We are a husband and wife team… Both of us were born in beautiful Somalia.
We live in Canada, our adopted homeland. We like travelling, photography and food. We love food, but we don’t live to eat. Nor do we eat to live. We live in between.
We love to cook and entertain. And we like to share. We want to share with you our love for Somalia and our memories of growing up there. Of peaceful and tranquil times.
Somali food is simple. No elaborate sauces or flavour extremes. It is not spicy hot nor is it bland. Through this website, we will attempt to cover all regions of Somalia and we will also venture into neighbouring countries. If there is anything we have learnt from our passion for food, it is about how the world is interconnected, and about our common humanity.
Today, Somalia is wounded. We look forward to a Somalia where unity and diversity prevail, where differences are celebrated, where everyone enjoys full rights regardless of race, creed, and gender, and where no one is above the law.
A PROPOS
Nous sommes une équipe mari et femme…Nous sommes tous les deux nés dans la belle Somalie.
Nous habitons au Canada, notre pays d’adoption. Nous aimons voyager, la photographie et la cuisine. Nous adorons la nourriture, mais nous ne vivons pas pour manger. Ni ne mangeons que pour vivre. Nous vivons en équilibre entre les deux.
Nous aimons cuisiner et recevoir. Et nous aimons partager. Nous souhaitons partager avec vous notre amour de la Somalie et nos souvenirs d’avoir grandi là-bas. En des temps paisibles et tranquilles.
La cuisine somalienne est simple. Pas de sauces élaborées ou d’assaisonnements extrêmes. Elle n’est pas brûlante mais elle n’est pas fade. A travers ce site, nous allons essayer de présenter toutes les régions de Somalie et nous ferons des incursions dans les pays voisins. S’il y a bien une chose que nous avons apprise de notre passion pour la cuisine, c’est que le monde est interconnecté, et notre humanité commune.
Aujourd’hui, la Somalie est blessée. Nous espérons que la Somalie redeviendra un pays où domine l’unité et la diversité, où les différences sont célébrées, où les droits de chacun sont respectés sans distinction de race, de religion, de genre, et où personne n’est au dessus de la loi.
Leila & Abdullahi. Seville, Spain 2009.
“Imagine we are all the same. Imagine we all agree about politics, religion and morality. Imagine we like the same types of music, food and coffee. Sound boring? Differences need not divide us. Embrace diversity. Dignity is everyone’s human right.”
Bill Brummel
“Variety is the spice of life.”
Hi Leila and Abdullahi,
Great homepage. I already forwarded the link to our daugthers.
Looking forward for more recipies (mufo!!). Keep on going.
Brigitte
Thank you Brigitte for your words of encouragement. They will keep us going.
masha alah walalahey ilahey ha idin xafido amiin
Aamiin. Mahadsanid walaal.
SCW salaan ka dib aad ayaan ugu faa idaystay web-saadkina sababtoo ah waxaan qabaa gabar norweegian ah cutadii somalidana waan uxiisay marka walaalayaal waxaan idinka codsan lahaa hadii ay macquul tahay inaad inoo soo gilisaan webka sida loo kariyo (BUR_SHIL_SHIL)ama (BUR_SALIID) wuxuu ku fiican yahay in lagu cuno -sanbuuska-
MAHAD_SANADIIN
Wacalaykum Assalaam Waraxmatullaahi Wabarakaatuh.
Waan ku faraxnay faalladaada waan na ku mahadsan tahay. Waxaan kaloo ku faraxsan nahay inaan kugu kaalmeynay inaad baratid cuntooyinka aan dhaqanka iyo hiddaha u leennahay. Hadduu Eebbe idmo waan soo gelin doonnaa bur saliid. Mahadsanid walaal.
AWWB Abdullahi iyo Laila YOU GUYS ARE AMAZING WALAAHI YOU HAVE TURNED ME TO A CHIEF lol I am addicted to your website above all ilaahey cimri dheer iyo caafimaad ha idin siiyo you are the best you are doing an Amazing job keep up the good work Kudos. May God Be with you and Bless you.
Love Always
Wa’alaikum Assalam Warahmatullahi Wabarakatuh.
We are delighted to know that you like the website. Thank you very much for your encouraging words. God bless you.
brother can you make video showing how to make ashari lemon
Would like a very well done to you guys, enjoyed the info, and would love to wish you all the very best of success.
Regards
Saeeda
Thank you, Saeeda, for your positive feedback. We really appreciate it. We will do our best to keep it up.
Amazing website! Love the design, the beautiful photos, and the info. I like the Somali xawaash map and the concept of diversity that you expressed so eloquently.
Thank you very much for your comment. We hope to keep meeting your expectations.
I had wondered why the name “Xawaash” for your website but it made a lot of sense when I pondered over it. The use of spices is almost as old as human history itself.
The tiny but fertile islands of East of Africa are sources for several of the finest spices. Some of the spices are going to overlap and be used in many countries. One of the things that make each cuisine its own unique thing is the unique combinations of even similar spices. In our foods, we enjoy the ‘spice of life’ so I do believe that “Xawaash” is an apt name for this website. Very creative and very well done. Congratulations!
Thank you for your kind words. Please check regularly for new and exciting recipes.
Assalamu alaykum to both of you
Many congrats and encouragements from your family across the Atlantic (Manchester, UK). I must say that I’m overwhelmed by your website and the birth of this concept. Its Amazing….High class. Loving it totally. All this food display makes me appreciate my mum very much. In this busy and fast-paced world, where most people have replaced our delicious bravanese delights for quick fast-food packages, she still goes out of her way to make all these meals for us. May God always bless her and all those who strive to preserve good in this life. Ameen.
Wish you both success in this life and the akhirah.
Thank you very much Safiyah for your wonderful comments! That will sure give us a boost. It is nice to know that the effort we put in this website is being recognized.
Best wishes to you and all the family.
