soup).  And while I usually share with you the exact recipe I referenced -- this time, because it's not one that has been published online, I am going to keep it close to the vest.  I will say, however, that many recipes I found online contain meat -- but this one doesn't, and therefore it's about as healthy as you can get.  The only ingredients in here that aren't straight-up vegetables are about a half stick of butter (for the entire finished pot which was at least a gallon) and whatever sour cream you put on top.  Definitely don't skip that sour cream, though . . . it's what makes borscht extra special and turns it a beautiful, swirly, pink-ish color!

This post is part of my project: "Around the World in Foodventures" (I decided I want to expand my culinary horizons even further by making the national dish or a popular recipe, or some signature food or traditional meal from every country in the world. Maybe it'll happen alphabetically, or by region, in random order, or something else. I figure if we can't (yet?) travel everywhere, we at least have the luxury of being able to taste it. It’ll be fun and interesting, but obviously, will take a long time to get through -- as we'll only be doing it once a week or so at most. I am chronicling the journey here.)

“If I’m an advocate of anything, it’s to move…Walk in someone else’s shoes or at least eat their food.” --Tony Bourdain

Around the World in Foodventures (Eritrea: ZIGINI with INJERA)

I picked Eritrea this week because it's rather obscure but also because I remember when I was in high school (or maybe it was 7th or 8th grade? -- it was a fuzzy long time ago 😛) I was on some regional student counsel type thingie, and there was a girl from another school who was originally from Eritrea....so here we are.

Zigini, I am guessing based on how it's cooked, is a dish that is meant to turn any cut of meat or offal (expensive, cheap, tough, or already tender) into a delightfully fall-apart, intensely flavorful stew.  And it delivers!  The finished product looks thusly:

Completing this cook was a multi-day process, but only because the Injera dough had to be left to ferment for 48 hours.  The Berbere Spice (which was a fresh, not dried mixture) and the stew itself could have been done all in one day.  Here is the recipe I followed:  https://nationalfoods.org/recipe/national-dish-of-eritrea-zigini-with-injera.  (I note that the Zigini portion of the recipe mentions adding onions, but the ingredient list for that part doesn't have any -- so I just guessed and used half of a small onion, diced, which seemed to work out perfectly fine.)

I don't really have a lot else to say other than that the meat stew here is absolutely amazing and delicious, and I will make it again (probably for our weekly potluck sometime sooner rather than later).  But honestly, I've never been much of a fan of Injera -- it's pretty nondescript and plain, if you ask me, and the fact that it smells like cocoa powder but doesn't taste like isn't necessarily disappointing....but just odd to me.  I mean, I guess it's not really meant to be eaten on it's own, and with the meat folded inside it's just fine and certainly doesn't detract, so I guess I rescind my "complaint."  😉

This post is part of my project: "Around the World in Foodventures" (I decided I want to expand my culinary horizons even further by making the national dish or a popular recipe, or some signature food or traditional meal from every country in the world. Maybe it'll happen alphabetically, or by region, in random order, or something else. I figure if we can't (yet?) travel everywhere, we at least have the luxury of being able to taste it. It’ll be fun and interesting, but obviously, will take a long time to get through -- as we'll only be doing it once a week or so at most. I am chronicling the journey here.)

“If I’m an advocate of anything, it’s to move…Walk in someone else’s shoes or at least eat their food.” --Tony Bourdain

Around the World in Foodventures (South Korea: BUDAE JJIGAE)

It's been over a month since my last post, but I have a good excuse: I went to Burning Man (again; it was my 4th time)! .... where, incidentally, my newfound method of rice cooking was proven to be successful even in very large quantities (i.e. being the Chef/Kitchen Manager of Lamplighter Village, I had written a new recipe for Brown Rice Salad to feed 175 people plus seconds -- and not only did it cook well and easily, but it was quite popular 🧡).  Anyhoo, now I'm back and re-settled into the default world, and here to present my next Around the World foodventure:

Budae jjigae (translated: "Army base stew") may not be traditional or an official national dish anywhere, but it's certainly iconic.  Created shortly after the end of the Korean war primarily from army ration surpluses combined with dumpster diving because, frankly, there weren't many ingredients available and people were harshly struggling -- this meal on its face looks to be....well, unappetizing.   But being that my hero Tony Bourdain experienced it on his Parts Unknown trip to South Korea, and since that time always wanting to give it a morbid curiosity try, there was no way it wasn't going to be my pick for this installment.  So, without further ado, this one gets two photos:

First, in the pan before it got all mixed together.

And then, the final plated stew.

