In a world where Middle East cookbooks seem often not authored by Arab chefs, I jumped for this book when I saw who wrote it. May Bsisu was born in Jordan — her mother is Lebanese and her father Palestinian — and lived in Kuwait, Beirut, and London before settling in the United States.
Her culinary road began inauspiciously — which means there’s hope for you women who let others cook for you. Bsisu says she didn’t know how to cook when she was married in Beirut. In Beirut! The very epicenter of Arab culinary delights!
Bsisu, (Bee-SAY-su), acknowledges what she knew about cooking at that time was gleaned from sitting in her grandmother’s kitchen. They would chat while her grandmother would cook — on weekend’s together.
And, needless to say, when Bsisu married her husband was less-than-thrilled to discover that his bride was unenlightened about the age-old adage: “The way to a man’s heart is through his stomach.”
Bsisu admits that she and her grandmother were complicit in trying to deceive her new husband regarding her inability to cook.
“When I married at 18, my grandmother used to send food to our house [in Beirut] before he came home from work. But then my husband found out what was going on — and he was not very happy with me. He insisted I should learn to cook for myself,” she says. Hubbie was right; after all, grandmother couldn’t be around to cook for them forever.
Bsisu laughs remembering the trauma of trying to learn to cook. “In the beginning it was scary, my grandmother would try to tutor me over the phone on how to cook.” To her surprise, Bsisu says she discovered “an enormous sense of self-satisfaction when I cooked and saw how much other people enjoyed what I made them.”
Her book, aptly titled: The Arab Table, Recipes and Culinary Traditions, is a beautiful reflection of not only her culinary skills but her impressive knowledge of the history of the dishes and the spices that make up the legacy of Arab cooking.
Bsisu, who spoke to Arab News in a phone interview, said her recipe book is a reflection of the “many flavors of many different counties in the Arab world.”
Bsisu says she soon found she had a knack for cooking, and wanted to learn more than what her grandmother could teach. “After I started cooking, I wanted to get some professional training.” She took classes and started with Arab cuisine, “then I went on to French cookery in Kuwait, and then I started cooking for myself and friends.” She says she has resisted the temptation to cook professionally.
During the first Gulf War, she and her husband decided to leave Kuwait and headed to the US.
“I came to American in 1991 during the Gulf War. We thought it was time to find to find a safe place to raise our boys. We settled in Cincinnati, Ohio, and have lived there ever since.”
When asked what Americans in Cincinnati know about Arab world and Arab cuisines, Bsisu admits it was a new concept for many of the people she met there. “We started introducing people to Arab cuisines at our home. My husband is a businessman so we would invite many people over, and would have functions for the boys and their friends. And during the holidays, I would bake baklava and mamouls and the boys would take it their teachers and friends.”
She said the idea of writing a cookbook came to her “when a lot of people started asking me for recipes. They were interested in how to cook the food.” She says she started cooking classes for friends, and then realized she “wanted to preserve the culture for my boys, and I wanted something for their children.” She decided to write the cookbook “after the boys graduated and went to college.”
Since moving the US 15 years ago, Bsisu says American interest in Arab food and Arab culture “has bloomed.”
“In colleges there are a lot of new Arab history and language classes. People want to know about this part of the world, what better way to introduce them than starting by food?” she says.
“The Mediterranean diet revolves around fresh vegetables, olive oil, and lemon,” says Bsisu. “It is a simple cuisine, but also very rich in flavor. So the Arab cusine is not very strange to the American taste at all. Anyone can cook this food, and most of the food can be found from the pantry,” she says. “Arab cuisine is a forgiving cuisine. It’s not as precise as the French and the Chinese cuisine, where everything has to be perfect.
Bsisu says she has made some changes for Americans’ tastes. “When you cook, you can adjust the taste to your guests’ liking. I have noticed that Americans don’t like a lot of fresh lemons in their food, and it’s certainly easy to cut back on it.”
To write “The Arab Table,” Bsisu said she had a good editor who understood her main goals. Her editor, she says, “really wanted it to be a comprehensive book of the entire Arab world, and so there are references from almost every county in the Arab world.”
