Chicken Tikka Masala

As the story goes, it all began the Shish Mahal, which is currently located at the corners of West Prince's Street and Park Road. It was the 1970s, and, the owner of the restaurant - Ali Ahmed Aslam - was confronted by customers who complained that his tandoori chicken tikka was slightly dry. Chicken tikka, is actually a kebab of boneless chicken chunks cooked in a tandoor oven. Apparently, at the time, Aslam was perhaps cooking his kebabs a little too long. The complaints motivated the owner to respond by adding a creamy tomato sauce. The end result was the first serving of Chicken Tikka Masala. 

I have prepared Chicken Tikka in the past. However, until very recently, I have never went the additional step to add the creamy tomato sauce.  The recipe came from an unlikely place ... Ayurvedic cooking. I have always thought that Ayurvedic cuisine focused heavily on vegetables. That thought was reinforced by many of the recipes that I came across as I was researching ways to improve my cooking. Not that vegetables are a bad thing, I have quite a few Ayurvedic vegetable recipes that I want to make. But, I still remain an omnivore, and, protein (in some form) still remains a significant part of my diet. 

Yet, as I have learned, Ayurvedic cuisine does not completely take chicken off the table. The cuisine definitely promotes vegetarianism as it helps to promote higher consciousness. It does include chicken (and turkey) dishes because Ayurveda recognizes those proteins as something that has a range of chicken dishes in its repertoire. Chicken is considered nourishing and warming, something that can balance certain doshas (like Vata and Pitta). In taking an ayurvedic test, my results labeled me as Vata with some Kapha. As I searched for recipes that would fit this profile, I found one for Chicken Tikka Masala. 

The recipe has some modifications that make it healthier, such as the use of chicken breasts instead of chicken thighs. The one modification that specifically addresses a Vata dosha is the addition of four tablespoons of coconut milk. That also helps to add to the creaminess of the sauce. It also made this dish a little lighter than the Chicken Tikka Masala that I have gotten at restaurants, which is okay given the reason why I made it. And, why I will make it again ... and again. 

CHICKEN TIKKA MASALA

Recipe from Tomas Yareda, et al., Eat Taste Heal, pg. 267

Serves 4

Ingredients:

• 4 skinless chicken breast halves
• 1/4 cup organic plain yogurt
• 2 tablespoons sunflower oil or ghee
• 1 tablespoon lemon or lime juice
• 4 tablespoons organic tomato paste
• 2 teaspoons curry powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon chile powder
• 2 teaspoons paprika
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• 1 teaspoon grated ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon ground turmeric
• 6 kari leaves, chopped or 1 tablespoon chopped fresh mint
• 4 tablespoons coconut milk

Directions:

1. Prepare the chicken. Make several deep slits over the meaty side of each chicken breast. Put the chicken in a baking dish, bone down.

2. Prepare the sauce. In a mixing bowl, whisk the yogurt, sunflower oil (or ghee), lemon (or lime) juice, tomato paste, curry powder, salt, chile powder, paprika, garlic ginger, turmeric, coconut milk, and kari leaves (or fresh mint). Spread the yogurt mixture over the chicken evenly. Cover and refrigerate for at least 3 hours or overnight. 

3. Bake the chicken. Preheat the oven to 475 degrees Fahrenheit. Transfer chicken and marinade to a baking pan and cook until tender, about 25 minutes. 

PEACE.

Arrachera Verde

My parents bought me Bricia Lopez's Asada, The Art of Mexican Style Cooking for my birthday. It is a cookbook that I have wanted for some time. I wanted to learn more about Mexican cooking, as well as to do more grilling and smoking of meats, seafood and vegetables. As I read the cookbook, I began to make mental lists of the recipes that I wanted to make. One of those recipes is Arrachera Verde. 

The name translates to green skirt steak, which raises a question and provides a nod to its preparation. First, the question is around the meat. While arrachera may mean "skirt steak," the recipe calls for flap steak. That latter is also known as bavette, a thin and chewy cut of meat that is very popular in France, Argentina and Uruguay.  However, I have found that flap steak is not very common or available, at least around where I live. So, I had to look for a substitute, which led me back to skirt steak. Flank steak is also a workable substitute. Both skirt steak and flank steak share many characteristics with flap steak, being thinner cuts, as well as more fibrous and chewy.

The nod goes to the marinade. Perhaps the most green of the marinades is chimichurri. Indeed, Bricia Lopez notes, Arrachera Verde utilizes a marinade that is inspired by chimichurri. The recipe calls for a lot of herbs -- basil, mint, parsley and oregano -- for the marinade. Other classic chimichurri ingredients, like garlic and olive oil, help to round out the marinade. As the photo to the right shows,  the marinade does look a lot like a chimichurri.

The one thing that I like about the marinade is that the recipe says that only thirty (30) minutes are needed before the meat is ready for the grill. (Obviously, one can marinate the meat overnight, but the fact that a short marinade period raises a question for me as to whether a long period is necessary - that may have to await another post.) More importantly, the short marinating period makes the recipe something that can be made as dinner on a busy weekday.

While this blog readily illustrates that I have made quite a few chimichurri recipes over the years, I have to admit that I have rarely made recipes that use flap steak, skirt steak or flank steak. That is another reason why I wanted to make this recipe. I wanted to use a cut of meat that has not been a regular part of my repertoire.

This recipe also led me to another recipe, Salsa de Pina Tatemada. This recipe takes a salsa two ways that are different. First, it incorporates grilled ingredients, like grilled garlic and red onions. Second, it incorporates pineapple, which I have to say I don't usually use when making salsas. But, this salsa really worked and it is amazing with the grilled skirt steak.

One last note, Arrachera Verde with Salsa de Pina Tatemada is best served with corn tortillas. That seems, at least for me, to take me to what asado really is in Mexico.

ARRACHERA VERDE

Recipe from B. Lopez, Asada at 74

Serves 4

Ingredients:

• 1 cup loosely packed basil leaves
• 1 cup loosely packed fresh mint
• 1 cup loosely packed fresh parsley
• 1/4 cup fresh oregano leaves
• 2 Fresno chiles
• 3 large cloves garlic, peeled
• 1 lemon, zested and juiced
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 teaspoon citrus vinegar
• 2 tablespoons sea salt
• 2 pounds flap steak
• Warm tortillas, for serving
• Salsa de Pina Tatemada, for serving

Directions:

1. Marinate the steak. In a food processor, add the basil, mint, parsley, oregano, chiles, garlic, lemon zest and juice, olive oil, vinegar and salt. Pulse until a smooth paste forms.  Pat the steak dry with paper towels and place it in a large bowl. Rub the paste mixture all over the meat. Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes or overnight.

