Arabic Coffee shop

[rmi5]

@al-Hasani @Sinan
Caucasus cuisine, including Azerbaijani cuisine, is different from ME cuisine. I can clearly see many similarities between Turkish and Arab cuisine(specially Levant), which is reasonable by considering the history and geographic proximity. About Iranian (non-Turkic parts) cuisine, it's something between Arabic, Caucasian, and South Asian cuisine, and I think it is most closely related to South Asian cuisine. the amount of spices are lower though. In some southern parts of those areas, they get close to Khaliji cuisine. Also, some caucasian foods are learnt and made by Iranians as well, like qovurma Sabzi, which is one of their most favorite foods.
About the differences of caucasian and ME cuisine, I think you guys, I mean specially arabs, and in a less extent turkish and Iranian cuisines, have foods with a sugary background taste, like kunafeh(if I remember the name correctly), and also use a big amount of oil. That's not the case for us, though. We don't use much sugar, and oil.
Also, we don't use spices that much. only salt, a bit pepper, and sometimes tumeric is used, because we think that spices hides the original taste of the ingrediants, but you guys have a different philosophy about it. even in some caspian area regions(south Caspian area, north of Alborz mountain, are also considered as caucasians by genetics, culture, ... ) they replace Dalaar, which is an almost salty herb, instead of salt
Also, many of our foods have lemon juice and such tastes, which is unique to our cuisine, and some foreigner people may not like it, but I think it is cool
Also, Caucasus is rich in flora and vegetables, which are found in mountains and vast jungles, in which many of them are unique to our region and also many different types of fishes, which eating some of them are unique to caucasus, and we use this stuff in our foods.

 

[Zaalim]

@al-Hasani @Sinan
Caucasus cuisine, including Azerbaijani cuisine, is different from ME cuisine. I can clearly see many similarities between Turkish and Arab cuisine(specially Levant), which is reasonable by considering the history and geographic proximity. About Iranian (non-Turkic parts) cuisine, it's something between Arabic, Caucasian, and South Asian cuisine, and I think it is most closely related to South Asian cuisine. the amount of spices are lower though. In some southern parts of those areas, they get close to Khaliji cuisine. Also, some caucasian foods are learnt and made by Iranians as well, like qovurma Sabzi, which is one of their most favorite foods.
About the differences of caucasian and ME cuisine, I think you guys, I mean specially arabs, and in a less extent turkish and Iranian cuisines, have foods with a sugary background taste, like kunafeh(if I remember the name correctly), and also use a big amount of oil. That's not the case for us, though. We don't use much sugar, and oil.
Also, we don't use spices that much. only salt, a bit pepper, and sometimes tumeric is used, because we think that spices hides the original taste of the ingrediants, but you guys have a different philosophy about it. even in some caspian area regions(south Caspian area, north of Alborz mountain, are also considered as caucasians by genetics, culture, ... ) they replace Dalaar, which is an almost salty herb, instead of salt
Also, many of our foods have lemon juice and such tastes, which is unique to our cuisine, and some foreigner people may not like it, but I think it is cool
Also, Caucasus is rich in flora and vegetables, which are found in mountains and vast jungles, in which many of them are unique to our region and also many different types of fishes, which eating some of them are unique to caucasus, and we use this stuff in our foods.

Excellent. But all of your foods are nothing compared to Pakistani.

 

[rmi5]

Excellent. But all of your foods are nothing compared to Pakistani.

I think your cuisine is between Indian and Iranian cuisine, with less spices than indian foods, which, IMO, is good.
I have some pakistani friends and I ate some Biryani with them, which was cool
I also use spices in a great extent from time to time, to change the theme of our foods, and see how they will become some of them become really good, but still I think I will lose the taste of different ingredients

 

[al-Hasani]

@rmi5

Well, Arabs and in general ME people like sweet foods but in the case of Arabian cuisine we use sweet, hot and sour and many herbs and spices. I mean Arabia is the land of incense, myrrh etc.

Incense Route - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Coffee is also grown naturally in Arabia (coffee Arabica) and it's originates in Arabia and Horn of Africa and coffee for instance spread to the remaining world from Arabia. Tea is also grown. Tropical fruits such as bananas, coconut is also grown in Southern Arabia. We use a lot of nuts, lentils, beans etc. as well.