Can I hope/dream of a book? Please, you must work on a book and put all this great work on paper. I want something tangible to pass on to my prodgeny insha’Allah.
A book? It is not in our plans for now. If there is ever one, you’ll be the first to have it. Regards.
I’m seriously loving your blog, please keep it up don’t stop. I’ve just found your blog today and it is a jewel. Can’t wait to try the recipes.
Thank you very much Sarah for your awesome comment. We are currently working on many recipes which we hope to post soon.
Recommended by Yousuf. Would love to try it all. Also, the website is very nicely done.
Thank you Murtaza. We hope that you will try some of the recipes.
Lovely, lovely blog!
I look forward to trying many of your recipes. Especially the breads. I love doing fermented loaves.
Thanks for the nice comment. Since you like fermented loaves, we would like to suggest to you to try Bravanese Bread (Maanda). You won’t be disappointed.
I love this… I just love this and yeah I love Somali food… Every time I come here to check what is new… Baahi aa i qabato
Thank you, Ato. You said “Baahi aa i qabata” (I get hungry) when you visit this website. What do you do about that hunger? Roll up your sleeves man, and do something about it! Regards.
i love your website keep it up. i was wondering one of those days if you could add fress tuna from scratch. this will remind me the time i have spend in brava. thank you for the geat gift you have giving us.
We are familiar with that also. We will definitely include it in the list of recipes that we hope to post, God willing.
Just stumbled upon your youtube page.
I love how detailed and clear your recipes and videos are. Keep them coming!
Thank you, Amina. Keep visiting and spread the word!
Thank You very much Great home page, I look forward to trying many of your recipes, Its Amazing website! Love the design, the beautiful photos, and the info. is very clear Mashallah
Thank you, Yasmin. We’re happy that you liked it. Keep visiting.
I underestimated how divine our Somali cuisine is. Thank you Leila and Abdullahi for what u doing. I long searched for the Cnjala and Bajya recipe.
We need to rediscover our roots and appreciate our heritage. Kother, thanks for your comment.
Asalama Aleykum! Masha Allah! May Allah bring a lot of baraka to you and your family for all the efforts you have put in to this website. I love the professionalism and the great quality of video and pictures you have posted. I absolutely love the beautiful images and the easy step by step process in to making a xawaash dish. We often eat with our eyes, and all your recipes look exquisite and delicious. I have already tried a recipe and can’t wait to try more mouthwatering dishes. Please keep up the good work and keep those recipes coming.
Wa-Aleykum As-salaam! Thank you very much for your comment. We feel touched. May God Almighty bless you and your family. We hope to bring you more and more recipes and while it is a lot of work, we are enjoying it every step of the way.
Salaamualaykum, this blog is amazing and I love how you’ve given such detail into the Somali cuisine. As a second generation Somali living in the UK, it can be a little easy to forget about your culture and its cuisine so I’ll definitely be referring to your blog when I have a home of my own and I’ll be using your recipes!
It’s as though I’ve been transported to Somalia with all the food. Well done
Thank you for your comment. However, please don’t wait till you have a home of your own. Invite some friends and whip up a Somali meal. It will be a good practice for you as you showcase your culture and transport them to Somalia.
You’re very right; I’ve got a lot of foreign friends who are interested in Somali food. I’ll definitely do a little dinner for them
I’m so happy I found you blog, been browsing through your posts and I find everything so fascinating, the traditions, stories, perfect recipes and easy methods of preparations, the design and authenticity. The press is showing Somalia in black and white but your blog is a testimony of how diverse and wonderful your country, culture and traditions really are. I’ll surely be coming back for more vegan/vegetarian recipes.
Wish you continued success, may the blog grow bigger and bigger:)
Thank you very much for your comment. We visited your blog and liked it. We will definitely be exploring it more. Thank you for visiting.
I just love ur blog,the clean and clear presentation and the wit behind the stories like some of ur video captions, haha very funny.
Thanks a lot for visiting and for your nice comments.
asalamu aleykum, masha allah, I am in love with your blog, I have been looking for something like this(somali food) for a while, alhamdulilah I found you guys, thank you for sharing with us all, god bless you. have a nice day..
Thank you very much. We hope that you’ll find the recipes you’re looking for.
thanks a lot you two are my heros
Thanks Sahra for joining the Xawaash family.
Dearest Leila & Abdullahi!
I am a Somali woman born in Tanzania. I had never been in Somalia but I could smell and enjoy everything from Somalia while living in Tanzania. My father had a problem of integration in Tanzania and his best wishes was to one day fly with his family back to Burco… Somalia. Unfortunately he could not be able to do that and he passed away before he fulfilled his wishes. But what my father did was to make sure that we speak Somali, dance and sing Somali…eat Somali food listen to the beautiful sound of Radio Mogadisho and from that aspect we could feel like we were in Somalia!!!! Later on we had tremendous new neighbors who came from Barawa and hade lived in Mombasa, Kenya before moving to Tanzania, because of their family business which was booming in that part of Tanzania.
Through that family I could learn more dimension of differences among Somali people and what that different culture made Somalia to what it was. This story is very long, because I am planning one day to write a book then you may enjoy this story soon…..:-)!
Now I want to come to the point why I am writing this to you…First I want to congratulate you so much for the blog with the name Xawaash. For a few days ago a friend of me sent me that blog and I could not imagine that was true!!! I really love you guys!! I live in Sweden since 1986 and would like to follow up you site and even tell all my friends about that. You have made a revolution and keep going!!! If you want any receipt from me I can also send you………!
I even like the quote you wrote in your blog…! From Bill Brummel!
Keep in touch!
Zainab Mahamed Jama
Dearest Zainab,
Thank you for your heart-warming comment. We feel really touched.
The way you wrote your comment proves that you are a proud Somali raised by a caring Somali father, may he rest in peace and may God accept him in Heaven. Just by reading your comment we feel confident that you will write an excellent book with very interesting stories. We look forward to it.
