SPICY, CRUNCY CHICKPEAS: NAKHOD-E-SHOR

By Katie

A bowl of almonds and walnuts in the shell along with a nut cracker next to it was a permanent fixture on our living room coffee table when I was growing up.  I had forgotten about this until recently when I went to Humaira's house and she set out a bowl of shelled walnuts.  She told me her mother, Jeja had cracked them herself.  The image of Jeja, sitting at home, working her way through a bag full of nuts for her children and grandchildren was heartwarming, to say the least.  A labor of love, no doubt, by a woman who doesn't necessarily always know how to express her affection.  The walnuts were in a different category altogether from what I might find in the bins at my local market:  unblemished, with a sheen to the walnut skins, sweet, completely lacking any need for adornment.

This got me to thinking about one of my favorite Afghan rituals:  hot tea with nibbles.  In Afghanistan, green or black tea, gently scented with cardamom, is served practically around the clock.  Little dishes of snacky things are set out to enjoy with the tea:  freshly cracked nuts, dried apricots, fat golden raisins, candied almonds called noql, spicy chickpeas, and so on.  The spicy chickpeas are particularly addictive and a snack that works, to my decidedly American palate, just as well with a cold drink as a cup of tea.  You can make them start to finish in a matter of minutes; the key is having your ingredients ready before you begin. 

Spicy Afghan Chickpeas

2 tbsp. olive oil

1 tbsp. ground paprika

1 tbsp. ground chili powder

2 tsp. Kosher salt

1 lb. skinless, unsalted, dry-roasted chickpeas

Heat a wok or large saute pan over medium-high heat.  Add oil, paprika, chili powder and salt and quickly stir to make a paste.  Immediately add chickpeas and stir-fry for 1 minute, turning the chickpeas in the pan to coat with the spices.  Pour into a colander.  Shake the colander for 1 minute to eliminate extra spices.  Let cool and store in a jar with a tight lid. 

*You can find dry roasted chickpeas in Middle Eastern and Indian Markets

Except where otherwise noted, all content on this blog is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported license.

AFGHAN INSPIRED PADRON CHILI AND WALNUT SAUCE - CHUTNEY

By Humaira

Jeja (my mom) has a reputation of being an excellent cook within the Bay Area Afghan community. I wouldn’t dare share any recipe that wouldn’t pass muster with her.  In this blog I share my family's home cooking recipes for your Western kitchen.  The blog is my way to educate the world about Afghan people and the delicious food of Afghanistan. It's also my effort to keep in touch with my cultural heritage as I raise my two daughters in San Francisco, California.  

My research for this blog has not only strengthened my relationship with my mom,  it has also given me great appreciation and understanding of Afghan people.  

What has been most surprising to me is how food brings people across all cultures together.  

Once I was at my daughter's class pot-luck -- I introduced myself to the math teacher. She looked at my name tag and said, "I know you, I cook from your blog -- my mom sometimes adds Indian spices..."  

I am alway thrilled a to meet a reader but, the ones that take my recipes and make it their own is even more exciting to me.

In this blog the recipes have been tested by Afghans and non Afghans.  I always retain the delicious flavors of Afghan food but simplify the cooking so it's accessible to experienced and novice cooks.

Padron chilis are small and relatively mild. I used them in this recipe to create my version of an Afghan chili sauce, a condiment commonly served with kebabs or as an accompaniment to other side dishes.  I don’t particularly like super spicy foods, but I love a little zing of pepper alongside milder dishes.  This sauce is designed to brighten the flavors of rice, meat or Qorma dishes without overpowering the food.  Use sparingly.

Afghan Inspired Spicy Chili Sauce

Chutney

2 pints padron chilis (around 22 peppers), ends off and seeds removed

3 cloves peeled garlic

1 teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon ground black pepper

2 tablespoons roughly chopped walnuts

½ cup white vinegar

Put the peppers, garlic, salt, black pepper, walnuts, and vinegar in the food processor and use the pulse button to grind the peppers and mix the ingredients.   Pulse a couple of times, wipe the sides, check the consistency and pulse more.  The sauce looks best and ends up with a pleasing crunch if you don’t over blend it.  If you prefer things really spicy, use a hotter chili like jalapeños. 

Serve in a small bowl and use a small amount to eat with whatever you are making for dinner.

Serves 8

Except where otherwise noted, all content on this blog is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported license. 

FRESH AFGHAN CHEESE - KIMISH PANARE

by Humaira

Ever since leaving Afghanistan 34 years ago, I would think back to the summer days in Paghman where my family would go for Friday outings to escape the Kabul heat. Paghman is only a short drive from Kabul but has very mild weather. Wealthy Kabulis would spend their summer days in their lush villas, have picnics in their beautiful gardens and swim in the rivers of Paghman. 

Our summer holidays were filled with great food but my favorite was the afternoon snack of fresh cheese with raisins (kishmish paneer). A local Kochi-nomad woman would deliver the fresh panare which would be wrapped in a cloth. It would be served on a platter with black raisins, nuts and fresh fruit. My mouth is watering just writing about it. 

My family never found an equivalent to Afghan panare in American, so we created our own recipe. The cheese is very mild in flavor and has a chewy mozzarella like consistency. The key to bringing the flavors out is the raisins. They are heavenly together.  You can also have it on a cracker with a dribble of cherry preserve or honey. Many Americans who have tasted it feel that it needs more salt but traditionally this cheese has unrecognizable amount of salt.  You can adjust the recipe to your own taste.

I hope you love this as much as I do.

Fresh Afghan Cheese

Kimish Panare

1/2 gallon of one percent milk

1/2 gallon of buttermilk

1 1/2 tsp. of salt

Cheese cloth (Whole foods, Bed Bath & Beyond)

Round deep colander

Raisins

This recipe can be doubled.

In a large heavy pan heat the milk on medium heat.  While waiting, cut the cheese cloth to fit the colander and have some of it drape off the side of the colander.  If the mesh on the cheese cloth is not very fine, lay 2-3 layers. 

Just when the milk starts to boil (don't burn the bottom) remove it from heat. Add the buttermilk and salt.  Stir for 1 minute. Set the colander in the sink and slowly pour the contents of the pot into the colander.  Make sure that the cheese cloth doesn't slide off the sides of the colander.  The milk will curdle and the liquid will drip out of the colander.  Scrape the side of the cheese cloth to speed up the drainage of the liquid. 

The contents will reduce slowly.  Grab the side of the cheese cloth and tie with with a clip or a rubber band.  Continue squeezing the cheese cloth until there is barely any water squeezing out but it should still feel moist otherwise the cheese will be too dry. By now the cheese should be the size of a large softball.

Put the cheese in the cheese cloth with a bowl lined with two layers of paper towel.  Leave it in the fridge for 2-3 hours or until it is solid.

Take the cheese out of the cheese cloth, cut in 1/4 inch thick slice, serve with black raisins.

Mixtured poured into the cheese cloth in the collander

Cheese is ready to be unwrapped

Except where otherwise noted, all content on this blog is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported license.