Five Ramadan treats you don't want to miss
Fasting in Ramadan goes hand in hand with food. One of the delights of fasting in Ramadan is the anticipation of getting rewarded by breaking the fast. Each morsel is relished after a long day of hunger and thirst, and gratitude fills the heart for being able to taste and partake of the delicious Iftar. It is recommended for Muslims to have Suhoor in the early hours of the morning before fasting time commences. This is a practical approach in summer months, when the days stretch longer and hotter. Almost every Muslim country and culture has certain cuisines designated for Ramadan. A few dishes have become a signature Ramadan must-have dish. The intent is to nourish, replenish as well as relish the taste; these three ‘ishes’ fulfill the appetite and also prepare the body for the next day of fasting.
I bring you five treats of Ramadan you must try when you get the chance. I am guessing you will get plenty of chances to sample them if you haven’t yet. These staple Ramadan treats are on almost every Iftar and Suhoor table, and are pretty hard to miss.
Dates
Dates hold a certain importance in Ramadan. They are linked back to the Islamic tradition of breaking fast with dates and water. The rich, sweet flavor of a date is a delightful mouthful, not to mention the instant energy it produces. There are ways to get creative with presenting dates for Suhoor and Iftar. Many companies sell dates in assortments of flavors of nuts embedded inside them; find them displayed in grocery stores and buy the assortment most appealing to you.. This task is easily accomplished at home by dicing almonds and walnuts and placing them gently in dates after slicing them on one side and pitting them. Double the taste of you Iftar with a crunchy sweet treat. You can also add fresh cream inside the pitted dates and voila! A perfect blend of creamy delight is ready. There are no limits to what you can tastefully fill in dates to add to the favors, go creative!
Pakoda is a coveted dish predominantly hailing from South Asia. It is hands down a favorite in these regions, especially during Ramadan. Often quipped, and rightly so, “It is impossible to conceive of an Iftar table without pakodas”. I personally know some people who are horrified at the very notion of Iftari sans Pakodas. Pakoda is a filling of potatoes or chicken or any filling that suits your fancy and variants of vegetables, mixed in a batter made from gram flour, or besan (chickpea flour). The most popular filling for Pakodas is potatoes, roughly chopped or thinly sliced in round chips. The flour batter is a sticky paste of gram flour, salt, and spices like coriander, cumin, mint, a few herbs to taste, and a special ingredient to boot. My secret recipe includes a small quantity of chicken stock and a tablespoon of yogurt to keep the pakodas crispy. Served fresh, the warm pakodas explode in your mouth like a harmony of perfectly blended favors. No wonder it is such a popular dish. And did I mention, it is incomplete without mint chutney. Pakoda and tangy mint chutney are a food lover’s little paradise on earth.
Harira is a traditional lentil and tomato soup from Morocco. Just like Pakoda, harira’s fate lies in being a popular Ramadan dish. Harira is not only preferred at Iftar, but at Suhoor times too. It is a tasy, fulfilling soup, with meat stock as well as lentils, tomatoes and spices and herbs. This too has many variations, according to tastes and preferences. Adding rice, chickpeas or vermicelli is a choice, they can be substituted for each other at different times for variation. Aromatic spices and herbs like ginger, cinnamon, parsley, and celery make it all the more delicious and pleasant to the taste buds. If you haven’t partaken of this comfort food yet, I highly recommend you to try it soon. It is easily available in most restaurants with Arabic menus. Serving warm Harira at Iftar is always a welcome treat after a long summer day. If soup is your theme for Iftar or Suhoor, this is the best combination of zesty, tangy, rich flavors of spices that you want to treat yourself and your family with.
Kunafa
Kunafa is mainly an Arabic dessert and it is the first among desserts to pop up in mind when Ramadan sweets are mentioned. Kunafa is a pastry that is stuffed with delicious soft cheese and poured over with layers of sugar flavored with rose water or orange blossom water. This sweet treat is then garnished with chopped nuts, mostly pistachios. It’s that time of the year to indulge in savory treats and arrange Iftars featuring Kunafa as the dessert. It is easily repeatable, and its mix of rich, tangy, sweet and crunchy taste is appealing to all. It blends well with tea or green tea.
Caramel Flan
This all-time favorite dessert is a distinct feature on almost all buffet tables in restaurants. Caramel Flan is step ahead of regular pudding. Pudding is delicious, and flan is an even creamier and tastier version of it. What sets it apart from pudding is the addition of cream cheese and condensed milk and then setting it to roast along with caramel floating all around it. During Ramadan foods are chosen that best fulfill the appetite and palate as well. Caramel flan is a great dessert to top up Iftar and dinner. Just a word of caution though; don’t eat heavy Iftar or dinner the day you plan on eating caramel flan. It is heavy and a few spoonfuls will be enough to sedate your stomach sufficiently.
