I love food and one of the joys of traveling to an new destination is to unfurl the often complex traditions and culture around food.
Food is such an integral part of community and culture, and getting a little peek into the tapestry of how people eat and what they eat can reveal a lot about the people of a country.
From what I've read, Omani cuisine revolves around rice. The morning meal is typically not large, often consisting of bread or leftovers from the day before, and tea.
The main meal of the day is in early to mid-afternoon and I'm guessing it's followed by a long snooze! ; ) It is generally a large dish of rice with a thin tomato-based sauce and meat or fish. Pork does not exist in the Omani diet as it is prohibited by Islam. Some dishes that I found described are:
Marak - vegetable curry
Kebabs - barbecued, grilled and curried meat, chicken and fish dishes.
Mashuai - a meal comprising whole spit-roasted king fish served with lemon rice.
Maqbous - a rice dish, tinged yellow with saffron and cooked over a spicy red or white meat.
The evening meal is generally very light, sometimes consisting only of fruit or bread and tea.
Traditional Omani cuisine is prepared with use of various marinades, spices, herbs, onion, garlic and lime. Everyday Omani cuisine includes a wide variety of soups prepared from vegetable, lentil, lamb and chicken. Salads are also popular and are usually based around fresh vegetables, smoked eggplant, tuna fish, dried fish or watercress.
Breads rage from the plain to those flavored with dates, sesame, thyme and garlic. The Rukhal bread is a thin, round bread originally baked over a fire made from palm leaves. It is eaten at any meal, typically served with Omani honey for breakfast or crumbled over curry for dinner.
Dates, fresh or dried, are important to the diet and to the ritual of hospitality. Equally critical is helwa, a sweet confection based on clarified butter, honey, and spices. Both are served to guests with strong, bitter, and often cardamom-scented coffee.
Food is such an integral part of community and culture, and getting a little peek into the tapestry of how people eat and what they eat can reveal a lot about the people of a country.
From what I've read, Omani cuisine revolves around rice. The morning meal is typically not large, often consisting of bread or leftovers from the day before, and tea.
The main meal of the day is in early to mid-afternoon and I'm guessing it's followed by a long snooze! ; ) It is generally a large dish of rice with a thin tomato-based sauce and meat or fish. Pork does not exist in the Omani diet as it is prohibited by Islam. Some dishes that I found described are:
Marak - vegetable curry
Kebabs - barbecued, grilled and curried meat, chicken and fish dishes.
Mashuai - a meal comprising whole spit-roasted king fish served with lemon rice.
Maqbous - a rice dish, tinged yellow with saffron and cooked over a spicy red or white meat.
The evening meal is generally very light, sometimes consisting only of fruit or bread and tea.
Traditional Omani cuisine is prepared with use of various marinades, spices, herbs, onion, garlic and lime. Everyday Omani cuisine includes a wide variety of soups prepared from vegetable, lentil, lamb and chicken. Salads are also popular and are usually based around fresh vegetables, smoked eggplant, tuna fish, dried fish or watercress.
Breads rage from the plain to those flavored with dates, sesame, thyme and garlic. The Rukhal bread is a thin, round bread originally baked over a fire made from palm leaves. It is eaten at any meal, typically served with Omani honey for breakfast or crumbled over curry for dinner.
Dates, fresh or dried, are important to the diet and to the ritual of hospitality. Equally critical is helwa, a sweet confection based on clarified butter, honey, and spices. Both are served to guests with strong, bitter, and often cardamom-scented coffee.
I'm drooling from the thought of enjoying garlic, onion, lemon, olive oil, good bread, dates, fruit, vegetable curry, coffee, and honey. My vegetarian belly should be very happy.
~ Lala
~ Lala
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