May 2017

It’s hard to believe that we are almost half the way through 2017. It seems like only yesterday that I was working on recipes for our New Year supper. It has been a busy few months, packed with speaking events, filming, recipe testing and, best of all, lots of travel. We have just returned from our travels to the U.A.E. and am definitely inspired by the wonderful food we encountered there. Next month, we head off to Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan, where I am sure we will encounter even more great food. 

Look out for more great recipes from around the globe in the next few months. In the meantime, stay safe and eat well.

And, don’t forget, please do let me know on Twitter, Instagram or Facebook if you give this month’s recipe a try. I always love to hear back from you.

Cheers,

Simon

SIMON'S FOOD SCHOOL:

Stuff You Didn't Know You Didn't Know About Food

Rice is Nice

My wife and I both love rice rather a lot.

We may differ on the type of rice we prefer. With my Indian background, my preference is for long grained rice where each grain is separate after cooking, while she, originating in South East Asia, prefers shorter grain rice that clumps together. But, despite that small disagreement, we would both agree that rice would be our favorite accompaniment to just about every meal.

It would appear that much of the rest of the world agrees with us, as over half the world’s nearly seven billion population chooses rice, in some form, as their daily staple. The majority of those, of course, are in South East and South Asia. However, the love of rice has spread over the centuries from Asia, through the Mediterranean, as far as Africa. 

Along with wheat and corn, rice is one of the oldest crops man ever learned to grow domestically, with traces of its cultivation being traced back over 8,000 years both to the Pearl River region of China and, with a separate species of rice, to West Africa. From China, it made its way to India and what is now Sri Lanka, before trade and the movement of populations took it through the Levant and the Mediterranean. Whereas, from Africa, it found its way to the Americas in the dark days of the slave trade where it became one of the key staples of the slaves in countries like Brazil, and formed the beginnings of the rice industry in South Carolina.

Rice is a grass seed and, although many people believe that it can only be grown when its roots are underwater, that is usually done to protect from bugs and weed growth.  Once the rice is harvested, the seeds have to be dried to remove the moisture, then they are “hulled” to remove the outer casing. The result is what we know as brown rice, which is more rich in nutrients, but because of the extra elements in the casing spoils more easily. This is why rice traditionally was put through a final “milling” or polishing process to give us the white rice with which we are all so familiar.

My own favorite preparation is for a traditional Chicken or Mutton Biryani from the Lucknow area of India. Succulent meat in a spicy gravy cooked under a layer of aromatic basmati rice infused with whole spices and saffron.

Mmm.  Perhaps that should be next month’s recipe.

Upcoming Events

• May 18-21, 2017 - Saborea Puerto Rico, Presenter, San Juan, Puerto Rico
• August 19-20, 2017 - Pacific Wine and Food Classic, Host, Newport Beach, CA

THE BOOK ZONE

YOUR "FIRST LOOK" RECIPE:

Imam Bayildi

This dish, which dates back to the height of the Ottoman Empire in the 17th Century, has a number of stories related to its origin. The words literally mean, “The Imam Swooned.” While one story suggests that this meaning was attributed to the deliciousness of the dish, I can easily believe the other, that it was at the huge amount of expensive olive oil used in its preparation.  Whichever is true, it is definitely a dish I am adding to my rotation from now on.

(Serves 4-6)

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Ingredients

• 4 Large Eggplants
• 1 Large Onion (diced)
• 4 Cloves Garlic (Minced)
• 1 Bunch Parsley (Finely Chopped)
• 1 Bunch Mint (Torn)
• 8 Ripe Tomatoes (deseeded and chopped)
• ½ Cup Olive Oil
• 1 Lemon (Juiced)
• 1 Tsp Ground Cumin
• Salt
• Black Pepper

Instructions

1. Peel the eggplant leaving them connected to the stalks
2. Make a slit lengthwise down each eggplant about 2/3rds of the way to the bottom and butterfly them open so they have a flat surface.
3. Heat up ¼ Cup olive oil in a frying pan.
4. Sprinkle the eggplant with salt and pepper, and cook in the olive oil for about two minutes a side.
5. They will take up a lot of the oil.  So, you can drain them in a colander over a bowl if you want less, but, if you want a richer finished dish, you can move to the next stage and remove them from the frying pan, place them in a single layer in a baking dish and, allow them to cool.
6. In the same frying pan in which you fried the eggplant, add the rest of the olive oil and bring to a medium heat.
7. Add the onions and cook for 5 minutes
8. Add the minced garlic and cook for 2 minutes
9. Add the ground cumin, stir in and cook for 2 mins.
10. Add the tomatoes, stir in and cook for 5 mins.
11. Remove from the heat and stir in most of the parsley and mint (reserving a little for garnish)
12. Spoon the mixture over each eggplant and sprinkle a little lemon juice over the top.
13. Bake in a 350oF oven for around 20 minutes
14. Garnish with the remaining parsley and mint
15. Serve with warm pita bread and yogurt

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