Saturday 27 September 2008

World-wide Ismaili Cooking

I always thought of Ismailis as from India, Pakistan and East Africa, I never gave a thought to all the murids in Syria, Iran, Lebanon, Israel, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, China, Jordan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Afghanistan, Nepal, Tibet and South Africa. Now of course we also live in Europe, North America Australia and New Zealand.
I am sure I have missed a few countries!
To celebrate MHI's Golden Jubilee, I am going to start a series of recipes eatern by Ismailis all over the world, showing the diversity of our people. I have already started this series with:
To come:
  • Syrian Bantinjan bil Laban, Fried aubergine in a garlic yoghurt sauce.
  • Syrian Maklubit Betinjan, Lamb and aubergine with rice
  • Tunisian Maraqat al-Safarjal, Lamb and Quince stew
you will have to be patient, as I will only blog tried and tested (tasted) recipes!

16 comments:

Finla said...

Looking forward to it.
You missed Indonesia, just kidding :-)

Saju said...

I am sure you are right, there are Ismailis in Malaysia and Singapore, so why not Indonesia!

Anonymous said...

Hi Saju - how about other recipes like Dhebra and methi spicy thepla?
Would be fab ;-)

Saju said...

ok, have been meaning to put dhebra on.

Sabira said...

Hello,
Are your cookbooks available?
I would love to add them to my collection. How about you make your recipes available for purchasing online at a reasonable price?

Regards & best wishes,
Sabira

Saju said...

Sabira,
thanks for the complement, I am seriously thinking about.
Any publishers out there, do you want to publish this book?

Saju said...

Anon,
I made dhebra today, will blog soon.

Saju said...

http://chachiskitchen.blogspot.com/2008/10/dhebra-with-courgette-zuchini.html

Unknown said...

As the rapid growth in the Indian economy continues, the retail marketplace is undergoing dramatic changes. Formerly dominated by about 12 million small outlets, it is now witnessing the entrance of large national and multinational companies.
-----------------
kesha

influncer

Anonymous said...

I dont understand how you can take the cuisine of a country and make it Ismaili cuisine. Fattosh, hummus, muttabel are common everyday Meditarraen fare, common to all countries and all people who live there. How can you alienate these dishes and call them Ismaili?? can you take Dhal from India and call it Hindu dhal. Ridiculous isnt it?? Kind Regards AD

Saju said...

Dear Anon,
I am not calling these food Ismaili as such. I am merely saying the Ismailis in Syria eat these dishes. Many Ismaili restaurants I visited in Salamieh, had these food. Many Ismaili homes I have visited eat these foods. By the way Gujrati dal is differenct for Kerala dal.

Anonymous said...

Thank you Saju, you have made my point exactly. It could be a region of a country or a state where all people irrespective of their religious background eat and cook food of a particular type. World-wide Ismaili cooking... what would that mean? The dishes you refer to in Syria are eaten by the Muslims, Christians, Druze, etc etc who live all along the Meditarraen. Regards again. AD

Anonymous said...

Rather interesting site you've got here. Thank you for it. I like such topics and everything connected to this matter. I would like to read a bit more soon.

Julia Swenson

Saju said...

Thank you Julia, you are welcome.

Anonymous said...

Ismailis in Tibet? Surely you are streching the Ismaili Evanganglism a tad too far aren't you !

As anonymous said on March 1/2001 you seem to forget that most of your recipes are Gujarati. Yours is a religion, maybe even a cult not a race as you would have us believe.

Saju said...

Ismailis in Tibet? Yes Ismailis in Tibet, do your research Anon (nameless person)

Yes it is true most of my recipes are Gujarati, but most of the Ismailis aren't Gujarati! They hail from Arabic, Persian, Central Asian and South Asian cultures, the Gujarati are only a small percentage. I advise you to read before you leave ignorant comments.

And next time courage of your convictions and declare your name!

Page copy protected against web site content infringement by Copyscape
Page copy protected against web site content infringement by Copyscape UNLESS OTHERWISE NOTED, ALL RECIPES ARE THE ORIGINAL CREATION OF CHACHI'S KITCHEN. ALL PHOTOS BY CHACHI'S KITCHEN. PLEASE DO NOT POST OR PUBLISH WITHOUT CITING. CONTACT ME IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS: CHACHISKITCHEN (AT) GMAIL (DOT) COM.