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14 ARTS Weekend Witness December 20, 2014

JACKIE CAMERON

SAUDI Arabia, Riyadh.I was fortunate to have been invited

by S. Pellegrino and Acqua Panna to rep-resent South Africa at the Audi ChefsCup Sudtirol 2014 in Alta Badia, Italy,earlier this year.

The event was a fantastic display ofculinary excellence, attracting the lead-ing personalities of national and inter-national cuisine. There I met ClemensMair, the director of food and beverageat the Al Faisaliah Hotel, A RosewoodHotel-Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and we gotchatting.

The meeting resulted in me being in-vited to cook for a week at the prestig-ious Globe Summit Series, and what anoccasion that was. I was aware that thetrip to Saudi Arabia was going to be alearning curve on many levels and it

was, even more than I could have imag-ined. Every day I presented a privatecooking class as well as an eight-courselunch menu and dinner menu availableto the public. It was a busy time.

Chef Ilias Doulamis and his team,however, offered me fantastic supportwhich allowed us to pull this off.

The cooking courses gave me the op-portunity to meet princes, local womenand international people based in Sau-di, and by asking questions I learnt agreat deal about the place and its peo-ple. I was intrigued by the differingviews on what living in Saudi Arabiameant to them.

One of the cooking classes involvedmany young Saudi girls who spoke verypassionately about their home town.They were relaxed and happy, whichmeant by the end of the session we wereexchanging recipes. They wrote downa few names for me but, having beenunable to find them on the Internet, Igather they have been lost in transla-tion. The two dishes they waxed lyricalabout were harissa and kabsa. I regretthat time did not a llow me the privilegeto eat locally so all the recipes here wereresearched and have been given my owntake. Should you know better or unusualcombinations please share them withme via e-mail.

I couldnt leave Saudi without itsunique flavours tucked safely in mymemory bank. The ones I have high-lighted here promise to tantalise yourtaste buds as they did mine.

Harissa is a Maghrebian hot chilipepper paste . The main ingredients areroasted red peppers, serrano peppers

and other hot chili peppers, spices andherbs such as garlic paste, corianderseed, or caraway, as well as some vegeta-ble or olive oil that acts as a preservative.Harissa paste can also be used as a rubfor meat or eggplants. The Saudi girlsmentioned harissa and meat so I sug-gest you give it a try.

Kabsa is a family of m ixed rice dishesthat are served mostly in Jordan and inSaudi Arabia, where it is commonly re-garded as a national dish. As a rule, themeals are made from a mixture of spi-ces, rice (usually long-grain, mostly bas-mati), meat and vegetables. There aremany variations of kabsa and each hasits own unique quality. My Saudi pupilscommented on how their respectivefamilies had their own particular takeon this dish. They also boasted how

their respective mothers were the bestat making kabsa.

The spices used in kabsa includeblack pepper, cloves, cardamom, saf-fron, cinnamon, black lime, bay leavesand nutmeg. I got the impression thatthe quantities of spices used where topsecret in families. The main ingredientthat accompanies the spices is meat chicken, goat, lamb or camel, some-times beef, fish or shrimp. The spices,rice and meat may be served with al-

monds, pine nuts, onions and sultanas.The dish can be garnished with ash andserved hot with daqqus. I have includedthese recipes too.

Hash is a meat stuffing with rice. Itcan be served as is, or can be added toother dishes as meatballs. Soaked riceis mixed with meat and spices. It canalso be stuffed into almost any vegeta-

ble, which is called mehshi (pro-nounced meche-she). Sounds scrump-tious but then I am a sucker for stuffedvegetables, even if it is a very old-fash-ioned dish.

Dakkous, or daqqus, is a Middle-Eastern tomato sauce that is eaten withrice. I am not too fond of rice and I wasamused to see how this revelationshocked the Saudi girls. I wonderwhether the sauce will change my mind.

Jreesh, which is ground wheat, is

commonly used in Saudi Arabia andwhen including in a dish is called jarish.This recipe involves a whole chickenwith would you believe rice. Itsserved with chopped, fried onions andis certainly worth a try.