2. Prepare to grill. Remove the meat from the refrigerator to allow it to reach room temperature before grilling if possible. Start a charcoal or gas grill. The gas should be set to high. If using a pellet grill, preheat your grill to 450 degrees Fahrenheit for at least 15 minutes. If using charcoal, the coals should be red but entirely covered with gray ash.

3. Grill the steak. Remove the meat from the marinade and put it on the grill directly over the fire. Close the lid and cook, turning once, about 4 to 5 minutes on each side. Transfer the meat to a cutting board and let rest for 5 minutes. 

4. Finish the dish. Slice the meat against the grain. Serve with warm tortillas and the salsa. 

PEACE.

Around the World in 80 Dishes: Afghanistan

I find myself challenged in more ways than one. My Around the World in 80 Dishes takes me to Afghanistan, which is also known as the "Graveyard of Empires." One foreign power after another -- the Greeks, Persians, Arabs, Mongols, Mughals, British, Soviets, and, most recently, Americans -- sought to dominate the country, from the southwestern plateau to the northern plains, and from the central highlands to the Hindu Kush.  Yet, if one were to go to Afghanistan, any tombstones that they would find will not have the names of empires. Rather, they would bear the names of the Afghans who have been victims of those empires. 

Today, a more appropriate name for Afghanistan would be the "Graveyard of Rights." In recent years, as the Taliban reasserted its control over the country, the extremist Muslim leadership have imposed restriction after restriction upon women and girls. The Taliban first limited the educational and employment opportunities for women. It then sought to limit their voice, imposing oppressive restrictions upon women raising their voice in public. The restrictions even prohibit women from signing or laughing in public. The Taliban are literally oppressing the voice of women and girls. 

Hence, the challenge. Typically, I spend time researching the post, delving  not only into cooking, but the cuisine and culture of those who prepare the food. I could write a post about the Pashtun people, who constitute a plurality of "Afghans," and their cuisine. I could also write about the other "Afghans" -- such as the Tajiks, Hazaras, Uzbeks, Aimaks, Turkmen, Balochs, Nuristanis and Pamiris -- and their cuisine. But, how can I ignore the plight of women in Afghanistan, a plight that crosses ethnic lines. 

Afghan women (Source: Wikipedia)

The answer is that I don't. This post will feature a challenge to prepare a main course of Afghan cuisine, but I will do so while explaining the plight of women, contrasted with their undeniable contribution to Afghan society and their unquestionable right to be free from arbitrary and capricious legal restrictions.

I want the women of my country to know that they are equal to men in the eyes of religion, of civil laws, and humanity. God created them equal."

-- Lina Rozbih, Journalist and Poet

Unlike most of the empires that passed through, the United States engaged in nation building, with a focus on establishing governmental institutions. In 2004, Afghanistan adopted a new constitution. A product of 500 delegates representing Afghan men and women who met at the Constitutional Loya Jira, Article Twenty-Two declares "[a]ny kind of discrimination and distinction between citizens of Afghanistan shall be forbidden. The article further provides, "[t]he citizens of Afghanistan, man and woman, shall have equal rights and duties under the law. 

During the twenty or so years that the United States worked in Afghanistan, opportunities opened for women. Indeed, at the time the Constitution was adopted, women constituted twenty-seven percent (27%) of the lower legislative house (compared to women constituting only 25% of the U.S. House of Representatives). Those women, along with their male counterparts, enacted laws prohibiting a range of crimes against women, including domestic violence and forced marriage, as well as established other prohibitions, such as preventing women or girls from going to school or preventing women to own property. 

Female students (Source: United Nations)

By 2020, women made substantial strides in Afghanistan. Over three million girls attend school, and, at the university level, girls are 25% of the students. The literacy rate had tripled for women (although even with that progress, it was only 30%). Women were 19% of the doctors, 40% of the nurses, 35% of the public school teachers, 27% of the government employees, 12% of judges, 10% of attorneys and 20% of provincial council members. Considering that women had been persecuted for years and decades prior to 2001, the gains over the two decades marked considerable progress. 

"Because of the Taliban, Afghanistan has become a jail for women. We haven't got any human rights. We haven't got the right to go outside, to go to work, to look after our children."

-- Faranos Nazir, 34 year old woman in Kabul

In 2021, the United States withdrew from Afghanistan, creating a power vacuum that the Taliban quickly filled with the Second Islamic Emirate. Much like the First Islamic Emirate, which was the Taliban's rule between 1996 and 2001, the government moved quickly to strip women of not only the progress they made over the previous two decades, but also of their fundamental rights.  The damage is substantial. The Taliban have banned girls from attending secondary school (that is, up to Grade 7), thereby significantly limiting their educational opportunities. For those women attending universities, the Taliban has imposed numerous restrictions upon them and their education. The government first banned women from pursuing certain degrees, such as agriculture, mining, civil engineering and journalism. Thereafter, the Taliban banned women from universities altogether.

The loss of rights extends beyond the educational system, it includes stripping women of their legal rights. The Taliban went so far as to invalidate thousands of divorces that had been decreed between 2001 and 2020.  It dissolved the Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission, but established a female moral police department. 

Afghan women after 2021. (Source: United Nations)

The Taliban also stripped women of employment opportunities, ordering women to stay home rather than go to work. It also banned women from many occupations in the legal system, government, and private sector. 

Finally,  the Taliban issued a series of decrees that greatly restricted the movement of women outside of their homes. Indeed, women cannot leave their home without a mahram, which is a close relative. Even if a woman went out on her own, the Taliban imposed rules prohibiting many -- from health centers to coffee shops -- from providing goods and services to them. 

MAIN COURSE

For this particular challenge, I wanted to focus on a particular ingredient ... the tomato. While the tomato may be native to South America, it has its place in Afghan cuisine. This main course -- Kofta Challow -- features lamb or beef meatballs cooked in an onion-spiked tomato sauce. 

