#hilbeh

The Country

Located on the southern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in western Asia, Yemen is (for the US-oriented) more than twice the size of the state of Wyoming and is bordered by Saudi Arabia (Week 150) and Oman (Week 130).

The name of the nation is believed to have derived from the Arab term “yumn,” meaning “happy.” The Romans allegedly tacked this on to their term for Arabia, subsequently calling the land Arabia Felix or “Happy Arabia” for its lush, green lands, as opposed to the vast desert of the rest of the peninsula.

Sadly, though, happiness seems to have been in short supply over the thousands of years of its human civilization. The history  of Yemen is one that is positively dizzying, for it has been the site of conflict between a myriad of tribes, sultanates, dynasties and empires going back many thousands of years. 

As its location is pivotal in controlling the sea trade in the Gulf of Aden, the Arabian and Red Seas, kingdoms fought over the territory as long as records have been kept. The Romans traded there. The ancient kingdom of the Queen of Sheba was centered there (and encompassed lands in the Horn of Africa as well). Later, Yemeni Jews of the Himyarites Kingdom ruled for centuries until they fell to Christian invaders in 525 CE.

IN the seventh century, the territory became one of the first to convert to Islam as the faith spread, and it was a key jumping-off point for the religion’s expansion. Around this time, in 630 CE, Yemen was the most advanced region in Arabia.

Sultans built Madrassas in the country, and the land became a center of thought and scientific study on matters of agriculture, astronomy, and genealogy,

Eventually, the Ottoman Empire, based in modern-day Turkey (Week 178), came to control Egypt and fought to take over Yemen. After fierce resistance, the Ottomans took over the country in 1538. But Zaydi forces eventually ousted the Ottomans. It is during this period that the nation’s leader expelled all the Jews to remote parts of the country. (Today, it is reported that Yemen is home to exactly 50 Jews, as many of the ethnic Yemeni Jews emigrated to Israel during the 20th Century as part of Operation Magic Carpet.)

Come the 1800s, the British eyed Yemen as an important point to resupply its ships traveling to and from Southern Asia and struck a deal to “protect” an independent Yemen in trade for the ability to dock in the large port city of Aden. In that time, Aden became a “free zone,” and in 1950 immigrants began to arrive from Southeast Asia, India and East Africa, eventually outnumbering Arabs in the city.

This British presence, however, led to a conflict with the Ottoman Empire, and it asserted that it controlled the entire Arabian Peninsula. After World War I, the Ottomans finally left the region, which led to the separation of the land into Northern and Southern Yemen. The British finally relinquished their control of South Yemen in 1967, after which the south became a Marxist state backed by the USSR and its Communist allies. The north, however, only got relatively minimal backing from the West in that time.

A civil war was fought in the south before, in 1990, the two nations were finally unified as one.

But, since then, things have been as chaotic as ever. Fights for political power, international disputes, terrorism, US-led drone strikes, and the Arab Spring which started there in 2011 led to what today is a disastrous four-sided conflict between the Houthis, their Yemeni rivals, Al-Quaeda in the Arabian Peninsula and the Islamic State (ISIL/Daesh), with everyone from Saudi Arabia, Iran and the U.S. all taking sides, often in opposition to their allegiances in conflicts outside of Yemen. Today, the ongoing civil war has made it so that 80% of the population has trouble accessing clean water for drinking and bathing.

It’s so tragic that on any given day you can look up the horror of the day. This is the most recent at this writing.

BONUS TRIVIA:

Before the early 18th century, Yemen was the world’s sole producer of coffee.

In the mid-18th century European powers fought to break the Yemeni coffee monopoly and smuggled coffee plants out of the country and sent them to their colonies in Africa, the Caribbean, Latin America and Southeast Asia.

Yemen, despite the conflict, is the only republic on the Arabian Peninsula, as the rest are either monarchies or emirates.

Yemen is a strictly conservative Muslim nation where homosexuality is punishable by death and where it is forbidden to take photographs of women in most circumstances.

The nation is home to four UNESCO World Heritage Sites, three cultural and one natural: the Historic Town of Zabid, the Old City of Sana'a and Old Walled City of Shibam and the Socotra Archipelago, The cultural sites are all stunningly beautiful and, tragically, are being threatened if not already decimated by the ongoing fighting.

The Food

The cuisine of Yemen is similar to that of the rest of the Arabian Peninsula, with flatbreads and rice being common, as well as lamb and (occasionally) beef dishes and fish along the coasts. Dishes are normally spiced with a variety of seasoning like hot chilis, fenugreek and cilantro.

Also, food is commonly eaten from one communal dish, but men and women must always eat separately, with men being served first.

Naturally, we weren’t going to do that.

