September 15, 2009
Cooking With Middle Eastern Spices
A local friend of mine recently received a bounty of fresh Middle Eastern spices, courtesy of a friend visiting from Qatar.
“I asked her to bring me a few spices, and she went to the market and asked for a half a kilo [1.1 lbs] of everything!” my friend explained. “Want some?”
What a happy coincidence—we had just been given a new spice rack, and the jars were empty! Now they hold a mix of the mysterious and the familiar: turmeric, cardamom pods, dried hibiscus, cumin, cinnamon, dried whole ginger, zatar, and something called simply “mixed spices,” which looks and smells like what the supermarket sells as “curry powder.” I added in some garam masala I bought in Kenya (2 years ago, but it’s still remarkably potent), and a few store-bought spices like nutmeg and cloves, creating an aromatic dust storm in the kitchen as I funneled everything into jars.
I’ve already made a great tofu-vegetable curry flavored with the mixed spices, crushed cardamom, turmeric, cumin, and zested ginger. I’ve sprinkled the cinnamon on waffles, and tried a touch of cardamom in my coffee, but I know I could be more adventurous.
Zatar, courtesy Flickr user smcgee
I’m a bit stumped by the dried hibiscus (not technically a spice, I know), also called Jamaica flowers. I haven’t found any food recipes that use this, but a quick search turned up some appealing drink recipes, such as a hibiscus margarita, or hibiscus-lime iced tea.
The new ingredient I’m most excited about is zatar (or za’atar, or zaatar, however you want to spell it), which is apparently both the name of a wild herb and the name of an herb/spice blend. The blend varies by region and household, but often includes sumac, sesame seeds, and salt, along with green herbs like oregano, thyme and marjoram.
I’m not not sure exactly what I received; it looks a bit like dried lawn clippings, to be honest, but tastes quite good! I’ve only tried zatar once before, on a trip to Israel, where a street food vendor served it atop warm pita bread brushed with olive oil. I plan to try re-creating that tasty treat at home, and I bet zatar could also add a lively touch to comfort foods like pizza, pasta or even mac and cheese. (Of course, it would be nice baked into homemade bread, too, if we had an oven…) Any other ideas?
What’s your favorite spice?
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Zatar is great on all kinds of meats. Mash several cloves of garlic with a pestle in a mortar, put in some salt, fresh crushed black pepper, and a good among of zatar, and add some olive oil. Mix and spread generously over steaks, chicken, a standing rib roast, kebabs, or a leg of lamb. All of them will taste delicious.
I started using zatar about a year ago, and now I make my own. I use it “everywhere”; in green and bean salads, on garlic bread, on grilled vegetables, in soup and on grilled meat. Mix zatar and garlic with ground lamb and make meatballs, serve these with tsziki and “Greek salad”…sprinkled with zatar.
Yummy! Hibiscus iced tea is a summer staple – sometimes I just use the dried hibiscus leaves (just a pinch of sugar to counter the tartness) but I’ve also experimented with mixing it with black tea and a citron green tea with delightful results.
Zatar is really great (and easy!) to add to roasted red potatoes. And cardamon can run the gamut from spicing up savory Indian rices to dark chocolate souffles.
But if I had to chose a favorite – I think it would be cumin. From a simple Moroccan salad of cucumbers and tomatoes to lentil soups to scrambled eggs to all foods Mexican – it’s just so versatile. I have a “salt/pepper” spice holder for the table that I picked up from Morocco but instead of pepper they substitute cumin and I try to do the same in many dishes. Come to think of it, maybe I could have used 1.1 lbs of it after all!
Thanks for sharing, Amanda! Though I want a copy of your recipe for tofu/vegetable curry, if you used one. Sounds delish. I haven’t cooked with tofu in a while… We’re only just now shifting from our annual summer salad phase, and I need to start going to the local farmers markets! We got all excited to get some special ingredients from Whole Foods, but once we arrived where we thought it was, we discovered that it’s a new space and isn’t finished yet. What a debby downer!! Anyways, love this recipe sharing and I’m so excited to use the spices. I need to get on that!! :) Been working too much to do any quality cooking.
Miss you ladies! Hugs and thanks again for your tips.
You’ll never guess — my oven is out! UGH! And just when I’m in the middle of a big cooking project too. :( I hope it can be fixed soon.
how wonderful to be given all those spices!!! How to name a favorite? hmmmm….very hard. However, ginger is being used a lot around here — both fresh and dried.
Could you make some sort of pita or naan or other flatbread in a griddle/cast iron frying pan on the stovetop, since you don’t have an oven? Spread the first side with oil and za’atar (after flipping to cook the second side), finish cooking, and enjoy!
I love zaatar. I like to eat it just like you had it in Israel. That’s the traditional way all over the Middle East, pretty much. As for a favorite spice, I would have to say mine is cardamom. I love the slightly minty, slightly eucalyptusy, medicinal fragrance. It goes great in rice, soups (very good at taking the ‘gamey’ flavor out of some meats, and especially poultry), tea, and also in desserts, such as ice cream. An all time favorite drink is Arabic coffee with freshly ground mastic, nutmeg, dried rose petals, and of course cardamom. Mmmmmmm… out of this world!