KOFTA CHALLOW

Recipe adapted from Afghan Yummy Food

Serves 4

Ingredients (for the rice):

• 3 cups basmati rice
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 1 tablespoon cumin seeds
•  2 tablespoons salt
• 1 tablespoon black pepper, freshly ground
• 1 teaspoon cardamom

Ingredients (for the meatballs):

• 2 cups coriander (cilantro), minced
• 1 green pepper, minced
• 3 cloves of garlic, minced
• 2 onions minced
• 1 pound ground beef or veal
• 1 egg
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper 
• 1.5 tablespoon coriander powder
• 1 tablespoon salt
• 1/2 cup oil
• 1 cup tomato sauce

Directions:

1. Prepare the rice. Rinse the rice and set aside for a few hours before cooking. Boil water in a pot. Add the rice and boil for a few minutes or until the rice is soft and long. Drain the water from the rice.

2. Continue preparing the rice. Heat a pan on high heat and add vegetable oil, boiled rice, salt dissolved in warm water and the spices. Mix well. Make holes with the back of the spatula. Cover the lid with a kitchen towel and place it on the pot. Cook on low heat for at least 25 to 30 minutes. 

3. Prepare the meatballs.  Add coriander, green pepper, one onion, garlic and mince in a food processor. In a big bowl, add the meat and spices. In a large saucepan, add the oil and heat on high heat. Add the second onion (minced), and sauté. Add the tomato sauce. Add water and leave on high heat until it comes to a boil. Make small balls form the meat mixture and add to the sauce. Leave it on low for 30 minutes to cook. 

4. Finish the dish. Serve with basmati rice or naan bread.

SIDE DISH

The tomato sauce continues onto the side dish, Banjan Salat. This dish is a simple one, consisting of eggplant, tomato sauce, and some spices. It is also different in terms of presentation insofar as it is served either at room temperature or cold. As I am not a very big fan of eggplant, I was a little apprehensive about a cold dish. I did like the spiced tomato sauce, but I still need to work on my liking of eggplant.

BONJUN SALAT

Recipe from Recipeland

Serves 8

Ingredients:

• 3 medium eggplants
• 2.5 teaspoons kosher salt
• 1/4 cup corn oil
• 1.5 cups tomato sauce
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes or minced fresh chiles
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1 tablespoon mint leaves

Directions:

1. Prepare the eggplant. Slice the eggplants crosswise into 1.5 inch thick pieces.  Sprinkle them with 2 teaspoons of coarse salt and let stand for 15 minutes. Rinse the eggplants under cold water, which removes the bitter taste. Rinse and dry well on a towel. 

2. Brown the eggplants. Heat the oil in a skillet and lightly brown the eggplant slices over moderate heat for 5 minutes.  Remove and put in a serving bowl to cool. 

3. Prepare the sauce. Put the tomato sauce, pepper, chile, cinnamon, mint and 1/4 teaspoon of salt in a pan. Simmer over low heat for 10 minutes, which is long enough to integrate the flavors.

4. Finish the dish.  Pour the sauce over the eggplant, refrigerate until ready to use. The salad can remain in the refrigerator for several days. Serve cold or at room temperature. 

*    *    *

In doing a challenge to prepare a main course from Afghanistan, it is impossible to ignore the plight of women in that country. Extremist religions of every kind often subordinate (or subjugate) women, depriving them of important and necessary opportunities to learn and seek better lives. The Taliban is depriving women of their fundamental rights, as well as denying the undeniable: namely, women have a lot to contribute to the political, economic and social success of Afghanistan. While I think I succeeded in making Kofta Challow, my mind will always look to a possible future where women could once again contribute to the future of the country.

PEACE.

Goi Ga (Vietnamese Chicken Salad)

 Ăn uống hài hoà 

(Eat and drink harmoniously)

Balance is important in every aspect of one's life, including what one cooks and eats. As I continue to explore the cuisines of cultures around the world, I have noticed a current that runs through the recipes and dishes of many cultures, including, by way of example, Vietnamese, Chinese, Thai, Indian and even Native American. It is balance. This balance may take many forms, such as a balance of ingredients or a balance of cooking methods. Nevertheless, it is still there. 

More recently, I found this balance in Goia Ga, a chicken salad that is commonly prepared in Vietnam. From what I could find, the salad originated in the north of the country. However, it is dish that is popular throughout Vietnam. Goi Ga is often served at home for family gatherings; but, people can also find the salad being served at festivals and even as street food. When one peruses the ingredient list, they will find a recipe for a light salad that incorporates chicken, fresh vegetables, fresh herbs and a dressing that features one of my favorite ingredients, fish sauce. 

Yet, there is something more fundamental about Goi Ga. It represents balance, or as the Vietnamese would describe it ngu hanh or ngu vi. I have previously explored the multiple levels of balance in Vietnamese cuisine. For example, there is the balance among the five tastes: spice, sour, bitter, salty and sweet. There is also a balance in texture: crispy crunchy, chewing, soft and silky. There are even further levels of balance, such as in cooking methods. 

Balancing ngu hanh or ngu vi on multiple levels can seem somewhat like a culinary game of 3-D chess. Goi Ga achieves that balance. The ingredient list illustrates the balance across all five tastes: peppers (spice), lime juice and vinegar (bitter), sugar (sweet), and fish sauce (sour and salty). It similarly shows a balance with respect to texture, with crispy elements (fried shallots), crunchy (peanuts), silky (olive oil), soft and chewy (chicken). 

Each bite of the Goi Ga brings with it a sense of harmony, and, along with that, a sense of happiness. This recipe is a call to be mindful of ingredients and how they interact. It is a mindfulness that I lack and have struggled to develop, especially given the lack of balance elsewhere in life, such as the work-life balance.  Still, If I can make this dish every once in a while, it will serve as a necessary reminder to take a moment and think more about what I prepare, eat and serve to others.

This may be the reason why I subconsciously keep coming back to dishes from Vietnam or elsewhere, such as China's Sichuan province. It is my own little nudge to find my some balance, even if it is only of the culinary kind. 

GOI GA (VIETNAMESE CHICKEN SALAD)

Recipe from Food & Wine

Serves 4

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon fish sauce
• 1.5 tablespoons fresh lime juice, plus lime wedges for serving
• 1.5 tablespoons distilled white vinegar
• 1 tablespoon water
• 1 serrano chile with seeds, minced
• 1 small garlic clove, minced
• 1 cup vegetable oil for frying
• 2 large shallots, thinly sliced
• Kosher salt
• 4 cups green cabbage (from 1/2 small head), finely shredded
• 2 carrots, finely shredded 
• 1/2 small red onion, thinly sliced
• 1/4 cup coarsely chopped cilantro
• 1/4 cup coarsely chopped mint
• 3 cups chicken (from 1/2 chicken), shredded
• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 3 tablespoons coarsely chopped unsalted roasted peanuts

Directions:

1. Prepare the dressing. In a small bowl, combine the sugar, fish sauce, lime juice, vinegar, water, chile and garlic. Stir until the sugar is dissolved. Let the dressing stand for 5 minutes.