Once again thank you for your wonderful comment. It is sufficient to keep us going. It’s our contribution to our fellow Somalis and readers as we attempt to share our culture and heritage with the rest of the world.
Best regards and wishes to you.
Leila & Abdullahi
Leila & Abdullahi,
Congrats on such a wonderful website, there are alot people like myself who grew up in the west and need help in cooking Somali Food now that we have grown and no longer live with Mom and Grandma. The specialists! Thanks again. Question? Do you guys operate a restaurant? If not, you should. I would love to invest!!!
Thank you Mohamed. We are happy that you found the website helpful. No, we don’t have a restaurant. Both of us work full-time in our own company.
Salaam,
I’m very impressed with the website and recipes! Thank you very much for putting this together. As a dental student in the United States, it is hard to get good Somali food since I don’t live with family. I had called my mother several times and had her give me tutorials on how to cook over the phone. Now, with your help, I have been able to finesse my cooking abilities and I couldn’t be more happier. Thank you for all your effort and passion for Somali cuisine.
JazakAllah Khair,
Shirwac
Thank you very much. We’re happy that you like the website and the recipes.
Mashaa Allah aad ayaan ugu faraxsanahay sida aad ugu dadasheen in aad soo bandhigtaan cunto Somali iyo waliba sida aad creative u tihiin oo waxyaabo fiican aad ugu kordhiseen iyo waliba sida aad u kala dhidhigteen waxyalaha loo bahan yahay markii wax la karinaayo. Very impressive as a couple xataa waad i cajabiseen. Maasha Allah mar kale, ILAAHEEY cimri dheer ha idin siiyo I must say even heesaha aad usoo xulataan markii wax la karinaayo waa qatar I like it. Thank u.
What a lovely comment from a lovely person! Aad ayaad ugu mahadsantahy faallada qiimaha leh oo aad qortay. Thanks again.
My Dear Leila and Abdullahi,
I salute you and my hat is off to you. I do not know where to start because I am very happy and excited to see your food blog. You guys made the most beautiful Somali Food Blog. I wish I can talk to you right now and express how I feel about your wonderful work.
Thanks
Barlin
Thank you very much Barlin. Your comment means a lot to us coming from the pioneer who wrote the first Somali cookbook, Somali Cuisine. Thank you once again.
Asalaamu Caleykum
first and foremost i like you thank you both husband and wife for a great blog and great recipes mashallah wonderful blog 
, I live in sweden. before your website i kind use to travel home a lot, I kind of miss moms cooking. I was student/worker at the time.
thanks to your videos and pics. Now when i go home, I do the cooking and my mom is amazed. She thinks i got a invisible wife that tutors me. Even my closest friends started cooking Somali recipes as we are all students. We thank you and my hat is off for you. Wish you both continue with you work that inspired us. Inshallah i wish you well. Take care. Love from Sweden.
Now i picked up the cooking and the recipe for this website. Alhamdullilah it is going great
Thank you Abdirasaaq. We are very happy that the website was so helpful for you. Thank you for the nice story about your experiences and about how your friends have started cooking Somali food. This by itself makes all our efforts worthwhile. We will keep posting those recipes, God willing, and we hope that you will keep cooking!
Dear, Leila and Abdullahi,
MaashaAllah you are a wonderful couple we are sick of hearing about war and famine and pirate this blog of yours is a new revolution for all Somalis to come up with creative ideas like yours and erase that ugly image of Somalis.Keep up the good work!
JSQ
Thank you so much, Marwo. That is very kind of you. Let each of us do his/her little part and we will all make a difference. Thanks again for your support. It means a lot to us.
Hello Leila & Abdullahi,
Thank you so much for sharing our homeland, Somalia. We feel warmth and welcomed when we watch your well produced videos. We say Mashallah every time we watch your videos. You’re very creative and funny at the same time. Well done guys. Keep up the good work.
P.S. Your style is excellent and we enjoy the music as well.
Thank you very much, Abdirahman & Fartun. When we started Xawaash, we had a feeling that it will be well-received. However, the response has been so overwhelming and it was beyond our wildest expectations. It just shows that there is a lot of good in the world.
I love your work and website!
Manshallah!
More of this pls!
Thank you very much for your comment and for visiting the website.
Hello, mansha allah i admire u 2 you are our hope well done kuwi isku waara insha allah
Aamiin abbaayo. Mahadsanid.
Bariido wacan:
Cabdullaahi iyo Layla,
Aad baan idiin ku gobaadinayaa [mahadinayaa], 100%, in aad Xawaash ku soo bandhigtaan cuntooyinka, macmacaannada iyo cabitaannada kala jaad-jaadka ah ee geyiga Soomaaliyeed laga karsado/samaysto. Hawl qurux badan, oo lagu hirto, ayaad haysaan: Eebbe ha idin ka abaal mariyo.
Mar kale, mahadsanidin,
Idiris
Assalaamu Caleykum walaal Idiris,
Waan ku faraxnay hadallada wacan ee aad inoo soo qortay. Howshaan aan hayno waa mid aan aad iyo aad ugu faraxsannahay. Waxaan aragnay in cuntooyinka Soomaalida ay ka daahsoon yihiin dhallaankeenna, siiba kuwa qurbaha ku korey. Sidaas awgeed waxaan jecleysannay inaan u soo bandhigno si qurux leh, taasoo keenaysa inuu hiddaheenna ugu muuqdo wax ay ku faani karaan. Waxayna ku abuureysaa jacaylka waddanka.
Mahadsanid,
Cabdullaahi iyo Layla
a/c
should i thank you for the creation of the website,the food or the time you took to respond for each post …….anyway keep up the good work you guys are doing and have and eventful year won’t you !
Thank you very much for the feedback. It is very much appreciated! We like to get feedback and we will respond to questions as well as requests for recipes.
