ALKHOBAR, 24 November 2003 — In Ramadan, Muslims are supposed to focus on fasting and prayer. But especially as the holy month comes to a close, there is a preoccupation with food. Women spend hours in the kitchen cooking up the culinary fantasies of their families. It is a fact that home-cooked meals are a must at iftar.
Muhammad Al-Momen, a 19-year-old Saudi, said that his mother and grandmother spend about three hours daily preparing the food for iftar. Pasta, chicken and rice, harees, samboosa, salad, steak, margooq and marag are all possible dishes that will appear on the table at sunset.
“I don’t eat out for iftar — even at my relatives’ homes,” declared Al-Momen. “The food my mother and grandmother prepare is excellent. There is no equal to it!”
Not all young men are lucky enough to live at home. Ammar Al-Aboud, a Saudi teenager, spent the first half of the holy month in a dormitory room at Dhahran’s King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals (KFUPM). While the university does have a dining hall, Al-Aboud was unwilling to take a chance on the meals offered at iftar. With no kitchen facilities available, he was forced to rely on takeout or food delivered from restaurants. His daily iftar consisted of pasta, harees and samboosa, plus bellah al-sham for dessert. It was a dreary experience. Fortunately, when he went home for the school break, the situation was much different.
“What does my mother make for iftar? The answer to that is ‘ask and you shall find,’” said a delighted Al-Aboud. “Harees, salona, homemade pizza, fatayer, mamoul and of course samboosa. Dates with laban are a must everyday too — as per the Prophet’s tradition. Afterward some assorted cakes and kunafa are nice. My mother cooks about two to three hours daily and I prefer to eat iftar from her hand rather than any other.”
“My mother likes variety and she makes something different everyday,” said Sufian Sayed, a 22-year-old Indian. “Common items that she prepares are samboosa, pizza, pasta, cheese bread, chicken kabab, cooked vegetables and vegetable salads.”
Sayed rarely goes to restaurants during Ramadan. So far, he has only gone twice to fast-food restaurants with friends. He does eat out though at other people’s homes when his entire family is invited for iftar.
“My mother spends two to three hours in the kitchen before iftar,” explained Sayed. “She is very organized and has patience and good timing, so that all the food arrives hot to the table. My sister helps sometimes. She is especially good at baking desserts such as cakes, cookies and brownies. In my opinion in Ramadan home-cooked food is the best.”
Hisham Hussein, a 17-year-old Palestinian, agreed. While he finds restaurant food acceptable during other months, he’s only eaten at a restaurant once during Ramadan.
“My mother believes iftar should be light,” said Hussein. “She usually cooks meat or cheese samboosa with either lentil, meat or corn soup, plus fatoush. Even preparing this ‘light’ meal will keep her in the kitchen for two hours.”
What if there isn’t a woman at home to prepare iftar? Most bachelors still prefer to cook in their own kitchens rather than resorting to restaurants.
Shafiq Rahman, a 31-year-old Pakistani, spends one to two hours daily fixing iftar with his three apartment mates. They make a first course of dates, juice mixed with milk and samboosa. After returning from prayer, then they like to have rice with meat, soup, tandouri chicken, mixed fruit and finally a cup of tea with milk. The flat mates never go out for iftar because often their friends come to join them.
“Our Saudi neighbors know we are bachelors and sometimes they bring us home-cooked food,” said Rahman. “While we appreciate the gesture, we aren’t fond of all the foods they prepare. We have come up with a solution to this dilemma. Whatever dishes we don’t like, we pass on to our Bangladeshi neighbors. They seem to be pleased with whatever we share with them.”
