Greece & the Middle East
The best pistachios in town - sprinkled with rock salt and roasted in lemon juice - are so hard to resist. But nibble a couple while you consider a different kind of feta for your next horiatiki salad. Or decide which flatbread to roll around those grilled lamb sausages you'll sprinkle with dried mountain herbs and smother in thick tzadziki. Don't forget the Egyptian community's recipe for mango mousse with pillowy Persian almond macaroons. Kali orexi! Bil haná wal shifá! Good eating!
You may prefer to view articles alphabetically.
Loomi - what is it? - 11 Aug 2010
A loomi is a key ingredient in Persian and Middle East cooking. Some soups or stews - particularly Lebanese and Egyptian lentil soup - would be diminished without it. It's the loomi that gives them their sour flavor. read more...
Figs Fine Foods - 11 Aug 2010
Figs Fine Foods is more a cafe than a market but you can buy most of what you need for your own Lebanese feast right here, from the cheeses, dips and cookies to a full take out meal of home-cooked tagines, eggplant ratatouille, and a mix of salads from the buffet.
Reem Azoury is the owner of this half-basement space that's just below the sidewalk on MacArthur Boulevard in the Palisades. read more...
Yogurt - the good stuff - 15 Jul 2010
I'm in despair over American yogurt. It seems that any old fat-free white dairy solution can be called yogurt. Do its eaters know what they're missing? read more...
A salty tale - salt explained - 19 May 2010
The salt debate is hotting up again with doctors concerned about its responsibility for any number of diseases from hyper-tension to obesity calling for salt consumption to be lowered. The FDA is planning legal limits on the amount of salt allowed in processed food.
But salt is probably the single ingredient to emphasize flavor inherent in meat, fish and vegetables. Where would chefs be without it? They throw fistfuls into boiling water before cooking.
Salt is like any other 'evil' ingredient such as butter: use it in moderation. It falls loosely into two categories, the salt you can cook with and the salt you 'finish' with, sprinkling it over the cooked food. For the finishing, buy the best you can afford. If you can't try before you buy, this list might help you define what will appeal to your palate. Because no two salts are the same. read more...
'Violettes' Artichokes - 8 Apr 2010
Baby artichokes are relished across Europe and the Middle East, in countries from France where the most popular type are called 'Violettes' after the purple streaking on their leaves, to Egypt. They're pretty much ignored in the US. But you can find them in Latino, Asian and especially Middle East markets at this time of year. Cook them Middle East style, with the fresh fava beans that come into the stores at the same time... read more...
Fagri - 25 Mar 2010
At Kellari, Chef Antony Acinapura treats this Mediterranean pink snapper to a simple grilling, serving the fish with an oil and lemon emulsion. read more...
Dried fruits & nuts - 25 Mar 2010
In this fruitless mid-season before local strawberries and raspberries show up, when all that's on offer are bananas, oranges with the texture of Kleenex and apples you just don't want another bite out of, think about dried fruits. Soak them overnight in anything from weak tea to diluted fresh orange juice, and buy a mix of whatever catches your interest from figs and apricots to golden raisins, cranberries and dried apple slices. A bowlful makes a delicious breakfast. And sprinkled with a liquor, and a crunch of toasted walnuts, and served with creme fraiche or thick Greek yogurt, you have an easy dinner party dessert. read more...
Yasaman Persian Bakery - one of my favorites - 10 Mar 2010
Depending on who's behind the counter, it can be a little daunting shopping at Yasaman. Most of the women who serve are distant and seldom smile. Get over it. You're there for the best walnut macaroons you've ever eaten. read more...
Cerkez Salad - 2 Mar 2010
This chicken and walnut salad, from Mike Isabella, chef of Zaytinya, is not unlike Chicken Satsivi, a dish of cold chicken with walnut sauce from the Republic of Georgia. But then, take a look at the map and see how close Turkey lies to Georgia. read more...
Shiraz Grocery - 2 Mar 2010
The owner of this modest market in Rockville City Center presents himself as Marlboro Man of the Middle East. He's behind the till in a stetson, with flourishing face hair. He's got the sullen attitude of Clint Eastwood in 'The Good, The Bad and The Ugly' days down pat. Barely engaging in dialogue, he wants to know if you appreciate that the can of Sahadi Coffee you want to buy is of the powdered kind to brew in a tiny brass pot, not to be dumped in a cafetiere. If you're feeling at one with the cosmos, you might opt to construe this as considerate, not obstructive. read more...
