The scented rose water stirs and whirls in the mixture of carefully measured amounts of boiled water, flour and sugar. From dry, dusty, gritty and trivial components to one of the most sweet and pristine desserts to come out from the Persian world - Ferni.
I have been looking forward to Eid for a long time, now. Albeit a religious holiday, the two Eids that come every year are more than that - it can be simmered down to being the only two occasion I genuinenly consider a celebration.
The showstopper of Eid-al-Adha is always the biryani. Be it UAE, or Ukraine..there was no Eid without biryani. The show starter, on the other hand, would be the sleepless yet fun night preparing for the offering in the coming morning. None of that is possible this Eid, nor was it last Eid...but there still is the chance of indulging in Biryani.
All the way towards the west coast of the Netherlands, almost an hour and a half away from Almere - the chance to live a little in the essence of Eid couldnlt be missed.
The Afghani biryani is one of the best blends of everything the South Central Asian cuisine has to offer. I had first become a fan of the Afghani cuisines in my early teens when my best friends were all Afghanis and their mother was always kind to let me in on the family meals.
The lamb clearly isn't one from our offerings, however, it still ties the occasion together and brings home the feeling of celebrating Eid...after a very long time. It may look like "plov", and a little like the fried rice of South Central Asian, and it is a very beautiful mix of it all. The meat simply slips off the bone and melts in the mouth.
The "Kofte", which originates from Northern Arab region (Kibbe) also is part of the Afghan cuisine. As it made its way to the heart of South Central Asia all the way to Afghanistan and Persian grounds, its turned into a more roundish shape, and in a bowl of lentils and gravy.
Like many mysterious dishes that left the mida's touch on my tongue and were never to be found again, the Afghani Orange fruit Chicken curry is one of them. Few years back I had the pleasant opportunity to taste it in a restaurant in Sharjah in a family reunion. Ever since, I have failed to find it. The chicken curry with slices of oranges in it has successfully evaded my grasp.
However, this time I tried, for the first time, "Mantu". I have had the Uzbek Manti, the Indian Momo, the Ukrainian Varenyky, and the Mantu is very much similar. A boiled meat dumpling topped with sour yoghurt, lentils and chopped green onion. The most noticable difference between Mantu and all the other dumplings is the spice of the protein and flatness of the dumpling.
It has been a long time since I felt a little unburdened. Took the day to celebrate the occasion and dolphin dive out of the constant weight of everything negative around. Coincidentally, Holland Spoor also was in a very celebratory mood. After many years I dared put on the traditional brightly colored "Kurta", which is also a huge part of the celebration. Didn't feel out of place since I saw a lot more people in Kandoora and Kurta. The food close to home stitched the day pretty beautifully. Wishing everyone a pleasant celebration and lots of happiness.
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