Iftar on Kitchen3N

Ramadan Round Up

Tue, 21 Jun 2016 00:00:00 +0000

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Ramadan is halfway over, but there’s still time to make some of my favorite recipes for this time of year! Going clockwise from the top left:

Citrus Quinoa Salad with Dates, Almonds and Mint - we consume a lot of dates during Ramadan. This recipe uses up any extra dates you may have in a salad you can feel good about eating at the end of a long fast!

Aloo Chop (Fried Mashed Potato Balls)

Sat, 18 Jun 2016 00:00:00 +0000

Traditional Bengali iftars are an exercise in how many different ways can we consume fried foods. Ground up lentils and herbs? FRY IT! Fresh sliced eggplant? BATTER AND FRY IT! Whole green chilis? FRY IT! Mashed potatoes? FRY. IT.

There’s been a backlash by my generation against the fried iftars of our parents’ generation:

Citrus Quinoa Salad With Dates, Almonds, and Mint

Sat, 23 Apr 2016 00:00:00 +0000

Ramadan is coming up! I figured I should add a few more Ramadan friendly recipes to the blog, for those of us who are looking to depart a bit from the usual fried foods iftars. During these long summer days when we're denying ourselves food and liquid for 15 hours straight, we need to treat our bodies well! This is a dish you can feel good about eating, that's not going to make you crash before the long night of ibadah (prayers) you have lined up.

This recipe is based on one from Dorie Greenspan’s Around My French Table. I know a quinoa salad is not the first thing you think of when you consider French cuisine, but she’s filled her cookbook with things she makes for her family, without strictly adhering to a particular cuisine. In our hyperconnected world, it’s kind of impossible to resist influences from other regions. She’s got a Moroccan Tagine and carrot salad, small plates from her American upbringing, French pastries and traditional stews from her current residence. And she’s kind of an authority when it comes to food so I trust her with my quinoa!

Pistachio and Spice Roasted Rack of Lamb

Sun, 12 Jul 2015 00:00:00 +0000

Ramadan, the Islamic month during which Muslims around the world fast from sun up to sun down, is winding down. The last ten days is a time of great spiritual importance. Extra prayers, remembrance and mindfulness of acts of worship are highly stressed. My interpretation is that it’s a way to encourage keeping up the momentum, since Ramadan is 30 days long, and many start off the month with a lot of vigor, but find themselves struggling to keep up with the extra prayers and fasts as the days go by. Another important part of Ramadan for me is the communal iftar (evening, break-fast meal). One of the things that drew me to Islam as a child and again as a college student, is the community. When I attended my first ICNA convention as an almost 10 year old, I wore the headscarf for the weekend, per etiquette. And I recall descending on the escalator to the main convention hall and being amazed at seeing so many Muslims in the same room. For the first time I felt like I was part of something larger. Growing up in Queens, my childhood was characterized by my otherness. I was always one of two Bengali Muslim kids (no black, white, arab, SE asian or any other muslim kids in my neighborhood). We were all a rag tag team of immigrant kids - the only cohesive element being our physical classroom or schoolyard. So when I first felt that sense of community, it was exhilarating. I kept the headscarf on (with its ups and downs) since then. This was reinforced as a student at Barnard. The iftars hosted by Columbia Muslim Students Association was another reinforcement. A group to whom I didn’t have to explain my evening ritual of breaking the fast. A group that actually shared the values I was brought up with. I know we live in a society that in name celebrates individuality and uniqueness. But growing up in a society that is so different from your native one, is exhausting. How many times have I had to answer the question

Haleem

Mon, 05 Aug 2013 00:00:00 +0000

Warning: this post isn’t about finding the mother of all haleem recipes. I’m not even gonna say it will give your grandma’s a run for her money (though it’s darn good). No, this post is about accessibility. Haleem is not an enigma. Sure, there’s barley, wheat, lentils, even dried papaya. But you don’t have to go out of your way looking for ingredients you don’t usually stock your pantry with. Nor do you have to run to Jamaica or Jackson Heights, or wherever you go for your fix. Instead, you pick up a box of Shan’s Easy Cook Haleem mix and get ready to wow the salwars off your friends and family.

Mint Limeade

Sat, 13 Jul 2013 00:00:00 +0000

Ramadan Kareem to all those who are observing the holiday! The days are long and the fasts are difficult but alhamdulillah (praise be to God), it makes you grateful for the food and drink you have waiting for you at iftar (evening breakfast). Many of us are blessed with comfortable homes, plenty of food and loving families. Part of the reason we fast is to remember those of us who are less fortunate. The Muslims being persecuted in Myanmar. The innocents dying everyday in Syria. Through this remembrance and appreciation of our blessings, we cultivate a closer relationship with God. Ramadan also brings to light the culinary diversity of Muslims around the world. Dates are an iftar staple, as that was the tradition of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). Otherwise you might have kutaeif (a type of pancake) in Palestine. Kolak or cendol (sweet drinks) in Indonesia. Güllaç (a rosewater dessert) in Turkey. Back in Bangladesh, iftar consists of the following: cucumber slices, soaked lentils with raw ginger, puffed rice, fruit and a plethora of fried vegetables and lentils bathed in a thick gram flour batter. Sometimes they even fry this oversized hot pepper and eat it as is!! And I have to say: I hate it. I am sorry. I love Bengali food. I loathe the iftars. The raw ginger. The bland lentils. The batter that is so thick that the vegetables got lost in them. And whose idea was it to break your fast with fried foods anyway? The only exception is the potato patties (studded with pieces of hard boiled egg) and HALEEM. OMG. Haleem is to the subcontinent what Pho is to Vietnam (well, technically nihari is) in that it just a bowl of simmering, goat, lentil and barley deliciousness. I’ll post about it later, but for now, the drinks.