Leila and Abdullahi
Love the site and your creativity. thanks for sharing.
Thank you, Sharifetta. Keep watching and get cooking!
Salam Alaycum
Can share with us on how to make coodkac please?
and thanks for sharing these wonderful Somali recipes
Wacalayku Assalaam Waraxmatullaahi Wabarakaautuhu
Oodkac! Wow! We love oodkac and what would a website like Xawaash be without oodkac… Insha-Allah we will post an easy and delicious recipe for oodkac.
Thank you for taking the time to comment.
I’ve already commented on a couple of your videos and I just wanted to say how great your website is. Clearly a lot of effort and creativity has gone into its development. I miss Mum’s food and now thanks to you, I get to try to cook some of these classic Somali dishes. I love the combination of Somali music with the videos. Time to wipe the dust off the stovetop!
Regards,
Faysal
Faysal, thank you very much for your kind words. Yes, do get cooking, invite friends and spread the love!
This is a wonderful idea you came up with. Its so kind of you to share your tasty recipes and help young females like me in the kitchen. I recently got married and my husband loves somalian food. Your site will help me so much and keep my husband smiling hahaha.
love from Aaliyah
Thank you so much for the lovely comment. We are absolutely delighted that you found the website helpful. We wish you a very happy and successful marriage. Keep each other smiling!
This website must have taken many effort to develop and run. I can tell you have great passion for Somali cousin! Great pictures, well done!
I also have one passion, that many of my friends know: I make and drink Camelachino! That is coffee made with fresh camel milk instead of cow milk. I have pictures, so, guys, if you want to share it on your menu, I will be more than happy to send you all the information and the photos you need!
Fii Amaani Laah,
Jiijiile
Thank you very much for your comment.
Camelachino
We love it! Send us the pictures together with some camel milk.
Congratulations on a job well done. The website looks amazing! Somalia cuisine and culture is well represented in the videos. The attention to detail is obvious! Keep up the good work!!!
Thank you very much, Biljana! Thank you for your words of encouragement and for taking the time to comment.
I’ve come across a few Somali food blogs, but the professionalism and authenticy of your blog is quite amazing. I’ve always thought Somali cuisine had great potential to become more mainstream – dishes like Kalaamudo are hidden gems (though I always make a point to my mum of adding potatoes!). I’m a student and not much of a cook; though I do have your website bookmarked! Maybe I’ll attempt one of the recipes, instead of waiting to go back home for mum’s cooking.
I hope more people discover your awesome blog, and I definetely recommend you think about writing a book on Somali cuisine!
Kind regards,
Majid
Thank you very much, Majid. We are glad you liked the website. You are right about Somali food. Our diversity has given us such a rich food heritage that we can be really proud of.
You said you like potatoes with your Kalaamuddo and that is perfectly good. We have a recipe for Kalaamuddo using mashed potatoes in making the dough. It makes the Kalaamuddo lighter (similar to Gnocchi). We hope to post it with a video some time in the future.
Thank you for taking the time to comment and we wish you well!
I love your website and your cooking and everything looks nice. I am very amazed with your work. GOOD LUCK and keep going.
Thank you very much, Nexhmija. We hope that you will try Somali cooking. Thanks again!
I’ve always wanted to find a website that had somali recipes. Thank you guys, this is great! and professionally done. keep the vids coming.
Thank you very much for your kind words, and for taking the time to comment.
Wow, masha-Allah! This website is awesome. Your introduction is superb and aamiin to your hope for a brighter day.
I am getting married this summer and this made me even more excited about starting a new life with my fiance. We will definitely be using website to create some great dishes. Thank you for sharing your passion with us!!
Thank you very much, Hanna. We wish you a very successful marriage and a wonderful new life. Let us know if you need help with any dish!
We will post Cambaabur in due time, God willing.
Soooooooo glad i found your blog, i have finally found decent Somali recipes that i can practice and then cook for my husbands large Somali family.
Thank you soooo much for sharing your Knowledge.
I look forward to reading more of your blog inshaAllah.
Thank you very much, Safiya. It’s our pleasure. We hope you will impress your in-laws.
Don’t hesitate to ask if you need anything clarified.
ASCWRWBR.im a mom of tree living in Denmark..Iam very happy and excited to came a cross your website. after waching your videos in youtube, i was askin my slef how came i didnt se this before! why anyone ever told me about it!! being ofcoures lil dramtic within myslef lol .cuz of waching how u cooked look so easy and for u to tell all of that in somali put even more smile to my face) i wana thank u with all my heart for basiclly showin me a new way to cook and nye dishies..wich i get excited about everyday.)my Allah bless u and your family..asc
Wacalaykum Assalaam Waraxmatullaahi Wabarakaatuhu,
We are also excited to come across enthusiastic individuals like yourself. Thank you for sharing your thoughts with us. You put a smile on our faces.
masha allah xarfaney illahay kheer ha idin siiyo walahi dad badan caawisen oo aan garaneen si wax loo kariyo, kaliya yaqan si wax loo cuno lool. koow aniga ka eh dadkas…. lakin hada indhaha ii furmay markan video-kiina daawaday, wax karis bilaabay… waxan idinka sugnaba waa video kale oo badan ,
Masha-Allah walaal Khalid. Hadalladaas oo kale waa waxa na dareensiiya inay hawsheenna noqon hal bacaad lagu lisay. Mahadsanid!
i want to take this opportunity to say to you thank you and welldone. i am very proud of what doing. i personally like to cook and i enjoy cooking. but i felt most of the time that i did not knew some the somali food, this to do with the right guidline, for instant most somali food is passed through one person to another and there is’nt any right measurment and that could lead a lost generational food since there no written recipe
i want thank you agan i am your biggest fan from london
hope to see more inspiration from food
N.B COCONUT( QUBOO)
Thank you very much, Muna, for the the very nice comment.
