Eating in and out in Jordan

Allan is struggling to keep his weight down, due to the delicious food prepared by family and friends in Jordan. We start this blog post with a visit to a restaurant in downtown Amman, the bottom of a very winding road as Amman is situated on 7 mountains --- it was a hair-raising way to start lunch. Then very heavy rain came pouring down and set the downtown area awash --- a rare and most welcome event!

Still, we were unperturbed and crossed flooded streets to reach our destination --- the Jerusalem restaurant.

Our friend Jawad had made the arrangements, and Nuha, Muna's sister-in-law joined us for the feast.
It started with a traditional Bedouin dish of stuffed lamb's neck.
Served on rice with a side dish of soup and yogurt, it is simply delicious. So tender, succulent and flavoursome - it is a specialty of the restaurant. Not a resaurant for vegetarians.

This was followed by "kinafe", the traditional sweet made of cheese, a type of roasted shredded vermicelli, and sweet syrup. The little shop selling this delight has been in the same place for years and years and there is always a queue, even in the rain! People normally sit outside on some stone seats or on the edge of the pavement . We stood in the rain, and enjoyed our Kinafe piping hot --- yummy!!!
Family members cook often, like every day, and have stoves to match the needs of feasts when family members visit - it is common to go to family dinners with 10 - 15 people present.
There are several types of bread common in Jordan; this one is Allan's favourite --- a large thin round loaf good for eating with, well, just about anything.
They also eat all kinds of green things --- most of them Allan would pullout of the garden as they are considered weeds in Australia. This one is called "Khubbayzi". When cooked, it actually tastes nice. Still, if times get very hard, they know how to eat cheaply!
This traditional Persian dish of "musamma" is made with chicken in a rich sweet sauce of pomegranate paste and walnuts --- one of Allan's many, many favourites --- certainly, on the list of 30 top ten favourite meals.
All around the Middle East, "hummus" is very popular. Made from ground boiled chick peas, it can be garnished with all kinds of toppings --- in this case lamb, but often with mushrooms, a garlic oil dressing, pine nuts, etc. Hmmmmmm, yummy.
Chicken is very versatile, and this is with "freekreh", a young or "green" smoked wheat, cooked somewhat like rice, and served with baked/fried chicken and roasted almonds. Made from wheat before it fully ripens, it has a unique taste and is a special treat. All kinds of garnishes decorate the table --- olives, radish, fresh spring onions, and "torshi lemon", in this case --- lemon slices with chili and black cumin, some pickled in vinegar and some in olive oil (both very yummy).
"Kubbih" (a Lebanese dish) comes in various forms --- this one being the most popular. Stuffed inside a thin shell of finely ground meat, cracked wheat (burghul) and onions and seasoned with pepper and cumin, is coarser cooked meat with walnuts, and then the whole thing is deep fried. When Allan first had this food, made by Muna's mother, Naz Delshad, he was mesmerized, and not knowing their name, referred to them as "cannon balls" --- luckily for Allan, Muna makes them too.

Kubbih can also be served raw; these shown below, however, are a vegetarian version made by Nadia (one of Muna's numerous cousins), who kindly invited us to break the Fast at her home.
Nadia also made a variety that was cooked in a yogurt sauce rather than fried.Rice is eaten nearly every meal, and it comes in many varieties, this dish has roasted almonds and pine nuts.

Salads are a welcome starter dish, and lots of varieties have already been enjoyed.
Another staple food is "falafel", a popular take-away food (beats western fast food hands down!); it is made of chick peas, dried broad beans (both soaked, peeled and minced), fresh parsley and coriander, onion, and garlic, and is deep fried. These falafels are the traditional shapeand are stuffed into flat "pita" type bread with salad, vegetables and tahini dressing. Then there is another larger variety, "mother of falafel", which are stuffed with onions and red pepper and are chili hot.
More hummus, this time with chick peas on top and garnish --- great food for vegetarians.
The local cauliflowers are yellow in colour, sweet and delicious. Muna made some Aussie 'baked cauliflower and broccoli in a white cheese sauce' and this cauli was cooked with lamb in a dish served with rice.
A typical table setting.
This is just a sample of the many delectable delights enjoyed while visiting family in Jordan --- it is a real test of will-power not to overeat with so much temptation.......