There are a lot of recipes out there for this dish, varying slightly in ingredients as you would expect due to what was  -- and is -- available to people also varying.  Some even call for a slice of American cheese (processed, of course) to be thrown on top of each serving.  I didn't choose one that includes cheese, but instead went straight-up with Tony's: https://explorepartsunknown.com/korea/military-stew/.

And you know what?  It's really kinda frickin' delicious!  I mean, sure the meats are unusual, but the broth is as good as any spicy ramen I've ever had.  Bottom line, it's super spicy (probably intended as such to "balance" out the...less than ideal meats) and those four little dried anchovies absolutely come through to give some cooked-all-day flavor.

This post is part of my project: "Around the World in Foodventures" (I decided I want to expand my culinary horizons even further by making the national dish or a popular recipe, or some signature food or traditional meal from every country in the world. Maybe it'll happen alphabetically, or by region, in random order, or something else. I figure if we can't (yet?) travel everywhere, we at least have the luxury of being able to taste it. It’ll be fun and interesting, but obviously, will take a long time to get through -- as we'll only be doing it once a week or so at most. I am chronicling the journey here.)

“If I’m an advocate of anything, it’s to move…Walk in someone else’s shoes or at least eat their food.” --Tony Bourdain

Around the World in Foodventures (Mexico: MOLE)

I took a friend to a concert back in June, on the way to which she took me out to dinner at her favorite Mexican restaurant.  I fancy myself a mole connoisseur (Being Italian, I judge Italian restaurants by their meatballs and gnocchi....and I judge Mexican restaurants by their mole 😉) --  and let me tell you, this place had the absolute best mole I'd ever eaten.  Anyways, I decided right then and there that I would be making mole for the Mexico leg of this series, and so, today, Hubby and I hunted around at a few local Latino markets to gather the necessary ingredients, and I made the thing:

Here it is served over Hubby-made chicken with a salad that includes some leftover ingredients such as plum tomato, tomatillo, and corn tortilla strips, garden-fresh veggies from our neighbor across the street, some pan-friend extra plantain on the side, and a sprinkle of Cotija cheese over the whole lot.  Now, I don't know how my mole exactly compares to the restaurant I mentioned above, because it's been a while since I was there and I don't have any here right now to compare -- but this is SO good.  😁  I've also always thought/been told/believed the "urban legend" as it were that mole is an extremely long and complicated process involving a myriad of ingredients.  While there are a bunch of ingredients, it's not the most I've ever used making something, and cooking it only took a couple of hours which is totally fine by me because, by golly, one could make a huge batch and freeze it in portions for later use.   It could even be made easier by prepping the peppers and roasting the other vegetables ahead of time.  Either way, I will be doing this again.

I basically used this recipe (https://www.saveur.com/article/Recipes/Mexico-Chicken-Puebla-Mole/), but after researching a few others and comparing and contrasting, decided to include 1-2 Tablespoons of peanut butter at the very end.  Tasting the batch before and after the amendment, I feel the peanut butter was a good addition.

This post is part of my project: "Around the World in Foodventures" (I decided I want to expand my culinary horizons even further by making the national dish or a popular recipe, or some signature food or traditional meal from every country in the world. Maybe it'll happen alphabetically, or by region, in random order, or something else. I figure if we can't (yet?) travel everywhere, we at least have the luxury of being able to taste it. It’ll be fun and interesting, but obviously, will take a long time to get through -- as we'll only be doing it once a week or so at most. I am chronicling the journey here.)

“If I’m an advocate of anything, it’s to move…Walk in someone else’s shoes or at least eat their food.” --Tony Bourdain

Around the World in Foodventures (Papua New Guinea: MUMU)

I let a friend (via a Facebook number-guessing game) pick which country I'd do this time.  I don't know how or why she chose it, but Papua New Guinea it is!  Mumu is a rural preparation that really has no exact set of ingredients, though components usually come from certain categories such as pork meat or a whole pig, root vegetables, leafy greens, and coconut milk.  It's often made as part of a celebration, and traditionally cooked either underground or by surrounding a pot with hot rocks in a fire pit, outdoors obviously.  I had big plans of following those customary methods to make this dish, but after mise en place-ing the ingredients, a small homeowner emergency combined with it being damn hot outside this weekend and, frankly, some laziness about hauling rocks around my yard pointed me back inside to my oven....and really, what's the difference between a pit filled with hot rocks and a conventional appliance other than the ability to actually control the temperature?  So, here's my Mumu, in which a banana leaf package I layered pork shoulder, chicken thighs, plantain, yuca, sweet potato, onion, garlic, pineapple, kale, green beans, coconut milk, and Makrut lime leaves:

I definitely overcooked it and/or cut things up too small (almost everything came out sort of falling apart and/or a bit mushy), but that doesn't affect the flavor.  It's simple, yet still delicious.  Here are the recipes I sourced:

• https://creativeworldofvarya.com/cooking-series-how-to-make-papua-new-guinean-mumu/
• http://whatscookinginyourworld.blogspot.com/2011/05/day-133-papua-new-guinea-mumu-in-drum.html
• https://www.internationalcuisine.com/mumu/
• https://www.tokpisin.info/mumu-papua-new-guinea/

And while the Makrut limes leaves weren't specifically part of any recipe I researched online, I added them because they were lying around in the fridge and seemed like they'd add a nice touch; they did indeed. 

This post is part of my project: "Around the World in Foodventures" (I decided I want to expand my culinary horizons even further by making the national dish or a popular recipe, or some signature food or traditional meal from every country in the world. Maybe it'll happen alphabetically, or by region, in random order, or something else. I figure if we can't (yet?) travel everywhere, we at least have the luxury of being able to taste it. It’ll be fun and interesting, but obviously, will take a long time to get through -- as we'll only be doing it once a week or so at most. I am chronicling the journey here.)

“If I’m an advocate of anything, it’s to move…Walk in someone else’s shoes or at least eat their food.” --Tony Bourdain

How to Cook Rice

I know, I know -- this is a food blog, and I should be some sort of expert in a thing seemingly so basic, right? But, hey – we can’t all be perfect at everything 😉, and even professionals and connoisseurs can be learning new things all the time.

The truth is that as handy-dandy as I can be in and around kitchens, making rice that wasn’t sticky, mushy, and/or clumpy (when one doesn’t want it sticky, that is, because sometimes – read: sushi – we do) has sort of always eluded me. I really don’t know why.

Well, at the beginning of this month while revising a rice-based recipe that I’ll soon be using to feed over 150 people, it dawned on me to Google better ways to cook it, and lo and behold -- duh! -- of course there are multiple options! Here’s what I’ve quite successfully settled on after only a couple of tests . . . .

Simply cook your rice in WAY too much water -- as if you were making pasta. No more measuring; no more worrying about getting the perfect ratio of liquid to dry rice; no more altitude adjustments; no more endlessly rinsing rice over and over again wondering if you rinsed it *enough* before even starting to cook it; etc. Forget about all that.

For WHITE RICE:

1. Bring a pot of water to a boil (you want at least twice as much water as the rice bag instructions say for your desired amount of rice).
2. Dump the dry rice in (plus some salt if desired).
3. Simmer it on medium-low for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
4. Drain it (like pasta in a colander strainer) and rinse it with hot water (you don't want the rice to cool down).
5. Put it back in the pot, but not over any heat, covered, and let it sit for 10 more minutes.

For BROWN RICE:

1. Bring a pot of water to a boil (you want at least twice as much water as the rice bag instructions say for your desired amount of rice).
2. Dump the dry rice in (plus some salt if desired).
3. Simmer it on medium-low for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
4. Drain it (like pasta in a colander strainer).
5. Put it back in the pot, but not over any heat, covered, and let it sit for 10 more minutes.

You'll have perfectly fluffy, separate grains of cooked rice – every time.

The reason this all works is the simple fact that having more water than the exact amount listed on the bag, allows those pesky starches that come out of all rice to get washed away with the extra water down the sink. (We don't need to rinse the brown rice after the initial cooking the way we do the white rice, because with its husk still on not as much starch is able to seep out, but it certainly won’t hurt if you feel like rinsing your brown rice....just make sure to use hot water so it doesn't cool off.)  And the set cooking times -- as opposed to cooking until all water is absorbed -- prevent the rice from taking on more water than it actually needs or otherwise overcooking (whereas the old way would require that you cook it until all the water in the pot is gone, even if it was too much to begin with).

The end. ✌

Around the World in Foodventures (Venezuela: PABELLÓN CRIOLLO)

Hubby was getting a little worn out on the lamb dishes, so I told him to be the picker of the next country....and here we are in Venezuela.  When I first tasted this beef dish (while shredding it and before putting it back into the broth to cook a little more) it reminded me of corned beef despite there not being much salt in the recipe.  But after it simmered in the broth with the onion, pepper, garlic, and tomatoes -- it changed into something definitely not corned-beefy.  It has a lot of flavor for containing minimal ingredients and spices, and frankly, is just yummy.