Coconut (qumbe) is on the top of the list. We will post it soon, God willing.
MAHADSANIDIIN
Leyla & abdullahi aadbaana idinkaga mahadcelinayaa sida wanagsan ee aad inoogu sharaxdey cuntada macaan lkn midbaan codsan lahaa Bajiyaha in aad inoogu sharaxdaan luuqada somaliga mahadsaniidin bye
I love you guys, I never thought there are great Somali chefs like you. I was confused how to make cake ‘Doolsho’ I googled and I found you two, I really thank you and wish you every success.
Thank you, Mahmoud. Isn’t it wonderful to google Somali words and get the results you want? We are not chefs, but just regular individuals who try hard to achieve good results.
you guys did great job,but what we are all sharing is we all love somalia
Thank you very much for your comment.
If someone did a good and very beneficial website, this is it. As a former Restaurant owner, I salute you guys. Very creative and smart couple, keep up the good work. Allaha idin barakeeyo.
Ahmediini Elmi
Thank you very much for your comment, and kind words.
Masha Allah you guys did amazing job and you r lovely couple n im very glad sida ad proud ugu tihiin somalinimadiina guys marlabaad iyo mar sedaxad thakns Jazakalahu qeyr sida aad nogu fa ideyseyn
Thank you for the comment and the nice words. We all have to be proud of our beautiful Somalia. Jazaakilaah khayr.
love you guys well done
Thank you very much.
salaam L&A. your website is amazing. i just recently discover that i have passion for food and your website just inspired me even more. i would like to learn and enjoy cooking amazing recepies but most of time i seem to be at lost. my husband is also a picky eater which limits me from trying new things but i am wondering if there are ways i can work around what he like and still try your wonderful recipes? i know is a weired question but i had to ask lol.
May Allah bless you for sharing your passion.
asalaam
Wacalaykum Assalaam Waraxmatullaahi Wabarakaatuhu,
Thank you for the comment. You can do slight changes and still enjoy cooking. You have to be careful with baking recipes. Thank you and God bless you.
Amazing blog – simple and so well put together. Great photography. Now I don’t have to worry about learning all these recipes from Mama! Jazaakallah!
Thanks a lot for your comment. Start cooking!
Thank you for this AMAXING website. I have just come across it while looking for Somali cake recipe for a friend and have shared it with friends and family. This is a very professional food blog….Wish you all the success…
Thank you very much. We hope that you will explore the website and find what you are looking for. This blog is still new and we are regularly adding new recipes, so please check back for the latest recipes.
Woow there maybe no other well organized Somali food web page than what this husband and wife team has shared with us…I’m really impressed and will definitely show this site to my wife…I realized you guys write in Swahili…do you guys speak swahili too?…myself I’m a Kenyan Somali living in the States. All your recipe seem yummy. Seems like y’all know what flavor brings out the beauty of Somali food…really enjoyed your effort!
We speak a dialect of Swahili spoken in Brava, Somalia. We can understand Swahili but we can’t speak it. Thank you very much for your comment and we are happy you liked the website. Can we hope that you will surprise your wife with a dish or two?
A friend recommended this blog on Facebook, and it’s really exciting for me to find it! I live far away from my Somali friends and all the great restaurants and cafes I used to go to in Minneapolis. Also, I now eat a plant-based diet, and so it would be great to be able to make the dishes I love using vegan-friendly substitutions. Your instructions are so clear, and the photos are fantastic! Waa mahadsantihiin!
P.S. I love the spice map.
Thanks a lot for your comment. We have a few vegan recipes we hope to post soon.
Beautiful and well done blog. Now i can brag Somali recipes:-) thanks to you!
Abdoul & Family
Thank you. Somali food is indeed amazing. It is a product of our diverse heritage.
Great blog. Enjoyed reading it.
Thank you very much for taking the time to comment and letting us know your impression of the website.
LOVE the blog! Thanks for sharing these recipes…
I found your blog via Clutch Magazine.
I hope to frequently visit walaal.
xoxo,
L.
Thank you very much. We would appreciate if you could send us the link.
Oh, it was via a comment you left in regards to Diaspora
We didn’t leave any comment there. We heard about Clutch Magazine from you. Thank you.
Asc, please make a shushumow video if you can. I will apreciate it very much. I love your videos, they are very useful. Jazakilahu kheyre.
Wacalaykum Assalaam Waraxmatullaahi Wabarakaatuhu,
We are working on it. We will post it soon. Thank you.
thank you sister i apreciate
Aslaam Aleikum,
Firstly, I would like to congratulate both of you for the great website. I love all of your recipes, pictures and videos. I learned so much from you guys. I didn’t know much about making Somali dishes and I tried some of your recipes and my mother was so surprised since many of my dishes were a major fail, I look forward to learning more recipes from both of you. Once again congratulations and I wish you guys much success and happiness…
Salaams,
Nadah
Wacalaykum Assalaam Waraxmatullaahi Wabarakaatuhu,
Thank you so much for your comment and positive feedback. Stay tuned for more recipes.
great job guys , thanks from my heart walahi , i do not cook and i don’t think i can cook nice food but i have liked your work because it sounds so patriotic , liano at least somalida qurbaha joogta iyo kuwa aan aqon wanaga cuntada somaliada aya idin ka baraya , ilahay ha isu kiin dayo
Walaal waad ku mahadsan tahay faalladaada fiican. Waxay nala tahay haddaad niyaysatid inaad karin karto. Cunta kariska wax adag ma-ahan, qofwalba hadduu niyaysto wuu karin karaa.
Salaam Alaikum A&L,
My name is Sagal and I like your site!There are many great recipes Nice pictures and videos,very organized and interesting to see how even the traditionally Somali recipes can be so different from person to person..JazakAllah
Thank you very very much for your comment. It is appreciated.