In Najd for instance many people use leeks.

Oh, we use lemon as well. Lemon is a very often ingredient to use for rice dishes and meat dishes.

In Hijaz we also eat a lot of fish as we border the Red Sea (most northernly situated tropical sea) and that sea is very rich in fish.

We also eat a lot of olives. I think that the Arab world is leading together with Southern Europe when it comes to olive production. Countries like Palestine, Syria, Jordan and Northern Regions of KSA are famous for their olive and olive oil production.

Oh, we also eat dates. It's a stable food too.

 

[rmi5]

@rmi5

Well, Arabs and in general ME people like sweet foods but in the case of Arabian cuisine we use sweet, hot and sour and many herbs and spices. I mean Arabia is the land of incense, myrrh etc.

Incense Route - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Coffee is also grown naturally in Arabia (coffee Arabica) and it's originates in Arabia and Horn of Africa and coffee for instance spread to the remaining world from Arabia. Tea is also grown. Tropical fruits such as bananas, coconut is also grown in Southern Arabia. We use a lot of nuts, lentils, beans etc. as well.

In Najd for instance many people use leeks.

Oh, we use lemon as well. Lemon is a very often ingredient to use for rice dishes and meat dishes.

In Hijaz we also eat a lot of fish as we border the Red Sea (most northernly situated tropical sea) and that sea is very rich in fish.

We also eat a lot of olives. I think that the Arab world is leading together with Southern Europe when it comes to olive production. Countries like Palestine, Syria, Jordan and Northern Regions of KSA are famous for their olive and olive oil production.

Oh, we also eat dates. It's a stable food too.

Yeah, that sweet background of foods was what I was referring to. I personally cannot eat sweet and oily foods, but some people like them. Also, I have seen some Chinese and even American cuisine that use sugar in such extents, which it is again not my favorite.
For us, the main drink is tea, and also we have some other local herbs that we brew them instead of tea as well. sometimes, add some lemon to those drinks as well Coffee has been a recent drink and is not original of caucasus. Caucasians from Mazandaran, and Gilan to Mughan plain and to Georgia, have grown tea leaves.
We don't use tropical stuff, either.
About lemon juice, we use it in our drinks, rice cooked and meat cooked dishes, in qovurma, ... Lemon juice is used in many parts of the world, but I meant that this amount of lemon juice that we use, is pretty unique to our region.

 

[al-Hasani]

Yeah, that sweet background of foods was what I was referring to. I personally cannot eat sweet and oily foods, but some people like them. Also, I have seen some Chinese and even American cuisine that use sugar in such extents, which it is again not my favorite.
For us, the main drink is tea, and also we have some other local herbs that we brew them instead of tea as well. sometimes, add some lemon to those drinks as well Coffee has been a recent drink and is not original of caucasus. Caucasians from Mazandaran, and Gilan to Mughan plain and to Georgia, have grown tea leaves.
We don't use tropical stuff, either.
About lemon juice, we use it in our drinks, rice cooked and meat cooked dishes, in qovurma, ... Lemon juice is used in many parts of the world, but I meant that this amount of lemon juice that we use, is pretty unique to our region.

Actually it is the Levantine/Egyptian cuisine that uses the most sweets of all Arab cuisines but in general Arab cuisine has a sweet teeth. Anyway I am a fan of Arab sweets so I am not complaining but in general Arabian cuisine has a very healthy mixture between herbs, spices, sweet, sour, hot and other distinctive tastes.

Arabian cuisines together with Moroccan cuisine are those that use the most spices and herbs in general.

Personally I use olive oil for almost everything. For rice, beans, bulgur, lentils, pasta and bread. Olives (I prefer green ones) as well.

Together with hummus very often as well.

Well both coffee and tea are very popular drinks in the Arab world but coffee has a big significance in Arabia for obvious reasons since it is a native drink while tea is an import (China).

Well, I do not know anything about that but it would not surprise me. I know that Georgia has a very strong wine culture for instance.

Without knowing it with 100% certainty then you probably also use a lot of diary products. This is also something that is used extensively in the Arab world. I mean we drink a lot of milk, eat a lot of yoghurts and various dairy products. I think that we have one of the highest lactose tolerance levels on the planet.

