Just a short post today, to announce the launch of a new page (and multiple sub-pages) here on Ethnic Foods R Us – Cuisines of the Middle East.
(Photo Attributed to Author: Alpha)
That’s right, if you are a fan of cuisines of the Middle East region, you will love this new addition to our many offerings. Here is a short excerpt from the new central hub page for this grouping of ethnic cuisines:
This Javanese Ayam Ungkep recipe is taken from our Javanese Cuisine page. For more delicious Javanese dishes, click here.
Javanese Ayam Ungkep is a specialty dish of spiced and deep fried chicken. The chicken pieces are pre-cooked in spices before being deep fried. The Javanese consider it as a great party dish. Try some. You will surely want to serve some Ayam Ungkep at your next party!
(Photo Attributed to Author: DougsTech at English Wikipedia)
This Iranian Chelow Kabab recipe is taken from our new Middle Eastern page. For more delicious dishes from the Middle East like this one, click here.
Served on skewers over a bed of rice, Iranian Chelow Kabab is the country’s national dish. There are almost as many variations on the Chelow Kabab as there are chefs, as the seasonings can vary. This is a more traditional, rather basic recipe, with just a few herbs for seasoning. But believe me, it is packed full of flavor.
Iranian Chelow Kabab is best prepared on a grille, if you want the traditional and authentic flavor. I prefer real hardwood lump charcoal, but you could also use a gas grille with some good quality wood chips. Just please do not use petrol-based charcoal briquettes – they are not only bad for your health, they will in no way produce Chelow Kabab that is true to real Iranian cuisine.
(Photo Attributed to Author: Shahram Sharif)
This Cuban Ropa Vieja recipe is taken from our Caribbean Islands Cuisine/Cuban Cuisine page. For more delicious dishes from the Caribbean Islands, please check those pages out. There are many offerings for you.
Cuban Ropa Vieja (basically, seasoned, slow-cooked and shredded beef) is a classic Cuban dish, a national favorite. Similar to the pulled pork so popular in the Americas, but of course very uniquely Cuban in its spices and flavors.
This Spanish Asparagus with Citrus Sauce recipe is taken from our Spanish Cuisine page. If you like truly authentic and traditional Spanish dishes like this one, you will fine more on that page.
Asparagus with Citrus Sauce is a splendid blend of sparkling and fruity citrus flavors with either white or green asparagus. It is truly one of the most savory, and best Spanish “tapas” recipes to be found and enjoyed. The Spanish full name is “Espárragos con Salsa de Naranja y Limón” (Asparagus with Orange and Lemon Sauce). Tapas are a favored style of eating, usually mid-day, in Spain. A wide selection of delightful, small servings of many different tastes and textures are served.
This British Kedgeree recipe comes from our British Cuisine page, where you can find lots more authentic and delicious meals served in Jolly Old England.
Kedgeree (meaning “kitchen”, and sometimes called kitcherie, kitchari, or khichuri) is a dish showing the influence of Indian cuisine on the cuisine of Great Britain. Although originally Indian, the English people took to this meal, adopted and adapted it, making this British Kedgeree distinctively Brit.
(Photo Attributed to Author: User Justinc)
Basmati rice, with flaky smoked fish, parsley, eggs, curry, and cream come together in fabulous fashion. Try this classic British dish, kedgeree is a one-of-a-kind special treat.
This recipe, Grilled Kangaroo and Vegetables, is taken from our Australian and Aboriginal Cuisine page. Featuring meat from the indigenous-to-Australia kangaroo, this wild game meal is a feast. Grilled Kangaroo and Vegetables is considered part of the “Bush Tucker” segment of Australian cuisine. Have fun sampling some of the great eats from “Down Under”.
(Photo Attributed to Author: Stanislav Kozlovskiy)
Did you know that if you do a Google search for “Authentic Traditional Ethnic Foods”, you will, less than a second, get about 2,000,000 results?
Filipino Cuisine
Clearly there is a very large number of people, from all over the world, who are interested in, and searching for, authentic traditional ethnic foods. And that is why this site was started, exactly one year ago.
You will also note, if you click on the link to the above Google search, that you will find this site, Ethnic Foods R Us, listed on Page 1.
We are very pleased and proud to be, in just one short year of service to readers worldwide, ranked among the very best at providing what we do to those who are looking for it.
So I thought it befitting to celebrate the first anniversary and 100th post with an article titled by none other than what this site was created for, in answer to what millions and millions of people are searching for year round, 24/7. And that is:
(Photo Attributed to Author: Melissa Doroquez)
Most of the Asian ethnic cuisines have soy sauce as a major seasoning ingredient in them. And while you can buy, in almost any cosmopolitan city, excellent soy sauces, making homemade soy sauce is fun and rewarding.
You can not only achieve bragging rights to your other cooking enthusiast friends, you can customize the soy sauce to your particular tastes and culinary preferences.
So I thought doing an article on making homemade soy sauce would be of benefit for our readers. After all, we are people who enjoy taking new trips, finding, cooking, and tasting foods from ethnic cultures the world over. And we also enjoy making our own sauces, and learning how to reproduce favorite condiments, spices, sauces, etc., from cultures all around the planet. So, with that being said and out of the way, let’s now get into what is involved in:
This New Zealand Māori Boil Up recipe is taken from our New Zealand Cuisine page. A truly classic and authentic example of the original food created by the Māori people, descendants of the Polynesians who first migrated to this majestic island. New Zealand Māori Boil Up is a festive meal. Invite lots of friends and family over for dinner!