In preparation of my menu, I got the happy news that we would be visited by a British family with whom we have become quiet close over the course of this challenge, as we first met them on the Meerkat app on which we first started live-streaming this thing. (They made me the neat-o keen custom embroidered aprons for my current challenge and my upcoming cooking adventure. You can get your own custom embroidered merchandise from their store here. They’re the BEST!)

So, there was pressure this week. Not only would I be cooking for five on the first night, I’d be navigating other people’s palates, including that of a young child. AND I’d be trying to impress, which also meant making a salad and dessert.

For my second night, though, I could go right ahead and make things as spicy as we could take.

So, I decided that for Night One (and my guests), I would make ...

Matfaiya (Yemeni Fish and Rice) from this recipe [2022 edit: archived link], served with

Cucumbers, Tomato and Mint Salad using this recipe, served with a dressing of

Zhug (Yemeni Hot Chili and Herb Sauce) using this recipe, with a dessert of

Banana Masoob from this recipe.

And for Night Two, I’d prepare ...

Saltah (Yemeni Meat Stew) from this recipe [2022 edit: archived link], incorporating the same Zhug recipe from the first night and

Hilbeh (Yemeni Herb and Chili Sauce) using from this recipe, [2022 edit: archived link] with a side of 

Yemenite Malawah (Flatbread) using this recipe.

The Cook (Night One)

Shameless plug: I live-stream my cook/prep work on Meerkat and Periscope, available for iOS and Android and visible on the web. Follow @cliffieland on Twitter or Facebook for times. Also check out my YouTube channel

Watch a replay of this night here

The Fish and Rice

I can’t tell you how much fun this whole night was. Not only was I cooking for dear friends, but I had the unique (to me) experience of having a child in the kitchen watching and asking questions all throughout. While that’s something I’ve never experienced (nor imagined ever experiencing) it was a delight, and thinking about it brings a tear to my eye. (You can check out the video for a hint of that.)

For this one, I started out by cutting the large piece of mahi-mahi (aka dolphin fish, NOT the mammal) into ten serving portions and placing them in a baking tray.

To that, I added ground cumin.

Ground coriander.

Black pepper.

And ground cinnamon.

And I rubbed the spices all over the fish and let it sit, covered, for about a half hour while I made the rest.

Come time to heat things up, I took out a medium saucepan and added the Basmati rice.

And water.

I added in a couple of chicken stock cubes and let that come to a boil and simmer for about 10 minutes, until it was half-cooked.

Meanwhile, I fried the fish in a large saucepan until the steaks were golden brown on both sides.

I removed the fish from the pot and set it aside and then added in the slices onion.

After about six minutes the onions were well softened and I scooped in half of the rice.

I laid the reserved fish portions over the top of the rice.

And I scooped the rest of the rice on top of that, adding in about a half a cup of water on top.

I covered that and let it simmer on a low heat for about 30 minutes.

The Tomato, Mint and Onion Salad

This one was going to be more of a challenge as our young guest wasn’t a fan of tomatoes and fresh veggies, so far as I could see. Still, she was a heck of a sport tasting things as we went.

Here I took out a large bowl and added the diced onion.

The diced cucumber.

Diced, seeded tomato.

The chopped parsley.

The chopped mint leaves.

Black pepper.

The remains of one toasted, torn-up piece of pita bread.

Lemon juice.

And olive oil.

And I mixed that all up, being sure to serve the following spicy dressing on the side, as I didn’t want to overwhelm anyone’s taste buds.

The Zhug Dressing

So, having decided to serve the sauce as a dressing on the side, that one went like this.

Into a mortar, I dropped  coriander seeds.

Whole cumin.

The toasted seeds of three green cardamon pods.

Coarsely chopped garlic cloves.

And the torn up remains of four, seeded, soaked chiles de arból. (For night two, I’d use the fresh red hot chili peppers from our plant.)

I added salt.

And, using a lot of elbow grease, I ground the mix into a mushy paste. Then, a handful at a time, I added in the mixture of fresh cilantro and fresh parsley, mashing all the way.

Once everything was mixed together and all the pieces were well incorporated, I poured in the extra-virgin olive oil to make an emulsion.

The Banana Masoob

Here is where I got to make a kid smile. Yay, dessert! (And with no added sugar!)

This started with me tearing up two pita breads and sticking them into the food processor.

And a fast WHRRRRRR later, I had fresh pita crumbs.

Then, I took out the five overripe bananas (which I got for free at the market!) peeled them, and placed them in a bowl.

And, using my mashing tool, I smashed them into oblivion, making a sweet, fruity paste.

I dumped that over the pita crumbs.

And mixed everything with a fork until the masoob was ready.

Come time to plate, I spooned the salads into bowls. That looked like this.

And I placed the dressing in a ramekin on the side.

I dumped the huge bunch of fish and rice into a large bowl, making sure to get those caramelized onions from the bottom of the pot onto the top of the mound. I dressed it with some cilantro leaves. And that ended up looking like this.