My first lesson was for a prince. Wh ata lovely man. He gifted me with a fewtreasured books and DVDs on Saudi

Arabia. The true treat, however, was anelegantly packaged box filled with bat-eel, gourmet Arabian dates, each filledwith interesting combinations such asdates, pecan-nuts and candied orange,each as delicious as the other. On re-turning home I was aware that I hadbought no gifts for the team a t work .Stupidly so because I as yet dont havea team! However, I shared some world-class dates with the labourers on siteat Jackie Cameron School of Food and

Wine and enjoyed their appreciativecomments. It was a new experience forme and for them. I thought it appropri-ate to add a delicious date-cake recipefor you to enjoy.

There is no alcohol in Saudi Arabia.Not even in the hotel rooms mini-bar.Saudi champagne, which was on offer,was enjoyable but had no kick. I drank

many freshly squeezed juices, somewith unusual combinations, and I camehome feeling revitalised and healthy.Just goes to show.

Heres to your good health. Have ahappy time over this festive season andplease cast a thought my way Ill behard at work getting Jackie CameronSchool of Food and Wine ready for itsfirst intake 2015 is going to be a fabu-lous year and an historical one for me.

Visit www.jackiecam eron.co.za to

find out more about my womenschef range, with a mens range tocome shortly. Remember JackieCameron Cooks at Home and allmy foodie adventures. I always lookforward to hearing from you. Seejackie@jackiecameron.co.za Jackie Cameron is soon to be theowner of Jackie Cameron School of

Food and Wine in Hilton, KZN.Send e-mail for inquiries. For the latest on local foodie news,add me as a friend on facebook.Find me on Twitter @jackie_cameron and Instagram: jackiecameronincolour. Food styling and recipe develop-ment, Elaine Boshoff. All photos by Karen Edwards Pho-tography 082 441 7429 or ka-rene@bundunet.com

Flavours from RiyadhCooking in Saudi Arabia opened a door to many new recipes and flavours

SAUDI ARABIA: HASHU

(Meat stuffing with rice and spices)550 g of mince meat:450 gr beef mince1/3 cup rice, soaked for 30 minutes30 ml olive oil5 ml all spice5 ml cinnamon powder5 ml fine Oryz salt1,25 ml freshly ground black pepper1/2 onion, grated Mix all the ingredients together. This stuffing can be stuffed in almost any vegeta-ble such as potatoes, brinjal, squash, onion, cab-bage and so many more. Then it is cooked inthe oven until the mince is cooked and the vegeta-bles are soft.

SAUDI ARABIA: DAKKOUS

(Tomato sauce, 250 ml)15 ml sunflower oil2 cloves (10 gr) fresh garlic, crushed250 gr ripe tomatoes, skin removed and chopped2,5 ml cumin seeds, toasted and crushed15 ml tomato paste1 fresh chilli, seeds removed and choppedJuice of one lemon, freshly squeezedFine saltFreshly ground black pepper

Heat the oil in a pan, then add the garlic andcook for a few seconds. Add the tomatoes. Cover and allow to simmer on a low heat forabout 30 minutes, or until the tomatoes are soft. Add the remaining ingredients and cook withthe lid off for about two minutes, then removefrom the heat. The sauce can be stored in a sterilised glassbottle in the fridge then heated as needed.

SAUDI ARABIA: HARISSA PASTE

(Yields: 250 ml)10 gr dried red chillies4 (600 gr) red peppers3 cloves (15 gr) fresh garlic2,5 ml fine Oryz salt45 ml olive oil5 ml ground coriander5 ml ground caraway seeds2,5 ml cumin Soak the dried chillies in hot water for 30 minutes.Drain, then remove the stems and seeds. Char grill the peppers by placing them on an opengas flame or fire, keep turning them so they burnevenly. (This can be done within an oven on a traydrizzled with a little oil.) Place these in a container,tightly wrap the top with cling wrap and allow tocool for 10 minutes. Remove the black parts on theoutside of the peppers, the stems and seeds. In a food processor, blend all the ingredients togeth-er, to form a smooth paste. The paste can be stored in an airtight container

in the fridge.