(Photo Attributed to Author: Matyas Havel)
You can use almost any kind of meat you like. Traditionally the most common vegetables are kumara (sweet potato), watercress, potatoes, carrots, and cabbage. But again, you can vary the ingredients as much as you like and still produce an authentic and super delicious New Zealand Māori Boil Up.
Traditionally Māori Boil Up is cooked in the hāngi. The hāngi is a kind of earth-oven, with heated rocks in a pit cooking the foods, wrapped in leaves and covered with soil. However, this New Zealand Māori Boil Up recipe can also be made in a regular modern kitchen, using modern cookware. For a post on how to build and cook with a traditional hāngi, click here.
This post is taken from our All-American/Classic American/Desserts page. And Cheesecake Red Velvet is truly an All-American classic!
(Photo Attributed to Author: Jamie)
Red Velvet Cake has long been an original North American favorite, and so has cheesecake. So, combining the two, and creating a Cheesecake Red Velvet, is just the kind of thing we like to do. I’m betting if you try this recipe, you’ll be glad we did!
This post is a sad one, really. “Haitian Mud Biscuits” are a harsh reality, and they are exactly what the name implies. In a world where there should be (and is!) enough food for everyone to eat well, many Haitians are living in such poverty and squalid conditions that they are literally eating dirt.
Photo Credited to Creative Commons
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/
Haitian Waste Dump (Photo Attributed to Author: Rémi Kaupp)
Haiti is the poorest country in the Western hemisphere. And visitors to the shanty towns of Haiti who come from “lands of plenty” will be shocked at what they find commonplace in the local markets. A dingy yellow colored, round “food” product, about the size of a breakfast pancake. It is breakfast, lunch, and dinner for many people here, who must actually eat dirt in order to not starve to death.
They’re Haitian mud biscuits, made from clay, with some salt, vegetable oil and water. Eating one will ward off the hunger pains for 2 or 3 hours. Food prices are soaring in Haiti, while wages are static or falling. Haiti is at the desperate whip end of a food crisis that stretches around the planet. Therefore the market for these mud cakes is booming.
As a tragic result? The people are now making meager incomes producing, and also eating, as a staple diet …
The following is some background on this horrid state of affairs, how it has come to be, and even a “how-to” segment if you are interested in making some Haitian mud biscuits to see for yourself just how destitute someone would need to be to take them as their daily sustenance.
This Goat Cheese Asparagus Soufflé is taken from our All-American Vegetarian and Vegan page. Truly mouth-watering and satisfying, this subtle blend of flavors and textures goes well with a good wine, either red (suggest a Zinfandel) or white (Chardonnay or Pinot Grigio).
(Photo Attributed to Author: Jason Lam)
If goat cheese is too strong a flavor for you, you can substitute mozzarella or mild cheddar, but goat cheese is, of course, recommended. Trust me, this goat cheese asparagus soufflé is fabulous!
Here is another fine vegetarian recipe – 3 Cheese Eggplant Lasagna – taken from our All-American Vegetarian and Vegan page.
There are many versions of 3 Cheese Eggplant Lasagna, but the one we are offering here is, in The Old Silly’s humble but very experienced opinion, the absolute best vegetarian lasagna recipe ever. Prepare this dish, and invite your meat-eating friends over for dinner. I guarantee they will feel completely satiated, as will you. And everyone will want the recipe, too.
There is an extensive list of reasons why cassava is good for you to eat, as a balanced part of your overall diet.
Traditional dishes in many Asian, African and Caribbean countries include cassava as one of the more common vegetables used in their cuisines. In these regions, cassava is in high demand, and, much like plantains, it is grown in mass quantities on large plantations. This provides not only locally favored foods ingredients, but a healthy export business to help fuel the economies.
Cassava Plantation (Photo Attributed to Author: Judgefloro)
Cassava Plant (Photo Attributed to Author: Willy Ochayaus)
Cassava (also called Yucca) is in the same family as other tropical root vegetables, like yams and taro, and is also related to the potato. Cassava thrives in fertile, moist, well-drained tropical soils. A perennial plant, it will, when mature, achieve heights ranging from about 3 to 5 feet.
Much like growing sugar cane, cut-stem sections are planted just under the surface of the cultivation fields. Newly planted cassava plants will produce the first harvest after about 8 to 10 months. Its elongated, globular roots (tubers) grow downward and deep (anywhere from 2 to 4 feet) in a radial pattern from the bottom end of the stem.
Cassava Tubers (Photo Attributed to Author: Thamizhpparithi Maari)
Depending on the type of cultivar, each mature tuber will weigh anywhere from one to several pounds. The tubers are brown-gray and have rough, woody-textured, tough skins. The inside of the tuber is bright white. This white “flesh” is a starchy, slightly sweet substance, and is what you eat. However, the cassava should only be eaten after cooking – for reasons that will be explained a little later on in this article.
But enough on background. Let’s get into the main topic at hand, and find out-