From Cairo with love

For me, the dishes that we serve in the Cairo Kitchen restaurants are all about Egypt – the food we grow and the food we grew up with, the food of my childhood. My dad is from Port Said and he has always loved to cook. I can remember him there in the open kitchen when I was young, cooking and grilling, especially fish, putting food out on to little plates and inventing bite-size mezza, while we all sat and watched the kitchen entertainment.



My new book, Cairo Kitchen, mixes up the inventiveness of my father’s cooking, the incredible raw ingredients the country has to offer, with the history of Egypt. It is extraordinary that the country has managed to keep some of its food traditions for such a long time and Egypt is perhaps unique in this respect.

I hope you enjoy these recipes – and also enjoy cooking them.

AUBERGINE SANDWICHES

Serves 2-4

Ingredients

• 1 large aubergine, sliced into rounds 
• 100ml vegetable oil
• ½ tsp ground cumin
• juice of 1 lemon
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed
• 1 tsp roasted red chilli paste (see below)
• 1 tsp chopped fresh coriander
• salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the roasted red chilli paste:

• 500g fresh red chillies
• 2 heads of garlic, unpeeled 
• 250ml olive oil
• 60ml golden syrup 
• 40ml white vinegar
• salt For the tahina sauce
• 50g tahina paste
• 1 garlic clove, crushed
• 2 tbsp lemon juice
• 2 tsp white vinegar
• ½ tsp ground cumin
• salt

To serve:

• 2-4 baladi or shamsi (or flat) breads
• handful of rocket (gargeer)
• 1 tomato, sliced
• tahina sauce (see below)

Method
For the roasted red chilli paste, preheat the oven to 180C/350F. Put the chillies on a baking tray, add the unpeeled garlic and half the amount of oil, then put in the oven for 10 mins until softened and slightly charred. Remove the chillies from the oven and cool slightly. Peel the garlic, then † nely chop together with the chillies until they are completely mixed. You can also do this in a food processor or by using a pestle and mortar. Add the golden syrup, then the remaining oil and the vinegar and salt, to taste, then mix them all together well. This paste can be stored in the fridge for up to 10 days.

For the aubergine, in a frying pan, sauté the aubergine slices in the oil, in batches if necessary, for about 5 mins on each side until golden in colour. Take out of the pan and drain on paper towels to remove the excess oil. Sprinkle salt, pepper, the cumin, lemon juice, garlic, chilli paste and coriander over the fried aubergine.

For the tahina sauce, in a bowl, place the tahina paste and gradually stir in 100ml warm water. Add the crushed garlic, lemon, vinegar, cumin and salt, to taste. The tahina will look thin and runny, which is perfect for drizzling and using as a sauce. If you want it a little thicker to use as a dip, place it in the fridge.

Open the baladi breads and layer up the rocket, tomato and aubergine. Top with a drizzle of tahina sauce to serve.

FATTOUSH

Serves 4

Ingredients

• 1 romaine lettuce, chopped
• handful of purslane leaves or rocket
• 2 tomatoes, cut into large cubes
• 3 cucumbers, cut into large cubes
• 1-2 large red radishes, sliced
• 4 spring onions, sliced
• 3 tbsp fresh mint leaves
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 1-2 white pitta breads, cut into 2cm squares
• seeds from ½ pomegranate
• sprinkle of sumac

For the fattoush dressing:
80ml olive oil

• 3 tbsp lemon juice
• 2 tsp sumac
• 2 tbsp pomegranate molasses (debs el roman)
• salt

Method
Combine the lettuce, purslane, tomato, cucumber, radish, spring onion and the fresh mint.

Heat the olive oil in a large frying pan, add the bread squares and cook for a couple of minutes until crisp and golden. Drain on paper towels.

To make the fattoush dressing, combine all the ingredients and whisk well.

Toss the salad in the fattoush dressing and garnish with the pomegranate seeds and a sprinkle of sumac.

BEETROOT, FETA AND PURSLANE SALAD

Serves 4-6

Ingredients

• 8 beetroots
• 4 tbsp pistachios, roughly chopped
• 300g purslane leaves or rocket
• 200g feta cheese, cut into cubes
• 4 spring onions, sliced For the vinaigrette
• 2 tbsp pomegranate molasses (debs el roman)
• 2 tbsp white balsamic vinegar
• salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 4 tbsp olive oil

Method
To make the vinaigrette, combine the pomegranate molasses, balsamic vinegar and salt and pepper, to taste, in a bowl, then slowly stir in the oil with a whisk.

In a large pan of boiling water, simmer the beetroots for about an hour or until tender, then peel when cool enough to handle, chop into large cubes and set aside to cool.

Dress the beetroots in the vinaigrette, tossing well. Let stand for half an hour.

Toast the pistachios by placing in a frying pan over a medium heat and stirring for a few minutes until they turn golden brown.

To assemble the salad, place the purslane in a large bowl and arrange the beetroots in the centre. Drizzle any remaining dressing on the purslane leaves and top with the feta, spring onions and pistachios.

Cairo Kitchen, by Suzanne Zeidy, with photography by Jonathan Gregson, is published by Hardie Grant Books, priced £25.