2. Fry the Shallots. In a small saucepan, heat the vegetable oil until shimmering. Add the shallots and cook over heat heat, stirring constantly, until golden, 3 to 4 minutes. Drain the shallots on paper towels. Reserve the oil for another use. Sprinkle the shallots with salt and let cool.

3. Finish the dish. In a large bowl, toss the cabbage, carrots, red onion, cilantro, mint and shredded chicken. Add the olive oil and the dressing and toss. Sprinkle with the peanuts and fried shallots and serve the chicken salad with lime wedges.

PEACE.

Tomato, Garlic and Sumac Salad

This post, and its recipe, have their purposes. I have devoted my personal culinary blog to exploring the cuisines and cultures from around the world. I often find myself conflicted in writing posts about food and recipes, especially when the people about whom I am writing face deprivation and starvation. That has certainly been the case when I prepare Palestinian recipes and write about their cuisine. Indeed, as of December 2023, the 2.3 million Palestinians living in Gaza constituted eighty percent (80%) of the the people in the world who were experiencing famine or extreme hunger. How can I write about Palestinian cuisine and food when millions have been relegated to eating not only canned food, but expired canned food?

The answer is two-fold: first, to honor the culture and dignity of Palestinians who live in Gaza and the West Bank; and, second, to protest the reasons why Palestinians are being forcibly starved. Those are the purposes of this post: namely, to take what is a very simple recipe to prepare and use it to protest against the governments and militaries that are waging campaigns that use deprivation and starvation as critical components of their strategies. 

I have previously posted about the Palestinians, their culture and cuisine. I started with Zibdiyet Gambari, a spicy shrimp dish that came with a focus on the ties between Gazans, fishing and the sea.  I turned inland to make Gazan Dagga, a salsa that combines chiles with dill and that included a discussion of the ties between Gazans and their land, especially when it came to agriculture. I concluded with Qidreh, an amazing lamb and rice dish that accompanied a discussion of the assault upon the Palestinian people and their culture.  

All of those posts were my reaction to the inhuman, unethical and immoral campaign being waged by the far-right government of Israel against the Palestinian people. I had seen and heard too many people talk about how Hamas uses innocent civilians as human shields. That is a war crime. But I also saw and heard how the Israeli defense forces and the Israeli government - under the leadership of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir - simply directed their campaign at and through those human shields, rather than trying to wage their war against Hamas in a way that minimized the impact upon innocent Palestinian civilians. I firmly believe that those government officials should be indicted, hauled to The Hague, and stand trial for violations of international law. 

To make matters worse, famine has both short term and long term consequences. Some of those long term consequences can impact future generations of Gazans. Study after study has shown that famine can cause increased risk of hyperglycemia (a condition most commonly associated with diabetes) not only in the current generation, but also the next generation. That next generation has a greater risk of developing diabetes, obesity and cardiovascular issues. Thus, in a real sense, Israel's use of starvation in its war against Hamas targets not only innocent Palestinians currently living in Gaza, but future generations of Palestinians. 

This simple dish of tomatoes, chiles, garlic and sumac symbolizes what has been taken away from Gazans: the ability to obtain fresh ingredients, the opportunity to prepare a simple dish, and the necessity of being able to feed themselves to survive. Enough is enough. There must be a permanent cease-fire, accompanied by a restoration to the Palestinians what is rightfully theirs in Gaza and the West Bank, and an opening of the borders to allow humanitarian aid to reach those in need. 

TOMATO, GARLIC AND SUMAC SALAD

Recipe from Reem Kassis, The Palestinian Table, at 99

Serves 4-6

Ingredients (for the salad):

• 1 pound tomatoes, seasonal or heirloom tomatoes, sliced into 1/2 inch thick rounds
• 2 green chiles, seeded and finely chopped
• 3-4 sprigs of fresh mint, stems removed, and leaves coarsely chopped
• Flaked sea salt
• 1/2 teaspoon sumac

Ingredients (for the dressing):

• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice

Directions:

1. Prepare the tomatoes: Arrange the tomato slices in a pretty serving platter or plate. 

2. Prepare the dressing. Put the ingredients for the dressing in a small bowl and whisk until well combined, then spoon over the tomatoes. 

3. Finish the dish. Sprinkle the tomatoes with flaked sea salt, then top the chopped green chiles and mint leaves and sprinkler with sumac. Serve immediately. 

PEACE.

Cuminatum in Ostrea

I love reading about history, including culinary history. My travels through books and along the Internet take me to a lot of recipes. Many of those recipes, along with the resulting dishes, have long histories that date back decades, centuries and, in a few cases, perhaps a millennium or two. Yet, the recipes I find are usually the present day versions of those recipes, with little to no discussion about how we got to this point or that recipe.

Every once in a while, I will stumble upon someone who takes the time to find and talk about those recipes. In this case, it is the Historical Italian Cooking blog. The recipe that caught my eye is called cuminatum in ostrea et conchylia, which is Latin for cumin sauce for oysters and shellfish. The recipe dates back to at least the 5th century C.E., during which the Roman Empire collapsed (476 C.E.). We can go this far back because the recipe was found in the midst of a collection of recipes compiled in De Re Culinaria, also known as Apicius. The only surviving version of the Apicius dates back to the 5th century. 

Yet, cookbooks are sometimes akin to history books: they recount the recipe at the time of publication. This particular recipe may be much older, perhaps dating all the way back to the 1st century C.E. Some have attributed the Apicius to Marcus Gavius Apicius, who noble who was renown for his love of luxury foods. The Roman philopsopher Seneca once remarked that Apicius "proclaimed the science of the cookshop" (Seneca, Consolatio ad Helviami 10) and then corrupted the age through his example.

As the Historical Italian Cooking blog explains, Romans considered oysters to be a "costly food." Oysters may have been a luxury to the point that there was a reluctance to share them. The Roman poet, Martial (known as the father of the epigram, after all, he wrote 1,561 of them) recounted the following interesting epigram about a guest's response to the host's dinner: 

I dine with you at my own cost,

So why not fare the same, both guest and host?

You swallow Lucrine oysters large and fat,

I suck a whelk and cut my lips at that.

You're served with mushrooms, I chew fungus still,

You have to do with turbot, I with brill

Plump yellow doves your appetite assuage, 

I have a magpie starved within its cage.