I used this recipe: https://www.whats4eats.com/meats/pabellon-criollo-recipe, and as suggested served the meat with plain white rice, black beans flavored with a bit of cumin, and fried plantains that I admittedly forgot to put salt on. 😉

This post is part of my project: "Around the World in Foodventures" (I decided I want to expand my culinary horizons even further by making the national dish or a popular recipe, or some signature food or traditional meal from every country in the world. Maybe it'll happen alphabetically, or by region, in random order, or something else. I figure if we can't (yet?) travel everywhere, we at least have the luxury of being able to taste it. It’ll be fun and interesting, but obviously, will take a long time to get through -- as we'll only be doing it once a week or so at most. I am chronicling the journey here.)

“If I’m an advocate of anything, it’s to move…Walk in someone else’s shoes or at least eat their food.” --Tony Bourdain

Around the World in Foodventures (Albania: TAVË KOSI)

I believe this is the 3rd lamb dish in the series, but this one is definitely richer than the prior two.  It's kind of like a cheesy omelette over braised lamb (somehow the yogurt became more cheesy than yogurt-y in the oven) with a little bit of rice.  It's suggested that it be served with a simple green salad, and we conveniently happened to have fresh picked lettuce courtesy of our neighbor who shares his bounty with the whole street every year.  So, here it is:

Recipe @ https://www.bbc.com/food/recipes/albanian_baked_lamb_with_92485.

This post is part of my project: "Around the World in Foodventures" (I decided I want to expand my culinary horizons even further by making the national dish or a popular recipe, or some signature food or traditional meal from every country in the world. Maybe it'll happen alphabetically, or by region, in random order, or something else. I figure if we can't (yet?) travel everywhere, we at least have the luxury of being able to taste it. It’ll be fun and interesting, but obviously, will take a long time to get through -- as we'll only be doing it once a week or so at most. I am chronicling the journey here.)

“If I’m an advocate of anything, it’s to move…Walk in someone else’s shoes or at least eat their food.” --Tony Bourdain

Around the World in Foodventures (Uzbekistan: PLOV with SALAT ACHICHUK)

For funsies, I decided to use Dart on Map to pick the next country. After several tries drowning in open ocean water 😃, it landed on Uzbekistan.

Being from the region of the world that it is, I'm not surprised that this traditional pilaf contains lamb.  It's similar in ingredients and cooking procedure to the first installment of my "Around the World in Foodventures" series (Afghanistan: KABULI PULAO), except it contains different spices.  As such, it's a little more mildly flavored, but still very pleasant -- and the tomato and onion salad that it's served with brings a nice tang to cut through this dish's somewhat sweetness.  It's nice if you put the salad right on top and/or mix it into the pilaf.

Here is the recipe I followed: https://www.whats4eats.com/grains/uzbek-plov-recipe.  I think mine came out a lot darker in color than the recipe because it didn't specify what kind of stock; I used a dark brown veggie stock, and I assume the recipe writer used something more like a lightly colored chicken stock.

This post is part of my project: "Around the World in Foodventures" (I decided I want to expand my culinary horizons even further by making the national dish or a popular recipe, or some signature food or traditional meal from every country in the world. Maybe it'll happen alphabetically, or by region, in random order, or something else. I figure if we can't (yet?) travel everywhere, we at least have the luxury of being able to taste it. It’ll be fun and interesting, but obviously, will take a long time to get through -- as we'll only be doing it once a week or so at most. I am chronicling the journey here.)

Around the World in Foodventures (Tanzania: UGALI NA MAHARAGE YA NAZI)

Ugali is a corn flour (or sorghum or millet or cassava flour) porridge, much like polenta, that is used both as a meal filler and as a means of transporting food to your mouth. It's sort of Tanzania’s version of a tortilla, or naan, or injera. To eat it -- you pull off a small ball of the mush with your fingers, form an indentation with your thumb, and use it to scoop up accompanying stews and other dishes. Or you can form a larger ball, place it in your bowl, and spoon stew around it.

The Maharage that goes along with it here is a simple (but delicious!) stew of onions, carrots, tomatoes, beans, and coconut milk.

There are lots of recipes available, but I used this one: http://blog.ingredientmatcher.com/recipe-the-national-dish-of-tanzania-ugali-na-maharage-ya-nazi/

This post is part of my project: "Around the World in Foodventures" (I decided I want to expand my culinary horizons even further by making the national dish or a popular recipe, or some signature food or traditional meal from every country in the world. Maybe it'll happen alphabetically, or by region, in random order, or something else. I figure if we can't (yet?) travel everywhere, we at least have the luxury of being able to taste it. It’ll be fun and interesting, but obviously, will take a long time to get through -- as we'll only be doing it once a week or so at most. I am chronicling the journey here.)