As a result, the nearly 200 recipes in her book are gleaned from such sources as her grandmother’s kitchen in Beirut, desert villages in Jordan, street vendors in Baghdad, Cairo and Damascus, and even neighbors in North London and Cincinnati
The recipes range from the familiar — falafel, kebabs, stuffed grape leaves, baklava — to the less so, such as eggplant pomegranate salad, grilled snapper with Kuwaiti spices and dried lime, and semolina layer cake.
What makes Bsisu’s book unique, the author says, “Is that it’s not just a recipe book, it also explores the history, culture and ingredients of our food. Our pantry is so interesting, and I talk about all the ingredients in detail, which you don’t see in a lot of in other books.”
As for who would buy her book, Bsisu says the book “is an excellent hostess present for people who like to entertain, and for teachers, chefs, and parents with children who want to introduce them to other cultures.”
Bsisu, whose idea of “easy” cooking are admittedly quite different than mine, says the recipes are simple and includes the Arab ‘mezza,’ which, she says, is the “in thing” in restaurants and cuisine. “The main dishes are very presentable and look fantastic on the table. It is a great for vegetarians.”
And yes, Bsisu does have a favorite main course and favorite desert. “My favorite dish which I like to cook, and which people really enjoy — is the Rosewater Chicken and Rice; and the other is the Baked Sea Bass, with Tahini-Walnut sauce.”
She cautions — did she read my mind? — not to be put off a recipe if it looks unfamiliar or complicated. “Don’t be scared if the recipe looks too long, because they really are easy. There are so many things you can prepare ahead of time, so when your guest arrive, you don’t have to be in the kitchen. I have addressed all these issues, there are a lot of things you can ahead of time.”
‘The Arab Table’ covers a full range of dishes from start to finish, including light soups and salads, as well as hearty meats and stews and scrumptious desserts. The following recipes are printed with the permission of the author and the publishing house:
Beets With Tahini (Shamandar Mutabal)
1/2 cup plain full-fat yogurt
1 pound small beets, leaves trimmed, beets rinsed and scrubbed
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon white vinegar
4 cloves garlic, mashed
2/3 cup fresh lemon juice
1/3 cup sesame paste (tahini)
White and red radish slices, for garnish (optional)
Method
Place the yogurt in a small bowl. Fold a sheet of paper towel in quarters and place it directly on top of the yogurt to soak up the excess liquid. Set it aside.
Place the beets in a saucepan and add enough water to cover them completely. Add the salt and vinegar, and cook over high heat until you can easily insert a fork into them, about 90 minutes. Drain, and set aside until they are cool enough to handle.
Peel the beets by hand (the skin should come off easily); in places where the skin doesn’t fall away easily, use a paring knife. Place the beets in a food processor and pulse 3 times to make smooth puree. (Alternatively, use a potato masher or the back of a fork.) The pieces and the juices should come together to form a very smooth paste.
Add the yogurt, garlic, lemon juice, and sesame paste, and stir to incorporate evenly. Taste, and add more salt and lemon juice if desired. Garnish with the radish slices, and serve cold or at room temperature.
Eggplant Pomegranate Salad (Salatat Al-Rahib)
Serves 6
1 pounds eggplant
2 pound firm tomatoes, seeded and diced
4 scallions, white and light green parts only, chopped
1 green, red, yellow or orange bell pepper, seeded and finely diced
1 jalapeno pepper, minced
1 tablespoon pomegranate syrup
4 cloves garlic, mashed
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
Fresh mint leaves, for garnish
Pomegranate seeds, for garnish (optional)
Method
Preheat the oven to 400F, with a rack about 4 inches from the heat source. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil.
Using a fork, pierce the eggplants in a few places. Place them on the prepared baking sheet and bake, turning them a quarter-turn every 5 minutes, until the skin blisters and cracks, 20 minutes in all. Set the roasted eggplants aside until they are cool enough to handle.
Holding the eggplant at the stem end, peel away the skin, using your hands or a knife. Set them aside to cool completely.
Meanwhile, combine the tomatoes, scallions, bell peppers, jalapeno, pomegranate syrup, garlic, olive oil, lemon juice, salt, and black pepper in a medium bowl.
Chop the eggplants into 1-inch chunks and add them to the vegetables. Stir the salad gently with a wooden spoon (to avoid breaking the eggplant). Garnish with the parsley, mint, and pomegranate seeds, if using, and serve.
