The WHAT and the WHEN - My favorite meal!

THE WHAT

What a perfect time for me to indulge into the foods that let me relish and appreciate life. I am almost 10 hours into fasting, and reminiscing about all these splendid meals is getting me worked up.

Before getting into the "when", let me share with you my favorite "what". A magnificent Jordanian dish -

MANSAF

This traditional Arab dish is usually made of lamb cooked in fermented dried yogurt and served with rice or bulgur. The cooking process can be a tad bit tedious, so I would recommend buying it rather than cooking it. I have heard the meat is also dry aged, cooked buried in sand and what not.

_{This is mansaf with chicken, as the lamb mansaf usually becomes out of stock due to popular demand.}

I was first introduced to it in Ukraine by a friend at the time. From my first bite I was an immediate fan. Mansaf had become my go-to Arabic meal. The rice is flavorful and usually served with nuts and green toppings. The meat is tender and melts in the mouth!

The signature of this dish is the JAMEED. The sauce of fermented yogurt served with it. You can either drown and soak the meat in it, or pour it over the meal and have it like that. And let me tell you, one serving will fill you up for the day.

WARNING: The first time I ate mansaf, it was so good it put me to sleep on the dining table.

NOW, TO THE "WHEN".

The beauty of food lies within the aspect of care, love and availability to share it. I often say "it is the experience you pay for, not the food."

This is why I have divided my favorite meal into a what and a when. I cannot assert how much a meal triples in taste and flavor when it is shared with other around you. The essence of sharing sustenance in form of a meal is wonderful.

Remember I said I was fasting? That is because it is Ramadan, an Islamic month where Muslims do not eat or drink from sunrise to sunset for a month.

The beauty of this is that it makes food much more enjoyable and tasty. It makes us appreciate food which drives us to make some really good meals. AND one of the virtues of Ramadan is to share food. This "when" type of meal is-

IFTAAR

The meal we use to break our fast when the sun sets. The signature of Iftaar is breaking the fast with dates and water.

_{Stacking up on dates for Ramadan for yourself and sharing isn't a rare concept.}

In the upcoming pictures you will see how much we love sharing meals and enjoying them together, and if with a good eye you will catch the glimpse of dates, everywhere.

The image above contains mansaf in the back, potato wedges, beef with cheese and sauces in the front and "Hummus" next to it. In the middle is the sinature dates.

On the right you can see a tray of "Fattoush", which is a salad with cucumbers, tomatoes, lettuce and fried bread, "Hummus" next to it, "Labneh" and more Fattoush.

By now maybe it may seem like I do prefer Arabic cuisine over everything. However,
that is not the case.

Truth of the matter is, it is difficult to find non Arabic Muslims around some parts of Europe. During Ramadan we love to share meals and the size of the servings in the pictures above should make that obvious, hence hanging around a group of people I can share a meal with also puts me in a position to enjoy their cuisine.

_{On the left is Uzbeki bread and beef "Samsa" - bread wrapped in fried meat. Also, salads and yogurt.
On the right are plates of friend potato wrapped in Basen and plates of fresh fruits. Both pictures taken during volunteering in distribution of free food.}

An Iftaar can be very, very diverse. Something about fasting, however, makes us crave fried food. There is no explanation to why, although we should be indulging into water and fruits.

In the pictures above is another reason I love an Iftaar. During Ramadan, people usually distribute food to their neighborhoods and/or in places of worship. This allows people who are less fortunate to have something for absolutely free as well as give us the sense of unity by sharing the meals with everyone.

Salads, juices, fried goodies, biscuits and cookies, yogurt, noodles, barbecues and potatoes, fruits, burgers and even pizzas.

Its not the food that makes Iftaar special, its the love and sharing that does.

I think, maybe, you would now understand why I divided my favorite meal into a what and a when. It truly doesn't matter what you are eating or how it is presented. Meals being us joy.
And the purest joy comes from making someone else happy.

If I could eat one thing for the rest of my life it would be Mansaf. With the nuts, Jameed, rice and melting meat it makes a perfect mix of what a meal should be.

But if I could I would choose to share it with everyone, every time. No matter their race, age, color or religious belief. Because that is what makes a meal special.

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