 

[rmi5]

Actually it is the Levantine/Egyptian cuisine that uses the most sweets of all Arab cuisines but in general Arab cuisine has a sweet teeth. Anyway I am a fan of Arab sweets so I am not complaining but in general Arabian cuisine has a very healthy mixture between herbs, spices, sweet, sour, hot and other distinctive tastes.

Personally I use olive oil for almost everything. For rice, beans, bulgur, lentils, pasta and bread. Olives (I prefer green ones) as well.

Together with hummus very often as well.

Well both coffee and tea are very popular drinks in the Arab world but coffee has a big significance in Arabia for obvious reasons since it is a native drink while tea is an import (China).

Well, I do not know anything about that but it would not surprise me. I know that Georgia has a very strong wine culture for instance.

Without knowing it with 100% certainty then you probably also use a lot of diary products. This is also something that is used extensively in the Arab world. I mean we drink a lot of milk, eat a lot of yoghurts and various dairy products. I think that we have one of the highest lactose tolerance levels on the planet.

I am a big fan of olives and Olive oil as well.
About Wine, yes, not only in georgia, but almost in every caucasian land, you can find an old culture of producing Wine. I, personally can make good Wines as well Later, georgians started to make vodkas as another drink as well, which its production was about the 1/4 of total vodka production of Soviet Union, and was the best quality one.

Current Georgia is probably the oldest wine region in the world. The fertile valleys of the South Caucasus, which Georgia straddles, are believed by many archaeologists to be the source of the world's first cultivated grapevines and neolithic wine production, over 8,000 years ago.[1][2][3] Due to the many millennia of wine in Georgian history, an its key economical role, the traditions of its viticulture are entwined and inseparable with the country's national identity.

Among the best-known regions of Georgia where wine is produced are Kakheti (further divided onto micro-regions of Telavi and Kvareli), Kartli, Imereti, Racha-Lechkhumi and Kvemo Svaneti, and Abkhazia.

UNESCO added the ancient traditional Georgian winemaking method using the Kvevri clay jars to the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage Lists.

Georgian wine - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Georgians are one of my favorite peoples, and our nations have always had great relations.
About Dairy products, yes, of course, we use a lot of dairy products. We are literally Yogurt, qhaymaqh, Ayran, milk, cheese, butter, and cream(not sour cream) addicts

 

[al-Hasani]

I am a big fan of olives and Olive oil as well.
About Wine, yes, not only in georgia, but almost in every caucasian land, you can find an old culture of producing Wine. I, personally can make good Wines as well Later, georgians started to make vodkas as another drink as well, which its production was about the 1/4 of total vodka production of Soviet Union, and was the best quality one.

Georgian wine - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Georgians are one of my favorite peoples, and our nations have always had great relations.
About Dairy products, yes, of course, we use a lot of dairy products. We are literally Yogurt, qhaymaqh, Ayran, milk, cheese, butter, and cream(not sour cream) addicts

That is good. Olive oil and olives are extremely healthy and have been one of our stable dishes for millennium. They are native to Northern KSA as well. It is also a special tree in Islam and today we know of its enormous health benefits.

Yes, the Caucasus region has a long tradition of wine. Wine was also made in Pre-Islamic Arabia and in Hijaz. It also features in Arabian mythology. To this day you have vineyards in Hijaz but they obviously do not produce wine!

The most surprising vineyard by CharlesFred, on Flickr

Wine was actually a common topic in poetry among pre-Islamic Arabia which mind you back then believed in Christianity, Judaism (fellow Abrahamic religions) and Pagan religions (also Semitic) aside from the community of hanifs.

The Arab poet Abu Nawas wrote about wine extensively.

Abu Mihjan al-Thaqafi as well wrote: “If I die bury me by the vine, so that its roots may satiate the thirst of my bones.”

The Qur'an also mentions wine in heaven.

That is good. I love diary products. Nothing like a coup of cold cacao milk to start the day with early in the morning. Especially when it is warmer than it is now.