And I scooped the desserts into the closest thing we have to dessert bowls (we don’t really do desserts here). I dressed the thing with some golden raisins and poured fresh Florida honey over the top. In the end, that looked like this.

The Tasting

The Salad: Well, everyone who had it loved it. As expected our young guest wasn’t a huge fan, but she was wonderfully patient. Also, I was wonderfully surprised to see all my guests use up and finish off the hot zhug dressing, declaring it a great addition to a great salad.

The Fish and Rice: It was flavorful, aromatic and filling. The rice was nice and fluffy and the fish was well cooked and satisfied all parties, including the littlest guest who ate every bit on her plate.

The Dessert: A somewhat surprising hit that was delightfully sweet and had the feel of a banana pudding, which, to me had a hint of a breakfast feel.

But, all in all, a hit with all parties. Huzzah!

The Cook (Night Two)

Watch a replay of this night here

The Yemenite Malawah Bread

I swear, someday I’ll make something with flour, it will come out perfectly and I will rejoice. Until then, I struggle. And so, once again I endeavored to make the delicious flatbread that originated with Yemeni Jews and is now a favorite throughout the region.

I scooped the flour into a bowl and added the salt.

And sugar.

And, after whisking everything together, I slowly added the warm water.

And kneaded it by hand for about ten minutes, adding a bit of water along the way, until I had a stiff dough.

I moistened it with some water, covered it with a wet dish towel and let it rest for 15 minutes. 

When time was up, I kneaded it again, moistened it again and  let it rest another 15 minutes.

Then, I covered a baking tray wth flour.

And divided the elastic dough into six portions.

I molded them into balls and set them on the tray.

Then, on am oiled counter, I pressed them out into flat circles, as thinly as I could manage. I placed the circle on a board and, pulling out from the outside edge, I attempted to make a translucent leaf of dough. (Hardly.)

When I figured it was the right size (it probably wasn’t), I smeared melted butter all over it.

And then I rolled each one up into a long tube.

And I coiled the tube into a snail-like shape.

I repeated with the rest of the dough and set them aside.

Once it was closer to dinner time, I placed the coils one by one on the counter and, using the rolling pin, attempted to flatten them out into a flat, coiled circle.

And I’m sure I screwed up royally, since the coils didn’t hold together and they kept spreading out as I rolled.

But, hey, it’s my first shot at these, right?

So, I heated up some oil in a skillet and fried the breads one or two at a time for about three minutes a side until they were golden brown on each side. (Realistically, the heat was probably too high, and the breads too thick, since they may have charred on the outside without being perfectly cooked on the inside.)

The Saltah

Were it not for the two spicy sauces and the egg at the end, this would be as basic a stew as it gets. Watch.

I started by hearing up some oil in the saucepan. Once it was hot enough, I added in the cubed lamb chops.

And the diced onion.

And I let that cook for about 10 minutes. When time was up, I added in the cubed potatoes.

The diced tomatoes.

Salt.

Pepper.

And five cups of beef broth. (Amazingly, this provided me with the opportunity to use up the beef broth that was the byproduct of a recipe a few weeks back. I’ve never made a broth before, so that was a nice bonus.)

I brought that to a boil and then let it simmer for about an hour. In the meantime, I’d get to making  ...

The Hilbeh Spice Mix

The night before, I had set the fenugreek seeds to soak in some water. When I needed it here, I drained them and added them to the food processor.

To that, I added the garlic cloves.

An entire bunch of cilantro leaves and salt.

A fresh, red hot chili pepper from our plant.

Lemon juice.

And I pureed the whole thing.

(I also made another batch of the zhug as I had the first night. See above for that step-by-step.)

The Salteh (Continued)

After the hour was up, I turned back to the stew and added in the two beaten eggs.

The chopped cilantro.

An indeterminate amount of the hilbeh mix. (I think it may have been a couple of tablespoons.)

And another indeterminate amount of the fresh zhug spice mix.

And it was time for dinner.,

I plated the breads to be able to break up and eat with the stew. That looked like this.

And I scooped the stew into bowls. That looked like this.

The Tasting

The Flatbreads: Well, they were fine. I could taste the richness of the bread, what with all that butter smeared in there. And the outside was done. I just really couldn’t tell if I did it right, since the inside seemed probably more doughy than was intended? Hmm.

The Stew: Just what a stew is supposed to be. Filling and flavorful. The addition of the egg and the two herb-and-chili-heavy sauces really made it stand out, though. Delicious and simple. A good combination.

So, after nearly four years, that actually does it for all of the vast continent of Asia. Can you believe it? I barely can.

And that leaves us with only one continent and two countries to go! Africa, here we come!

Shameless plug #2 for those that scrolled down: I live-stream my cook/prep work on Meerkat and Periscope, available for iOS and Android and visible on the web. Follow @cliffieland on Twitter or Facebook for times. Also check out my YouTube channel