Rose Water-Scented Chicken With Saffron Rice
(Mashbouse Al-Dajaj)
Serves 6
For the Chicken:
1 teaspoon ground allspice
1 teaspoon ground cardamom
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
5 pound chicken parts
2 medium onions, thinly slice
6 gloves garlic
6 allspice berries
6 black peppercorns
Three 3-inch cinnamon sticks
6 cardamom pods
1 dried lime (loumi)
For the Onions:
1/3 cup vegetable oil
3 pounds medium onions, finely chopped
1 teaspoon ground allspice
1/2 teaspoon white pepper
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
1/8 teaspoon grated nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup raisins, soaked in 1-1/2 cups warm water for 30 minutes
For the Tomato Sauce:
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
10 cloves garlic
2 jalapeno or serrano peppers, seeded and finely chopped
2-1/2 pounds tomatoes, peeled and chopped
3 tablespoons tomato paste
1-1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
For the Rice:
1 tablespoon butter
3 cups basmati rice, rinsed, soaked, and drained
1 teaspoon salt
3 strands saffron, steeped in 1/4 cup rose water for 2 hours
For Sautéing the Chicken:
10 threads saffron, steeped in 2 cups rose water for 2 hours
1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon ground cardamom
1 cup vegetable oil
Method
For the Chicken:
Combine the allspice, cardamom, cinnamon, 1 teaspoon of the salt, and pepper in a small bowl, and mix well. Rub this spice mix all over the chicken pieces. Place the chicken in a large pot and add cold water to cover. Add the onions, garlic, allspice berries, peppercorns, cinnamon sticks, cardamom pods, and dried lemon. Cover the pot and bring to a boil over a high heat. Skim off the froth that forms on the surface. Reduce the heat and simmer until the meat falls away from the bone when you prick it with a fork, about 45 minutes. Strain the chicken, reserving the broth. Remove the bones from the chicken pieces, and season the chicken meat with the remaining 1 teaspoon salt. Place the chicken on a dish and set it aside. Set the broth aside as well. Discard the whole spices and the dried lemon.
For the Onions:
Heat the vegetable oil in a large skillet over high heat. Add the onions, allspice, white pepper, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, cardamom, and salt, and sauté until the onions are soft and translucent, 15 to 20 minutes. Drain the raisins, add them to the pot, and stir to incorporate. Remove the onion mixture from the heat and cover to keep it warm.
Make the Tomato Sauce:
Heat the olive oil in a small pot over high heat. Add the garlic and jalapeno and sauté, stirring constantly, until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium-high and add the tomatoes, tomato paste, salt, pepper, and cinnamon. Cook, partially covered, until the mixture forms a thickened sauce, about 25 minutes. Set aside and keep warm.
Cook the Rice:
Heat the butter in a large pot over high heat. Add the rice and salt. Stir to coat the rice. Add 2-3/4 cups of the reserved chicken broth; stir. Cover the pot and cook until almost all the broth has been absorbed, about 5 minutes. Then reduce the heat to low and gently pour the rose water mixture on top of the rice; do not stir. Cover the pot, slide a heat diffuser under it, and cook until the rice is tender, 15 to 20 minutes. Remove the pot from the heat and wrap it in a fleece blanket to keep it warm.
Sauté the Chicken:
Preheat the over to 300F.
Combine the rose water-saffron mixture, lemon juice, and cardamom in a wide, shallow bowl and set it aside. This will be a “wash” for the chicken.
Heat the vegetable oil in a large skillet over high heat. Drag a few pieces of chicken through the wash and slide them into the skillet. Sauté until the pieces are golden yellow, 3 or 4 minutes on each side. Transfer the chicken to an ovenproof dish. Repeat with the remaining chicken. Cover the dish with aluminum foil and keep it warm in the oven.
To Serve:
Spoon the rice onto a large rimmed platter. Scatter the onion mixture over the rice, covering the entire surface. Arrange the chicken pieces on top of the onions in a spiral pattern, beginning in the center and working your way out to the rim of the platter. Place the tomato sauce in a bowl, and serve it alongside the rice and chicken.