 

[rmi5]

BTW, some maps and photos from caucasus for the people who are not familiar with our region:


CAUCASUS BIODIVERSITY HOTSPOT

Geographical Map:

People of Caucasus:

Ossetians:

Circassian and Adyghe:

PS. our wolf, @atatwolf and @Neptune have Circassian roots as well

Azerbaijani:

 

[Zaalim]

I think your cuisine is between Indian and Iranian cuisine, with less spices than indian foods, which, IMO, is good.
I have some pakistani friends and I ate some Biryani with them, which was cool
I also use spices in a great extent from time to time, to change the theme of our foods, and see how they will become some of them become really good, but still I think I will lose the taste of different ingredients

I have had Arab food. And I have also had Turkish food. Bland Bland Bland. Forget the spices, but Arabs over cook the meat like leather, and turks undercook the meat where blood drips out.. Just sayin..

You Araps and Turks are talking about Middle Eastern food, but none of your food can even compare to this.


Look at this bread:

This is true bread.

In fact look at this:

You Araps and Turks are too commercial.

 

[rmi5]

That is good. Olive oil and olives are extremely healthy and have been one of our stable dishes for millennium. They are native to Northern KSA as well. It is also a special tree in Islam and today we know of its enormous health benefits.

Yes, the Caucasus region has a long tradition of wine. Wine was also made in Pre-Islamic Arabia and in Hijaz. It also features in Arabian mythology. To this day you have vineyards in Hijaz but they obviously do not produce wine!

The most surprising vineyard by CharlesFred, on Flickr

Wine was actually a common topic in poetry among pre-Islamic Arabia which mind you back then believed in Christianity, Judaism (fellow Abrahamic religions) and Pagan religions (also Semitic) aside from the community of hanifs.

The Arab poet Abu Nawas wrote about wine extensively.

Abu Mihjan al-Thaqafi as well wrote: “If I die bury me by the vine, so that its roots may satiate the thirst of my bones.”

The Qur'an also mentions wine in heaven.

That is good. I love diary products. Nothing like a coup of cold cacao milk to start the day with early in the morning. Especially when it is warmer than it is now.

making a good wine is really difficult, and needs one to know its techniques and having patience and being cautious. A big amount of good wine can be ruined very easily if one does not carefully follow the recipe.
Also, I reminded about dates and palm trees which are somehow the symbol of arabs for us. I cannot eat too much of dates, since I really have a low threshold for eating sweet stuff, but I will definitely try eating a couple of dates whenever I find them.

 

[Zaalim]

making a good wine is really difficult, and needs one to know its techniques and having patience and being cautious. A big amount of good wine can be ruined very easily if one does not carefully follow the recipe.
Also, I reminded about dates and palm trees which are somehow the symbol of arabs for us. I cannot eat too much of dates, since I really have a low threshold for eating sweet stuff, but I will definitely try eating a couple of dates whenever I find them.

Dates from KSA are very good. The Araps tell you to eat them before a meal. WRONG.

Eat a meal, have tea, then eat one or two dates and they will have a great effect on your body.

 

[al-Hasani]

Dates from KSA are very good. The Araps tell you to eat them before a meal. WRONG.

Eat a meal, have tea, then eat one or two dates and they will have a great effect on your body.

Stop trolling clown. It's Arabs. No, dates can be eaten and are eaten before, after and even during a meal. Quit trolling.

@WebMaster @Horus @Chak Bamu @Jungibaaz @Manticore @Emmie

Check this users user history. Smells to me like a possible troll or double user.

 

[SipahSalar]

Talking about quality of dates, the ones from Iran that come to Pakistan aren't so good. They swarm the market during ramzaan and its pretty hard to pick them apart from the good ones.

 

[rmi5]

I have had Arab food. And I have also had Turkish food. Bland Bland Bland. Forget the spices, but Arabs over cook the meat like leather, and turks undercook the meat where blood drips out.. Just sayin..

You Araps and Turks are talking about Middle Eastern food, but none of your food can even compare to this.


Look at this bread:

This is true bread.

In fact look at this:

You Araps and Turks are too commercial.

Well, meat can also be cooked with water, wine, milk, orange juice, and these watery stuff, as I always cook them in this way. I almost never cook meat in a pan with oil. wine makes the cooked meat to be tender, and cooking in orange juice makes it really tasty as well.

Stop trolling clown. It's Arabs. No, Arabs can be eaten and are eaten before, after and even during a meal. Quit trolling.

I got quite confused. How should it be eaten?

@Falcon29 Where can one buy good quality dates in US?