Salam alykum
Can you please make recipe for Somali bis baas
We will make one, God willing. In the meantime you can use the recipe from the Bajiya post or Makarooni Isku-karis.
Runtii waligay ma arag webset ka fiican. Waxan ahay wiil somaliyed oo jecel cunto karinta. waxa aan aadaa barnaamij cunto karinta ah oo mudo 3 sano ah, hal sano hadda ii haray. Runtii websetkaani waxa aan bartay 15/05/2012. ilaa iyo maanta wax wayn baan ka faa iday. Waxan aad u jeclaa cuntooyin soomaali ah. waxa inta sii dheer in aad somali ku turjunten. Aad iyo aad baad u mahadsan tihin. allah idinka dhigo idinkana kuwa nolol raaxa leh ku noolaada aakhira iyo aduunba.
Adigaa mahadda mudan. Waan ku faraxnaa markaan maqalno wiilal Soomaali-ah oo jecel cunto kariska. Waxbarashadaada iyo noloshaadaba guul ayaan kuu rajaynaynaa. Mahadsanid.
salam from all the way from london, i am so addicted to your website. I want to congratulate you so much for the blog with the name Xawaash.
Thank you so much for your warm greetings from London and for the nice comment.
Asalama Aleykum, Masha Allah! You have created a wonderful blog, congratulation!!! You have made us very proud to have a culture with a wonderful food. Wish you both more success doing what you love to do.
Jazak Allah Khair,
Anab M
Thank you so much for your encouraging words. We hope to keep meeting your expectations.
Asslamu alaikum L&A,
I have recently discovered your website and its amazing. I have recommended it to friends and family. Insha Allah could you do a tutorial on malawax and shay somaali. Thank you guys so much what your doing is great. Jazaakumu Allah khayr xx
Wa-alaikum as-salaam,
Thank you very much for taking the time to comment and thank you for your recommendations. We will post a video for malawax in time for Ramadan, God willing.
Salaamulaah Alaykum,
I am a student studying in beautiful Vancouver. I came across this website when I was navigating the web, searching for Somali recipes like a year ago. Alhamdulilaah I have learned so many things. Thanks for the time you dedicated to professionally presenting Somali food to the world.
Jazakalah Khayr,
-Abdiwali
Wa-alaikum as-salaam,
We are happy the website was helpful. Thank you for the nice comment. It is appreciated.
Hi guys
may i take this opportunity to thank you for this amazing website. your are doing a fantastic job..please keep doing what you are doing. i tried your rice dish yesterday and it turned out delicious.so simple and easy to follow. Jazakallah Abdullah and laila
Thank you for your comment and nice words. We hope that you try other recipes.
Hello From France
Your website is extremely well done and appealing. Congratulations to you both. I love the simplicity and richness (at the same time!)of the somali culinary tradition.
I would love for it to be translated to French.
I was thinking that I’d love to have the recipes at home, I’d ask for a book but today the easiest way to publish is an android/apple app. I would buy your app if you had one, for sure. Think about it guys.
Thank you for sharing!
Thank you so much for the fabulous comment.
We have now embedded a translation tool into every page. There is a drop down menu under the title of the recipe. There you can select the language of your choice. The translation is not perfect but it does a satisfactory job.
We have been thinking to make an app for Xawaash. When we make the app we will announce it and it will be free for everyone. Thank you very much for your interest in Xawaash.
Thank you very much for the toolbar. I tried it and it wasn’t satisfying, it ruins your commentary, the most important part, and I don’t think it’s accurate enough.
I’m going to test translating “by hand” English to French, if I come up with something good enough I’ll send it to you.
You are right that the machine translation falls short on many levels. When we read some of the translations we had a good laugh about some of the funny things that we read. However, the translation did a fairly decent job when it came to the ingredients. Some friends told us that their relatives who did not speak a word of English, were able to follow the recipe from the ingredients translated into their language and the video which showed the steps.
Thank you for offering to translate. We would indeed be very grateful to you.
asc sister how are you and your family i hope your all well jazokilahu kheyre for showing me and everybody how to make shushumoow thank you once again.
Wa-alaikum as-salaam dear sister,
We are all well, we thank God. Thank you very much for the special greeting and the comment.
Thank you for making this website to help those bring a piece of home with us everywhere we go. I left home and live in Germany, so having this website will soon bring the memories and feelings as well as taste of home, and the love from my mother all the way too me . Thank you and God bless!
We are happy that we helped you re-establish the connection with our motherland. Let us know what your favourite recipes are.
In my book you guys are ‘seria A’. God bless you!
Shamsa
Thank you very much Shamsa. God bless you.
salam alikom Abdullahi & Leila I hope you all in great health ,, would you please tell me the brand name of the vegetable spices you often use “the yellow powder” since i also live in Canada.
Ramdan mubrak to ya’ll.
Wa’alaikum as-salam warahmatullahi wabarakatuh.
We use Vegeta seasoning mix. You can find it in most supermarkets (Food Basics is one place you can find it). Ramadan Kareem.
waaad ku mahad san tihiin bro and sis xirfadiina iyo aqoonta ilaah idin isiyey inaad la qeybsataan intaas oo guri iyo jiilka cusub aniga shaqsiyan waxxaan aad ugu faraxsanahay xasusta aan galo beri samaad somaliya raashinak qaar markaad sameenasan ilahay idiin barakeeyo salaan from LONDON uk
Aad iyo aad ayaa ugu mahadsan tahay faalladaan wacan. Iskaashi wuxuu dhaliyaa isjeclaan.
Salam and ramdaan kareem 3alykum.
I just saw your vidoes on youtube and I really like them.
Your recipes are amazing,the way you making them so easy to do is enjoyable to watch.love your kitchen its cleean, keep up the good work .
Rabbina ma3kum.