I am by your side and yet I'm far away.

The dole has gone. Let's fare the same, I say.

Clearly, oysters ranked with other luxurious food items, such as mushrooms, turbot, and "plump yellow doves." (By the way, the underlying message in this epigram is as timeless is as true today as it was when Martial wrote it back in the first century A.D.) Other epigrams and poems by Martial underscore the oyster as an expensive food for Romans. 

Yet, even a costly food item like oysters has its limits. In another poem, Martial wrote, in part: 

I WILLINGLY accept your dainty fare

If hospitality be undesigning: 

Not so, if you imagine that I care

For nothing in the world so much as dining; 

A dozen oysters will not make you heir

To my reputed wealth for which you are pining; 

The feast is elegant; that I admit

But on the morrow what is left of it? 

Upon the morrow? Where is it to-day

The moment after it has passed your gullet?

Thus, oysters won't make you rich during Roman times, but they were certainly enjoyed by the rich.

This leads me to how Romans ate oysters. For that, I turned back to the Historical Italian Cooking blog. The author writes that in books wrote in the 2nd century, Galen's De Facultatibus Alimentorium, and in the 6th century, Anthimus' De Observatione Ciborum, recount that Romans ate oysters both raw and cooked (either boiled or fried). 

However, the recipe in Apicius provides for the oysters and shellfish but did not provide a cooking method. it provided only a sauce, and one that has its base in cuminum or cumin. In fact, the sauce requires a good amount of cumin (or cuminum plusculum). The recipe also calls for other spices (black pepper and lovage), herbs (fresh parsley and mint, the recipe calls for dried mint but you can use fresh mint), and a liquid mixture that consists of honey, garum and vinegar. If you do not have lovage, Historical Italian Cooking advises that, according to Pliny, you could use anise seeds, or according to Dioscorides, you can use fennel seeds.

For this recipe, I decided to prepare the sauce to serve with raw oysters. While I do not have authentic Roman garum (check out this post by Historical Italian Cooking on how to make it), I do have a significant amount of Vietnamese fish sauce (check out my post with a brief discussion of the history of fish sauce, including a reference to garum). I have modified the recipe slightly from the one provided by Historical Italian Cooking to show both how the writer described the preparation and how I prepared this dish. 

In the end, I have to say that I was not a big fan of this sauce. While I like cumin as a spice, I came to the realization that I am not keen on cuminum plusculum. The large amount of cumin overwhelmed the flavors of the oysters, with the brininess being lost in the loud notes of the spice. 

CUMINATUM IN OSTREA

Recipe adapted from Historical Italian Cooking

Serves several

Ingredients:

• 1.5 kilograms (about 3 pounds) of oysters
• Pinch of freshly ground black pepper; 
• Pinch of fennel seeds; 
• 4 tablespoons of cumin;
• 1 bunch of parsley, minced finely
• 1 tablespoon of dried mint leaves
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 1 tablespoon fish sauce
• 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar

Directions:

1. Prepare the sauce. Mince the parsley (and mint, if you use fresh mint). Pound them in the mortar with the pepper and the fennel seeds (or anise seeds or lovage), adding the cumin as you work. Move the mixture to a bowl and then proceed to mix in the honey and fish sauce (or garum), diluting it with the vinegar. 

2.  Finish the dish. Shuck the oysters and reserve the liqueur. Add some of the liqueur to the cumin sauce. Spoon some of the sauce over the shucked oysters and serve immediately. 

ENJOY!

Around the World in 80 Dishes (Special): Palestine

As part of my Around the World in 80 Dishes culinary adventure, I decided that I would prepare four special challenges. Each challenge would focus on a cuisine of a culture that does not have its own, fully recognized country. These challenges will also appear as part of my Beyond Borders project.

"If the olive trees knew the hands that planted them, their oil would become tears." 

Mahmoud Darwish.

I think it is fair to say that olive trees have a special place in Palestine and in the heart of Palestinians. Olive trees have been cultivated there for millennia. More recently, it has been estimated that olive groves constituted approximately 48% of the cultivated land in the Palestinian territories (mostly in the West Bank).  Those trees, and more specifically the olives and oil produced from those trees, accounts for fourteen percent (14%) of Palestine's agricultural income; and, that income supports more than 80,000 Palestinian families. To put that in perspective, consider the fact that  potatoes constitute fifteen percent (15%) of the agricultural income of the United States. Just as French fries or mashed potatoes may be important to Americans, olives and olive oil are important to Palestinians. 

But these trees are more than economic data. An olive tree is a symbol of the intangible qualities within the Palestinian people. Olive trees have shallow root systems, remaining just below the surface, enabling them to collect water before the surrounding soil dries out. These root systems enable the olive tree to thrive under harsh and difficult conditions. Perhaps it is that resilience explains the special place of these trees within Palestinian society. After all, resilience is a trait that is needed if one is a Palestinian living in the West Bank. 

Take, for example, a Palestinian farmer who cultivates olive trees. If his or her grove is near an Israeli settlement, the farmer needs to get a permit in order to cultivate the trees, even though those trees are situated on the farmer's property. Israeli authorities deny forty-two percent (42%) of those applications.  A denied application means that the farmer cannot access his or her olive trees. No access means no income or ability to support oneself or a family. Even if the farmer is able to get a permit, he or she must still access his or her property through a checkpoint. Those checkpoints are open seasonally and only during certain timeframes. Even if the farmer gets the permit and gets through the checkpoint, he or she will be able to work his or her property, but under the supervision of the Israeli military.  The entire picture - having to get a permit to farm one's own land, having to go through a checkpoint to get to one's property, and having to be supervised while working on one's land - is a series of indignations that rob many Palestinians of their dignity and respect as human beings. 

It is this deprivation of dignity and respect for Palestinians as people that defines their daily life. It is not just the farmer who has to endure an oppressive system - characterized by dark hues that shift from the Kafkaesque to the Apartheid-esque - each and every day of their lives. The New York Times recently chronicled the lives of several Palestinians in an article entitled Life Under Occupation: The Misery at the Heart of the Conflict. I think the article is a must-read, not only because it is a well written article, but also because it provides a window to the multitude of indignities suffered by and insecurities felt by a wide range of Palestinians on a daily basis.

