English Af-Soomaali Français عربي Sweet Potato Mash www.xawaash.com Ayeeyo (grandma) Ebla used to plant them. She was my great grandmother and she was a nomad, a transplanted nomad. Put her anywhere and she would thrive, a true survivor. I never met her but I have a lot of respect for her. How can you not…
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English Af-Soomaali Français عربي Baked Salmon & Carrot Salad www.xawaash.com Some recipes come to you very easily. The recipe for the carrot salad is one such example. It was sent to us by our friend J. who lives in France. She is the person who does all the French translation for us. Thank you J.!…
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English Af-Soomaali Français عربي Sandwich Cookies www.xawaash.com “Your bill is $2,050. How would you like to pay, Sir?” I was at the dealership to get a new set of tires and new brake pads for our car. That was a hefty amount and I grudgingly paid it. It left a sour taste in my mouth…
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English Af-Soomaali Français عربي Peera www.xawaash.com Caano Baraawe (lit. Bravanese milk) is what this delicacy is known as in other parts of Somalia. The Bravanese (from Brava, Somalia) know it as peera. This name with its East Asian origins, is testament to the town’s position as an important trading centre along the coast of the…
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English Af-Soomaali Français عربي Somali Chutney www.xawaash.com This is not everyday Somali food. Not even a once-in-a-month thing, unless you frequent Somali restaurants. This chutney is consumed on special occasions which explains why some Somalis know it as Basbaas Alla-bari (feast hot sauce). Alla-bari is a large prayer gathering followed by a feast. That name…
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English Af-Soomaali Français عربي Cubed Chicken www.xawaash.com We first had cubed chicken at Hamdi Restaurant. It is a Somali restaurant in Toronto that is quite popular. Whenever we go to Somali restaurants, we never order individual dishes. We choose the large platters of rice served with different types of meat dishes: roasted goat meat, goat…
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English Af-Soomaali Français عربي Somali Rice Pilaf www.xawaash.com This is not your typical rice pilaf cooked with 1 cup broth for 2 or more cups of rice. This pilaf is cooked with 2 cups broth for each cup of rice, making it a very flavourful dish. In fact, it is so flavourful that we sometimes…
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English Af-Soomaali Français عربي Fried Fish www.xawaash.com Sometimes people make the weirdest assumptions. They engage in stereotyping that may not end up too well for them. Like the woman who came to visit my mother at our home in Mogadishu. I was thirteen then, and at that time I was sitting under the shade of…
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English Af-Soomaali Français عربي Adriyad (cadriyad) is a traditional Somali dish prepared with vermicelli pasta. It is more common in the northern parts of Somalia where it is served as both a dessert dish or served with rice. In Brava, it is known as seewiya and it is usually served as a dessert during Ramadan…
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English Af-Soomaali Français عربي I was in my second year of high school when the Somali government at the time decided to close all the schools for one academic year. All high school students were sent to the rural areas to participate in a literacy campaign (Rural Development Campaign). I was sent to Go’doon, a…
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