Wa’alaikum as-salam warahmatullahi wabarakatuh,
Thank you very much for your fabulous comment. Ramadan Karim.
hello
i want to make the macsharo but I am having problems with pot that I am cooking with. did you guys have any idea where can I get the pot please. My mother told me that there is special pot only for macsharo. I live USA
You can use a heavy, round bottom wok. You can find it in some Indian stores (ask for Karahi or Kadai) or in Chinese supermarkets. The one we used is from Brava, Somalia. Ramadan Karim.
Beautiful site. Exceptional recipes. Great Team.
I’ve tried a couple of your recipes; your directions are thorough and simple to follow. I’ve begun to enjoy cooking and be proud of final product. Thank you.
Thank you for your generous compliment. It is really appreciated. Ramadan Karim.
I love this website, your youtube blog, simply everything. You two are a great wonderful team, and thank you for showing that we can make great food in Somalia!
Peace for the motherland
<3
Thank you so much for your compliment and encouragement! Your comment add us wings.
Peace for the motherland. ♥
Thank you guys for everything. I love you guys because you guys cook or make things that I love to eat. and then show us old Somali, Yaa salaam!!, and the songs. but my number one thing that i love about you guys are, you don’t waste time to talk and talk and talk,. you guys are AMAZING!! please keep up the good work, and please more of our good food.
Thank you for visiting and thank you for your wonderful comment. we are happy to know that you enjoy the recipes and the songs. There are more recipes coming and we hope you will like them.
hello;
Okay I would love to get perfect Macsharo, but it is getting hard on me. I did follow everything you told me but it is not working for me. I did put the whole bag pf rice flour. it says 2-lbs. you know what I am thinking maybe the bag I am using is little so much. and it burnts quickly even though I used low heat. please tell what wrong things I am doing.
Thank you so much
~Najma
The recipe says 400g rice flour which is less than one pound. You used 2 pounds, which explains why it is not working. Please also make sure that you use non-glutinous rice flour. We are sure you will get excellent results if you follow the recipe closely.
Asalamu alaykum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatu,
I would just like to say that you have created a blog which is just simply amazing Masha’Allah. Mabrook!
I am happy to see alot of bravanese foods that I and every other Bravanese and other Somali people loves.
I wish you all the best and keep up the good work!
I’d just like to ask, are you both Bravanese(from miini)?
Insha’Allah, may Allah bring unity to Somalia. AMEEN
Ahsanta!
Wa Salaam
-T.W
Wa’alaikum as-salam warahmatullahi wabarakatuh,
Thank you very much for your comment. We are Bravanese Somalis. We hope peace and prosperity (Nabad iyo Caano) will come back to Somalia.
Hello guys;
thank you, my Macsharo came out perfect and muufo too. can you guys show us how to make “” Kackac, Icun, and Nafaqo.
thank you Much
~Najma~
We are very happy for you. Thank you for letting us know. God willing, we will post everything you asked for in due time. Thank you for your comments.
I know that I am asking you guys a lot, can you please tell me how to make “Muufo Galeey”
God willing, we will post other recipes of muufo. Thank you for your patience.
Hello
I just saw your website and it is really good and i like it a lot. Also, I like najma’s post, can you guys tell us how to make muufo galeey
thank you
Thank you for taking the time to comment. We are happy to know that you like the website. God willing, we will post other variations of muufo.
Salam Alaikum
I really like using your website it really easy to follow step by step.i’m really bad at cooking but thanks to your website i’m starting to learn to cook.Jazakallah Khair.
Wa’alaikum assalam warahmatullahi wabarakatuh,
Thank you for your nice compliment. Keep cooking and soon you will be a great cook, God willing.
Hello Eid is coming… I would like you guys show different kinds of cookies and icun
We will start working on the Eid sweets soon.
mahadsanidin walaalaha xawash website. fadlal i cun iyo kackac noogu soo dhaqsada befor eid
Hadduu Ilaahey yiraahdo waan soo dadaalaynaa. Mahadsanid.
ASC
. Now I usually read almost every day your blog is a wonderful website and I try to cook the nice recipes that you post tx. it is so dat my mother ever ask you that Allah will bless u. so we are grateful for what you created we..llllll done.
Thanks loved ones Leila & Abdullahi …. Mash Allah, we can see that u r a wonderful family and I pray may Allah bless u. I am a 16 year old girl living in Sweden and I was born in Hargeisa, but I grew up in Sweden Stockholm, and my mother learned to cook from scratch, but that was exactly what we somalian usually eat
Wa’alaikum assalam warahmatullahi wabarakatuh,
Hibo, that is a lovely comment! We are so happy that you are learning how to cook at such a young age and that you are helping your mother. Thank you so much for being a regular fan. We hope to post recipes that you will like. God bless you and your family.
Asc Leila & Abdullahi!!
Waxaan nahay SomaliweynTV oo kasoo galo magaalada Gothenburg ee Sweden, Waxaan u baahannahay inaan idiin lasoo xiriirno si khaas ah/private, waxaan rabnay meel aan idiin kala soo xiriirno.
Mahadsanidiin,
Anfac Cumar.
Wacalaykum assalaam walaal Anfac,
Hadduu Eebbe idmo waan kula soo xiriiri doonnaa. Mahadsanid.
About the Kac Kac can I cut them in small pieces and also can you tell me how long can I keep it
You can shape them in anyway you like. You can keep them for 2 days in the pantry or up to a week in the fridge. Thank you.
Ok I there is something called Kac Kac also, but you can keep them like months in the pantry. I hope you know what I am talking about
We know the ones you are talking about. They are called Buskud Somali and some people confuse them with Kac Kac. They do not have any eggs and are cut into a diamond shape. Kac Kac does not last more that a few days whereas Buskut Somali can last for a very long time. God willing, We will post a recipe for it. Thanks for the question.
Abdullahi Kassim & Leila Adde. Waxaan rabaa inaan Halkaaan idin kaga mahad celiyo Kun jeer ka badan Shaqada aad heesaan.
