The Best of Afghan Cooking

Themost comprehensive collection of authentic Afghan recipes published in English, this cookbook brings the legendary hospitality and foods of the Afghan table toreaders everywhere.Since ancient times, Afghanistan's location inthe heart of Central Asia has made it a crossroads for multiple cultures and culinaryinfluences. The ancient city of Kabul was a hub for European, Chinese andIndian merchants as well as intellectuals and spiritual leaders. In thiscontext, Afghanistan's rich and multifacetedculinary identity evolved.To this day, Afghans retain the tradition ofpreparing food with freshly harvested ingredients. In most villages, flour isstill ground in local mills and cows are milked daily, and the milk is thenprocessed into fresh butter or yogurt. Kabobs, ranging from chicken, beef, lamband fish, are seasoned with delicate spices before grilling. A variety of freshvegetables, fruits, and herbs, along with lentils and meat, are used to preparetraditional stews called qurmas. ConsideredAfghanistan's national food, rice dishes called palow are cooked with meat, onions, and distinctivespices such as cumin, cardamom, cinnamon, cloves, and black pepper. Dough prepared with fresh ingredients is shapedinto bread, cookies, and cakes before being baked in a preheated ground ovencalled a tandoor. Aromatic spices and crunchy roasted nuts combined withfresh milk and wheat create unique desserts that are simple to prepare butdeliver impressive results.Kabul native Zarghuna Adel bringsa lifetime of cooking experience and years of research into this uniquecookbook, which features authentic Afghan recipes that were lost or forgottenin the course of four decades of war and displacement. This volume featuresover 225 recipes, each with easy-to-follow instructions and a color photograph.Fifteen chapters cover the range of Afghan culinary offerings, from appetizers, soups, salads, and main dishes to condiments and desserts, and each chapter includesa detailed introduction to the history, origins, and cultural traditions thatsurround the recipes.Sample recipes: Ashak (leek dumplings with yogurt and ground beef) Kabob Teka (marinated lamb andvegetable kabobs) Badenjan Borani (eggplant appetizer with tomatoes and yogurt) Chapli Kabob(fried spicy ground beef patties)Qabeli Palow (long grainrice with onions, spices and tender meat) Halwa Ardi (wheat flour halwa with cardamom and nuts) Rout (fluffy sweet bread with sesame and nigellaseeds) Chai Chawa (green tea with ginger, fennel and walnuts)