The Life Under Occupation article represents an exception when it comes to reporting on the conflict in Palestine and Israel. Most news articles focus on rockets being fired into Israeli territory or Israeli airstrikes on targets in the West Bank or Gaza. To make matters worse, we accept the headline, maybe read the byline, and possibly the article itself. We almost never take the additional step to learn more than what is in that article. It is a tragedy, because we can never fully understand a situation. People can at least make an effort to go beyond what is provided to them - whether in a newspaper delivered to their door or found on their newsfeed on their phone. They can affirmatively try to learn more about the experiences of those who are caught up in a dispute, that is, learn more about the people rather than the politics. In this case, it is an effort to learn about the plight of everyday Palestinian people. Individuals who are just trying to get by, make a living, and support their families. 

So, for this special Around the World in 80 Dishes post, I am dedicating it to the everyday Palestinian, whether it is the farmer tending to his or her olive groves, or the workers in shops, factories and other workplaces.  I want to learn more about them and, given this is a food blog, what they eat. Fortunately, my beautiful Angel's parents bought me a cookbook by Reem Kassis entitled The Palestinian Table. I decided to make a meal using recipes from that cookbook. 

SPICE MIX

When one talks about Middle Eastern cuisine, there is inevitably a spice mix. Some spice mixes are uniquely attributed to a specific country or people, such Ras el-Hanout is to Morocco. Other spice mixes, such as Baharat or Za'atar cross borders and ethic groups. For example, there is Turkish Baharat and Tunisian Baharat, and, the mixes are completely different. 

Palestinians use a Nine Spice Mix. Some of the ingredients - cardamom, cumin, clove and nutmeg - can be found in other spice mixes such as Baharat. However, I think the use of mace, which is the protective coating over the nutmeg seed, sets this mixture apart.  (Mace also happens to be the one spice that I did not have on hand, sending me to local Middle Eastern markets and Indian markets in search of it.)  

The key to this mixture -- and, in reality, any mixture -- is to use whole seeds rather than ground seeds.  There is something about toasting whole seeds and grinding them just before using the spice mixture that really does make a dish better.  Ground spices are great for cooking on the fly, but, when you are taking the time to make a nice meal, whole spices are an important part of the process of making a nice meal.

NINE SPICE MIX

Recipe from Reem Kassis, The Palestinian Table, pg. 24

Ingredients:

• 6 tablespoons allspice berries
• 6 cassia bark or cinnamon sticks
• 3 tablespoons coriander seeds
• 3 tablespoons black peppercorns
• 1 teaspoon cardamom seeds
• 1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds
• 10 cloves
• 2 blades of mace
• 1/2 nutmeg, crushed

Directions:

1. Toast the spices. Place all of the ingredients in a large skillet (frying pan) over medium low heat. Stir with a wooden spoon periodically to ensure that the spices do not burn, until you begin to smell the aroma of the spices, about 10 minutes.

2. Allow the spices to cool. Remove the pan from the heat and set aside to cool completely, about 1 hour.  This step is crucial because if the spices are not cooled properly, they will form a paste when ground rather a powder.

3. Grind the spices. Place all of the spices into a heavy duty spice grinder and grind until you achieve a fine powder consistency. Store the spice mix in an airtight container.  It will keep for several months, although the aroma will fade over time. 

SALAD

For this challenge, I really wanted to prepare something in addition to the main course.  I spent a lot of time paging through the recipes in The Palestinian Table trying to find a side or an appetizer that would complement the main course. In the end, I chose a Farmer Salad.

The author of The Palestinian Table, Reem Kassis, notes that, to Palestinians, it is known as Farmer's Salad.  To everyone else, it is known as Palestinian salad.  The core of this salad consists of finely diced tomatoes, onions, and dried mint, combined together with a dressing of olive oil, lemon and salt.  Other ingredients can be added to the salad, such as cucumbers, bell peppers, chiles, lemons and parsley.  Kassis notes a trick that she learned from her mother-in-law, which is to add a finely diced lemon to the salad. The lemon is supposed to give the salad a "kick."  I can say that is an accurate statement, because I could tell a difference between a bite of the salad with the lemon and a bite of the salad without the lemon. 

FARMER'S SALAD (PALESTINIAN SALAD)

Recipe from Reem Kassis, The Palestinian Table, pg. 104

Ingredients:

• 4 large beefsteak or 8 small tomatoes
• 2 small cucumbers
• 2 green chilies
• 1 whole unwaxed lemon
• 1 onion or 4-6 scallions
• 4 tablespoons finely chopped fresh mint leaves or 1 tablespoon crushed dried mint leaves
• 4 tablespoons olive oil
• 4 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon salt

Directions:

1. Prepare the tomatoes and cucumbers. Chop the tomatoes into very small cubes and put into a large bowl. Dice the cucumbers into similar sized small cubes and add to the tomatoes.  If you are using a traditional large cucumber, make sure to peel and seed it first. 

2. Prepare the rest of the ingredients. Seed the chiles (if you prefer even less heat, remove all the white membranes as well). Slice the lemon into thin rounds, discarding the top and bottom rounds and any seeds as well, then chop each round into small cubes. Add to the salad. Dice the onion very finely and add to the salad to the salad.  Finally throw in the chopped fresh mint leaves or dried mint.

3. Finish the dish. Drizzle with olive oil and lemon juice and sprinkle with salt. Toss very lightly with a large spoon and serve immediately.

MAIN COURSE

Farmer's Salad is typically a side to a kafta dish.  I am a very big fan of kafta, whether prepared as skewers, meatballs or meatloaf.  However, I really wanted to try something different for this challenge.  I wanted to find something that is quintessentially Palestinian, but requires me to do something other than grill or skewer meat. That is when I came across a recipe for Chicken, Onion and Sumac Casserole.

It was Reem Kassis' description of this dish that caught my eye and never let go.  As she writes, "[t]the combination of onions and sumac cooked in olive oil is one of the most traditional and uniquely Palestinian flavors you will ever come across."  She goes on to describe how this recipe is more common in the northern part of Palestine, where the onions and sumac are cooked with chicken and, on occasion, potatoes. The red hues of the final dish, which come from the use of the paprika and sumac, lend the dish its name of mhammar, also known as mussakhan. If I only had thought about purchasing taboon bread for this dish. 

Not only was this recipe very delicious, as described by Kassis, but it was very easy to make. If only someone other than me ate meat in the family, this dish could easily be inserted into the rotation of weekly meetings.