Make your own tahini - 2 Mar 2010
This is a 15-minute exercise. All it takes is a blender, oil - vegetable or olive oil - and more sesame seeds than you'll find in a supermarket spice jar. Head to a Middle East market where they're sold in plastic bags. read more...
Olives - 2 Mar 2010
All olives begin life green. After that, it gets complicated. With so many varieties available, here's a breakdown of the most common to help you avoid the pits... read more...
Mike Isabella - Chef of Zaytinya - 2 Mar 2010
In March 2007, Mike Isabella started at Zaytinya. Just a few months later, the hip downtown mezzethes restaurant won a RAMMY award. read more...
Anthony Acinapura - chef of Kellari - 5 Feb 2010
As you step through the door of Kellari, squeeze your eyes tight shut. When you open them again inside the K Street restaurant, you'll be in Plaka, that warren of tiny streets below the Acropolis in Athens that tourists find so funky.
Anthony Acinapura is in the kitchen. He's not Greek. But he's spent a lot of time in the Greek islands, doing what you do almost better in Greece than anywhere else: rent open air jeeps, drive from the beaches to the wineries and tavernas and restaurants and stop over a spectacular view just as the sun is setting. read more...
Chicken Shish Taouk - 3 Feb 2010
Abdel Hash Housh, chef of Neyla's recipe for Neyla’s chicken kabobs tastes particularly good coming from the wood smoke of a barbecue but is just as delicious cooked under a really hot broiler. The marinades adapts to other meats and fish. read more...
Abdel Hash Housh - Chef of Neyla - 3 Feb 2010
Twice a week, before coming into his restaurant, Neyla chef Abdel Hash Housh would squeeze in time for classes in English at the Washington Literary Council. read more...
New Year celebrations - something different & where to buy it - 21 Dec 2009
Want to spice up your New Year festivities? Try one of the traditions from another part of the world. read more...
Greek & Middle East markets - 12 Nov 2009
There are probably more specifically Greece-focused markets in Baltimore than in Washington. But Middle East groceries generally stock a wide range of Greek products. read more...
Pistachios - 4 Nov 2009
Yes, you can buy pistachios at the Giant and Safeway loose or in cellophane sacks. But if you head for a Middle Eastern market's supply, you'll be introduced to a whole new dimension in these exceptional nuts - piastachios flavored with lemon, roasted with sea salt, or spiced up with chili. read more...
Lemons - some sharp advice - 9 Sep 2009
Across the Mediterranean and Middle East at the end of summer, lemons scent the warm fall air. So if you've got lemons, what do you do: make lemonade. (You knew that...)
Whether they come from Israel or California, buy them at their best in the early fall and freeze them for winter use in vinaigrettes, tagines, roasted chickens, lemonade and more. read more...
It may be sacrilege to say so, but I did have a moment's wonder at Julie Powell dedicating a whole year to cooking out Julia Childs. Life is surely too short. But I admired her staying power. Most cookbooks contain only a handful of recipes you actually want to tackle - though heaven forfend that I should level this criticism towards Mastering the Art of French Cookery.Anyway, here's someone who really slackened my jaw. Meet Todd Wilbur, who spends his time to trying to recreate food made by the industrial giants. He wants to cook Krispy Kremes just like the factory. He wants to clone Big Macs, Yoo Hoo chocolate drinks, and dozens more junk foods, to taste just like the real (or unreal) McKoy.
Papaya and lime - natural partners
Chew On This: The FDA - eggs on its face
Hey, mixologists! An organic whisky's coming!
Two women to watch
Monster ice cubes
Jelly - the jewel-like vogue dessert
Jelly - the new old dessert
My favorite markets - Wagshal's Delicatessen
Supermarkets bring the farm in
Chew On This: The water diet!
Gluten - what is it?
Chestnut flour products for the gluten intolerant
Chew On This: Eat dark chocolate twice a week!
Pea Vichyssoise
Browse for
Delicious Recipes
DC Chefs
Cuisine Regions