SAUDI ARABIA : KABSA

(Yields 6-8 portions):Kabsa spice mix:2,5 ml saffron1,25 ml ground cardamon2,5 ml ground cinnamon2,5 ml ground all spice1,25 ml ground black pepper2 lemons zest Mix all the ingredients together and set aside.60 gr salted butter30 ml sunflower oil1 (200 gr) onion, chopped6 cloves (30 gr) fresh garlic, crushed1 whole (1 kg) chicken, portioned into 8 pieces62,5 ml tomato puree1 can tomato pieces in juice3 (320 gr) carrots, peeled and grated2 whole cloves1 pinch nutmeg1 pinch ground coriander1 pinch ground cumin

Fine Oryz saltFreshly ground black pepper800 ml chicken stock (refer to jarish recipe for recipe)

550 ml basmati rice, unrinsed62,5 ml seedless raisins62,5 ml whole almonds, skin removed, roasted androughly chopped In a large pot melt the butter and heat the sunfloweroil over a medium heat. Add the onions and garlic, cook and stir until theonions are soft and translucent, about five minutes. Add the chicken pieces and brown them over amedium to high heat, for about 10 minutes. Mix in the tomato puree. Stir in the tin of canned tomatoes, with their juice,carrots, cloves, nutmeg, coriander, cumin, salt, pepperand the kabsa spice mix. Cook for about three min-utes, then add the stock, stir well. Bring this to the boil, then turn down the heatto a simmer and cover the pot with the lid. Allowto cook for about 30 minutes or until the chickenis almost cooked. Gently stir in the rice. Put the lid on and allowto simmer until the rice is soft and almost dry, about25 minutes.

Add the raisins and a bit more hot water if needed. Place the rice on a large serving platter and arrangethe chicken pieces on top. Sprinkle the almonds over.

PHOTOS: KAREN EDWARDS

PHOTOGRAPHY

SAUDI ARABIA: DATE CAKES

(Makes 12)

250 ml dried dates, chopped250 ml semolina62,5 ml desiccated coconut125 ml sunflower oil45 ml cake flour30 ml milk powder2 eggs5 ml baking powder15 ml hubba soda (a sugar stock made with equalparts sugar and water that is cooked until syrupy)

15 ml white sesame seeds Mix all the ingredients together, except for the

hubba soda and the sesame seeds. Place the mixture into greased moulds but onlyfill them full. M ix the hubba soda and the sesame seeds togetherwell and then spread a little bit on top of eachmould. Cook in a preheated oven at 180C for about15 minutes. When cooked, remove from the moulds and allowto cool before serving.

SAUDI ARABIA: JARISH

Chicken stock1 whole (1 kg) chicken2 (400 gr) onion, roughly chopped1 (100 g) leek, roughly chopped2 (200 gr) carrots, roughly chopped1 stalk (50 g) celery, roughly chopped2 cloves (10 gr) fresh garlic, skin removed2 sprigs fresh thyme2 bay leaves5 whole black peppercorns5 ml fine saltWater, enough to cover all the ingredients Place all the ingredients in a large pot, bring to

the boil, then turn down to a simmer, allow tosimmer for two hours. Remove the chicken, remove the bones and skin,

shred finely and keep aside. Strain the liquid, keep the liquid (the chicken stock)aside and discard the vegetables and seasoning. 500 ml pearl barley, washed once, drained andkeep aside.30 gr salted butter30 ml sunflower oil1 (200 gr) onion, chopped250 gr short-grain brown rice1 litre full-cream milk15 ml cumin seedsOryz saltFreshly ground black pepper10 gr butter

10 ml sunflower oil1 (200 gr) onion, chopped In a pot, melt the butter and heat the oil, addthe onions and fry until golden. Add the pearl barley, rice and salt, cover withabout one litre of chicken stock. Place the lid onthe pot and allow to cook for one hour on a lowheat. Add the milk, cumin and pepper, place the lidon and cook for another two hours, on a very lowheat. Add the shredded chicken pieces, season well, mixwell and serve. When serving, melt the butter and heat the sun-flower oil in a frying pan. Fry the onion, until cookedand golden, serve on top of the rice with the chicken.