Wallaahi as a young man Ramadaan ka hor cuntokaris waxaan ka aqaanay Bariis iyo baasto. Laakin Indhaha ayaad ii furteen. Bishii ramadaan kaliya 10 nooc oo kala duwan oo cunto somali ayaad i barteen. si aan idin kugu mahad celiyo na ma aqaano. Walaalahega waxaan idin leeyahay Cimri Dheer, Waligeey soomali idin ka fiican ma arkin.
Walaal Xasan, aad ayaan ugu faraxnaa markaan maqalno in laga faa’iidaysanaayo Xawaash. Waxaanna ugu faraxad badan dhalinyaradeena Soomaaliyeed inay ka-faa’iidaysanayaan. Aad iyo aad ayaa ugu mahadsan tahay faalladaan wacan. Ciid Wanaagsan.
asalaamu aleeykum walaalaheyga qaaligoow awallan ciid mubaarak kulucaam waantum biqeer taqaballaah minnaa waminkum inshaa allaah sanadkaan sanadkiisa bisaxa wasalaam xamdilillaah bisha barakeysan anagoo salaama kudhameysanay allaah hanagudaro kuwii looshafeecay walaal aadaa ogumahadsantihiin wax qabadkiina wanaaga quruxda badan inshaa allaah caafimaadsan hortiin reediin hareerihiin nuuur niyadiin allaah niiyeelo walaal hoosha qabatiin citqabato malahan allaah yastur caleeykum dunyaa wal aakhr walaalaheyga qaaliga farxad kuwada waara walaal baryahaan xawaash waakamashquulay markiifaadiyooway oon xawaash furay allaah xamaasa xarakaad walaal shukran xagal ciid xag ramadaan xag yoomiyaad caadiya iyo waxyaabo lasookoobikarin maashaa allaah tabaarakallaah waxwalba tacam qaas riixa qaas aaaadaaa umahadsantihiin inshaa allaah sanadkaan sanadkiisa anagoo nabad wadankeenoo saalax kullu bilaad muslim saalax qaasattan walaaleheena suriya dhibaateesan allaah kakorqaado dhibaatada yaaarabi aaaamiin wasalaamu aleeukum waraxmatullaahi wabarakaatu jazallaahu wayaana baarakallaahu fiikum dunyaa wal aakhr
Wacalaykum assalaam waraxmatullaahi wabarakaatuh,
Walaasheenna qaaliga ah waa loo xiisay qoraaladaada iyo ducooyinkaada. Aad iyo aad ayaa ugu mahadsan tahay faalladaan qaayaha leh. Ilaahey waxaan ka-baryaynaa umuurahaada inuu kuu fududeeyo adiga iyo muslinka oo dhan. Qayr ayaan kuu rajaynaynaa. Ciid Mubaarak.
Hello A&L how r you doing
I don’t Have Massurement for. 400g so what I did was following. The step you wrote which was 3 3/4 cups rice flour but it did not turn out right though
Can you please help me get it right
I am talking about macsharo
You should not use glutinous rice flour. This recipe works with a specific type of rice flour that we show in the post. The package has 400g of rice flour. You can find it in asian supermarkets. If you use the right type of flour and follow the directions, you should get it right.
I wet to Asian store today and all they was 1lb bag and I know it is about 453g but how can get only 400 and not all 453g. Any ideas please
If you don’t have a scale you can measure 3 and 3/4 cups.
hello guys i have quick question. ok I would like to know what is the different between turmeric and curry. Because my Mother had curry power so I went to the store and bought the turmuric power but my mom told they are “HURUUD” need help
Curry powder is a mix of spices which includes turmeric powder (huruud). Thanks for the question.
salam ,leila et abdullahi mashallah que allah vous prodege au canada ce manifique cuisine somalien et yemenite barakalafikoune. votre soeur ifrah. switzerland
Thank you sister Ifrah for your nice comment. Barakallahu fiiki.
can you guys please shoe us how to make somali buskut please aka kac kac
thank you much
We already posted kac kac. God willing, we will post buskud Somali in the near future. Thank you.
Congratulations to YOU…I am so proud of you. Such an amazing family, Maasha’Allah. WELL DONE!
Thank you so much for your kind words. It is great to do something you enjoy and be praised for it.
what I am saying my family call it kac kac, some other people call it buskud somali. I know you guys already post it that.
You are right. We heard some people call it kac kac. Back in Somalia we knew it as buskut Somali. It is harder and can be stored for much longer than kac kac.
can you guys atleast write up here how to put together, Eid is coming and I really really want to make
We will post a recipe for it before Eid, God willing.
woow, masha’llah!!
lool
keep up the good work!
marka….goormaad na casumaysaan aniga iyo odaygayga??
on a more serious note, jazakum allah kul khair for amazing and easy to follow recipes.
Waa ku-mahadsan tahay faallada fiican.
Asalaamu calaykum, i am currently a university student studying in london away from home. so it does mean i have to cook for myself and i do miss my hooyos home cooked food immensely. Alhamdullilah i bumped into this site if not i would still be eating fastfood and pre-cooked supermarket meals. This website is great and the recipes are easy to follow and within my budget. I have a lot of friends and they’ve been impressed by the food and are happily embracing the food side of Somali culture ahaha. What you two great individuals are doing is awesome and i wish you the best with everything in life, may you and your family be blessed.
Ameen
Wa’alaikum As-salam Warahmatullahi Wabarakatuh,
Thank you very much for your awesome compliment. We were truly touched to read your comment. We wish you and your family all the best. May God bless you. Thanks again.
Oh my god i don’t how to express my self this moment im really crying i found this website i don’t know how to thank you guys, you very kind and wonderful people, im very grateful i found my sweet somali food after long time of depression and loneliness i tired eating junk noodles, i really like to support this website to keep a live if there’s a way. keep the good work and thanks again.
Thank you very much for your enthusiastic comment. We a