CHICKEN, ONION AND SUMAC CASSEROLE

Recipe from Reem Kassis, The Palestinian Table, pg. 114

Ingredients:

• 2.5 pounds of chicken pieces
• 6-7 onions diced
• 3-5 potatoes, cut into rounds
• 3 tablespoons sweet paprika
• 2 tablespoons sumac
• 1 tablespoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon Nine Spice Mix
• 1 tablespoon salt
• 3-4 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 tablespoons toasted pine nuts

Directions:

1. Prepare the casserole. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Put the chicken, onions, and potatoes, if using into a greased or non-stick, deep roasting dish. 

2. Continue with the casserole. In a small bowl, mix together all of the spices, salt and olive oil until evenly combined.  Pour the mixture into the roasting dish and use your hands to work the spice rub evenly into the onions, chicken and potatoes.  Make sure the chicken pieces are not crowding each other and that they are skin side up.

3. Cook the dish. Add 1/2 cup of water to the tray, cover with aluminum foil and bake in the oven for 1-1 1/4 hours until the chicken is fully cooked.  Check once or twice during cooking to make sure liquid has not entirely evaporated and top up with more water if necessary.  You don't want the dish to be completely dry but you also do not want a soup, more of a gravy sauce coating the onions.

4. Finish the dish. Once the chicken is cooked, remove the foil and increase the oven temperature (or preheat the broiler/grill).  Continue to cook for another 5-10 minutes to allow the chicken skin to crisp up.  Remove from the oven and allow to sit for 5 minutes before siting.  Sprinkler with toasted pine nuts. 

*    *    *

The challenge to cook a Palestinian main course went extremely well. The combination of chicken, onions, and sumac -- with the Palestinian Nine Spice Mix -- was one of the best dishes that I have made in recent weeks. It has also been an extremely long time since I roasted (as opposed to grilled or smoked) chicken.  Another successful challenge in the books.

However, there is still an issue. It is one that I cannot resolve myself.  However, I can do my part by trying to be open-minded and willing to learn. I can try the best to put myself "in the shoes" of others, figuratively, of course, by trying to learn more from the perspective of the people.  The whole point of my Around the World in 80 Dishes personal culinary challenge, as well as my side project Beyond Borders, is to learn more about people through their food. That is what I sought to do with this post. I wanted to go beyond the headlines, as well as the generalizations and characterizations, to take a moment to learn about the Palestinians as a people, and, what they share with everyone else around the world, namely, a love of food. And, based on this challenge, some really, really good food.  

Now, it is time to return to the regular challenges.  I have started to include upcoming challenges on my Around the World in 80 Dishes page.  Upcoming challenges include preparing main courses  from Dominica, Sri Lanka and Gabon.  Until next time ...

ENJOY!

Mirchi Qorma

Modern history defines Kashmir in a broad stroke. That stroke illustrates a land divided amongst three separate powers. There is Azad Kashmir and Gilgit Baltistan, which is under the control of Pakistan. As that stroke moves east, there is Jammu and Kashmir, along with Ladakh, both of which are controlled by India. The stroke finishes with Aksai Chin and the Trans-Kakoram Tract, which are under the control of China (and, which are administratively part of Xinjiang and/or Tibet). 

Looking back into the past, when one spoke of Kashmir, they were more than likely talking about the Kashmir Valley.  It is a region bookended by the Pir Panjal range to the southwest and the Himalaya Mountains to the northeast. It is also the historic home to the Kashmiri people.  They are the focus of this blog post. 

The Kashmiri people are a Dardic ethnic group, a group of Indo-Aryan peoples who live in northeastern Pakistan, eastern Afghanistan and Kashmir. It is a region that has seen conquerors come and go, including the Mughals, who ruled the region for about 200 years between the 1580s and the 1750s, the Afghanis, who ruled for a few decades; and the Sikhs, who ruled for about twenty years until they were supplanted by the Dogra Regime, who controlled the area until 1947. It was the Dogra Regime that perhaps best underscored the problem: a Hindu monarchy that exploited the masses of Muslim Kashmiri people.  As it was once described: 

The poverty of the Muslim masses is appalling. Dressed in rags and barefoot, a Muslim peasant presents the appearance of a starved beggar.... Most are landless laborers, working as serfs for absentee landlords.

This description is particularly jarring, especially given Kashmiri cuisine.  Dishes primarily feature rice, usually served with a protein, such as lamb or mutton. These include, by way of example, Machwangen Kormeh (meat cooked with spices and chilies, including Kashmiri chiles) and Yakhni (a yogurt-based mutton gravy flavored with bay leaves, cloves and cardamom). Indeed, meat features prominently in these dishes, which is something that naturally appeals to a die-hard carnivore like myself. 

A Wazwan Feast (from Auralcrave)

This dish has its place in Kashimiri cuisine. It is one of about 30 lamb dishes that are part of a 36-dish Kashmiri feast known as the wazwan. (In the Kashmiri language, waz means "cook" or cooking, while wan means "shop.") The feast celebrates the legacy of the 15th century Turko-Mongol conquerer Timur.  The conqueror brought with him 1,700 skilled workers.  Those workers included cooks, who would butcher the lambs for the dishes.  The cooks worked under the supervision of a wouste waze, who is the master chef.  As the dishes are completed, they are brought out to the guests, who sit at tables of four with a traem (a large bronze plate) on the middle of the table. The guests share the dishes as they are placed om the traem until the last dish - gushtaba (meatballs cooked in a spicy gravy - is served. The meatball recipe signifies the end of the feast. 

This recipe for Mirchi Qorma comes from Ahdoo's Hotel, which is located in Srinagar, the capital of Jammu-Kashmir.  A qorma is the Urdic word "to braise." In this case, it is the braising of pieces of lamb in a fiery chile sauce made from Kashmiri chiles.  The dish itself illustrates the influence of the past, as a qorma is a Mughal dish, typically made in the kitchens for the court of the rulers. The cooks first seared the lamb over high heat, typically with ghee, adding liquid to create the gravy or curry in which the meat continues to cook. This recipe basically follows that historical approach. The end product is one of the best curries that I have had in a very long time. 

MIRCHI QORMA

Recipe from Saveur

Serves 4-6

Ingredients:

• 6 dried Kashmiri chiles or pasilla chiles, stemmed
• 2 small red Thai chiles or 1 red jalapeno, stemmed 
• 2 pounds lamb shoulder
• 1 tablespoons black pepper corns
• 4 green cardamom pods
• 1 stick of cinnamon
• 1/4 cup canola oil
• 1 teaspooon kala jeera (black cumin seeds
• 10 cloves garlic, mashed into a paste
• 2 Indian (or regular) bay leaves
• 1/4 cup tamarind paste
• 3 tablespoons dried mint
• 1 tablespoon red chile powder, such as cayenne
• Kosher salt, to taste.

