In Somalia, creme caramel was not a dessert that was made on a regular basis. It was usually made when guests were invited. We believe it was due to the fact that eggs were not easy to come by. Most of the good restaurants in Mogadishu served creme caramel and it was always our…
In a previous post, we told you the story of Hooyo Fadumo’s beginnings with cooking and her fish debacle. Wanting to learn, she sought out anyone who could teach her: family, friends, and even total strangers. She tells the story of how she approached a Somali cook who was working for an Italian neighbour….
Mashmash (rhymes with hush-hush) is a classic Somali snack that is usually paired with samosas. It is on the greasy side but in Somalia, greasy was not always associated with bad. There was a time when oily meant nutritious. We remember seeing construction workers in Mogadishu using mashmash as a sandwich filling. At the time…
We learned how to make this soup from Hooyo¹ Fadumo Abdulle (Abdullahi’s mother). Hooyo Fadumo is an amazing cook but her story with cooking did not have the greatest start. Actually, it began with an embarrassing experience. Even though born and raised in Mogadishu, she comes from a family of pastoralists (reer miyi). At…
What is round, goes around, comes around. To us, that sums the story of the Somali Malawah (Malawax). We wish to think that the crepe originated in the Horn of Africa. The Horn is the home of the Ethiopian Injera, the Eritrean Injera, Somali Anjero or Lahoh, Malawah, and Ambaabur. It is not clear…
Oodkac or Muqmad is what Somalis prepare whenever they want to preserve meat. During times of plenty, that is the rainy days, the nomads save for a dry day. Rainy days bring abundance (barwaaqo), when the milk from the herd is flowing and meat becomes available. The preserved meat was sometimes the only food…
In this recipe, we did not follow the traditional method of preparing chicken parmesan. We asked ourselves, “Why prepare crispy chicken parmesan, then make it soggy with marinara sauce?” Fresh mozzarella is also always best fresh. In our version, all the components are on the plate, with the marinara sauce served on top of…
For Middle Eastern recipes, we owe a lot to Jeddah where we lived for several years. With so many expatriate friends as well as all the different types of restaurants, it was very easy to fall in love with Middle Eastern cooking. Leila was not working at the time (just like most of the…
There are sweets that you eat because they taste good; then there are those that go a step further by bringing back memories of your childhood, a way of life long gone, of places fondly missed. That is what shushumoow (kalkals) does for us. In Brava, Somalia, they are known as zinanaande or zinanoonde. …
This cool, refreshing salad says summer to us but it is great all year round. The refreshing feeling comes from the moisture-laden cucumbers and tomatoes, and the mild onion flavour from the green onions. The salad also has a wonderful texture with different levels of crunchiness ranging from the slight resistance offered by the…
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