Directions:

1.  Cook the lamb.  Heat a six quart saucepan over medium-high heat.  Cook dried chiles until lightly toasted, 1 to 2 minutes.  Transfer to a food processor, add fresh chiles and 1 cup of water.  Puree until smooth and return to pan.  Add lamb, peppercorns, cardamom, cinnamon and 3 cups of water.  Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium low, cook, covered, until lamb is very tender, about one hour.  Transfer the lamb mixture to a bowl. 

2.  Finish the dish. Wipe the pan clean; heat oil over medium high.  Cook cumin seeds, garlic and bay leaves until seeds pop, about 1-2 minutes.  Add reserve lamb mixture, the tamarind paste, 1 teaspoon of mint, the chile powder and salt. Bring it to a boil and then reduce the heat to medium. Cook until thickened, about 1 hour.  Garnish with remaining mint. 

ENJOY!

Broiled Lamb Hearts with Salsa Verde and Fresh Chickpea Salad

If you are looking for an economical cut of meat that is still very tasty, then you have to look no further than lamb heart.  At about $4.99 a pound (give or take a few cents or a dollar),  as compared to $9.99 or even $19.99 for other more popular cuts of lamb or beef, it is definitely worth a try.  The only thing is that you have to look very hard to find lamb hearts.  The average grocery store does not stock them.

Fortunately, I have found lamb hearts on occasion at a certain large grocery store that just happened to merge with an online behemoth.  I have cooked with this ingredient twice before.  My first dish was Khalyat Alkadba Wal Galoob (Fried Heart and Liver), which is a Libyan dish I prepared in connection with my Around the World in 80 Dishes challenge.  The second dish was Cuore di Agnello Brasata al Chianti (Lamb Hearts Braised in Chianti).  Both dishes were very good and have always left me wanting more.  

During a recent trip to said large grocery store soon to be owned by even larger online behemoth, I saw that it had lamb hearts.  I decided to buy them and try a more simpler preparation.  I was not going to prepare them in an ethnic style (although I did give that a thought for a moment).  I was not going to do anything fancy with a bottle of wine.  Instead, I decided that I would broil the hearts and try to find different ways to add contrasting and complementing flavors.  

I found a recipe for broiling lamb hearts on LiveStrong, which had a preparatory step that I did not know.  The recipe called for placing the lamb hearts in a bowl of salted water.  In other words, to do a brine.  The recipe did not provide any time limits for the brining of the lamb hearts.  I was also working only with slightly over a half of a pound of meat, as opposed to a twelve pound turkey.  So, I decided that, at most, a half an hour in the brine.  That half of an hour made an incredible difference.  Once cooked the meat was far more tender than my previous attempts and a little more flavorful.  After trying this preparation, I would strongly recommend a brief brine for lamb hearts because it will pay off in the end. 

Still, I only had lamb heart.  I needed something to go with that meat.  I pulled out my cookbooks and surfed the Internet until I came across two recipes from Michael Symon, the well-known chef who hails from Cleveland (which is also my hometown).  One recipe was for a salsa verde, which I thought would go well over the broiled lamb heart.  The recipe was for a Fresh Chick Pea Salad, which made a great side dish.  Both sides are very easy to make and helped to round out a complete meal. 

Now, I know most people are already turned off by the lamb hearts.  Unfortunately, we have been raised to only think about steak, like ribeyes, strip steaks, or burgers.  The supposedly more adventurous think about lamb shanks and rack of lamb.  But, it is in these often overlooked cuts of meat where one can find some true culinary joy. 

BROILED LAMB HEART WITH SALSA VERDE

AND FRESH CHICK  PEA SALAD

Lamb heart recipe adapted from Live Strong

Salsa Verde and Fresh Chick Pea Salad from Cooking Channel

Ingredients (for the lamb):

1/2 pound of lamb heart

1/4 cup of olive oil

1/4 cup of sherry vinegar

Salt

Ground pepper

Ingredients (for the salsa verde):

1 clove garlic, minced

1/2 shallot, minced

1 salt packed anchovy (or a teaspoon anchovy paste)

2 tablespoon salt-packed capers

Pinch red chile flakes

1/2 Fresno chile (or a Cubanelle or Anaheim chile)

1 lemon, zested and juiced

1/2 cup chiffonade fresh mint leaves

1/2 cup fresh flat leaf parsley, chiffonade

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling

Freshly cracked black pepper

Kosher salt

Ingredients (for the chick pea salad):

Salt

3 cups fresh chickpeas, shelled

1/2 shallot, thinly sliced

1/2 Fresno chile (or a Cubanelle or Anaheim chile)

Freshly cracked black pepper

Extra-virgin olive oil

1/2 cup freshly picked flat-leaf parsley

1/2 cup freshly picked mint leaves

Directions:

1.  Prepare the lamb hearts.  Use kitchen scissors or a sharp knife to remove as much fat and connective tissue from the surface of the lamb heart as possible.  Rinse the heart and place it in a bowl of cold water mixed with a pinch of salt.  Preheat the broiler.  Combine the oil and vinegar and whisk together.

2.  Prepare the salsa verde.  In a medium bowl, add the garlic, shallot, anchovy, capers, red chile flakes, chile, lemon zest (save juice for later), mint and parsley.  Save the lemon juice just until serving  - this will help prevent the herbs from turning a dark unappealing color.  Add the extra virgin olive oil and freshly cracked black pepper, to taste.  Set aside.  Do not salt now.  Allow the flavors to come together.  

3.  Prepare the chickpea salad.  Put a large pot of water over high heat and bring to a boil.  Once at a boil, season with salt and add the chickpeas.  Allow to blanch for about 10 to 15 seconds.  Add the shallots and chile to a medium bowl.  Drain the chickpeas and add to the shallots and chile.  Season with salt and pepper, to taste, and drizzle with extra virgin olive oil.  Toss in the parsley and mint leave.  Taste and season if needed.

4.  Broil the lamb hearts.  Remove the heart and pat dry with towels.  Put on a broiler pan.  Brush with the olive oil/vinegar mixture.  Season with salt and pepper.  Place under the broiler for about 3 minutes.  Flip the hearts and brush the other side with the olive oil/vinegar mixture.  Continue to cook for 3 minutes or until the internal temperature reaches 145 degrees Fahrenheit.  Remove from the broiler and let rest for 3 minutes.  

ENJOY!