Some NYF and Thoughts on Shooting With a Digital SLR Camera

I’m not huge fan of french-fried potatoes, but the other day at the Dubai Mall’s food court we walked past a group of Italian-looking men and women who were eating burger and fries.   What caught my attention was the fries they were having.  It looked interesting.  I stole a quick glance at their table to check where they had bought the fries from, and off we marched towards the NYF stall, where we ordered this …

Fries with spicy tamarind sauce with bits of jalapeño pepper, tomato, onion, and bell peppers.  NYF claims to use only the finest Russet potatoes cooked in non-hydrogenated sunflower oil, no trans fat, no cholesterol and low in saturated fats.   I choose to believe them so I don’t feel guilty after wards.

That wasn’t our dinner, of course.  We intended to eat healthy, so Masood had a brown bread (with herbs) sub while I ordered fish in spicy tomato sauce.  The fries was our appetizer.

So while Masood went to get his sandwich, I pulled out the D40 to take pictures of the food.  Naturally, people from the nearby tables turned to look at what I was doing, albeit for a few seconds.  At first, I thought they might be thinking that this hijabi girl has gone loca taking pictures of her fries.  Then I remember:  hey, I have a D40 in my hands.  That gives me the right to take pictures of the simplest thing around!  Then I decided that they were looking at my camera in particular instead of me taking pictures of the food.

That is why I love having an SLR camera with me.  With a point and shoot, it’s okay if I’m seen taking pictures of buildings and fountains and landscapes.  But I definitely feel silly taking pictures of leaves and flowers and food (in restaurants) and stones and twigs.  On the other hand, now that I’m armed with an SLR – and a Nikon at that – dangling oh-s0-gloriously from my neck, I feel I am licensed to shoot anything:  leaves, flowers, food, stones, and twigs.  It’s a professional camera and that’s what professional photographers do:  take pictures of leaves, flowers … you know the rest.

And I can assume different positions when taking pictures with an SLR – sit on the pavement, stand on a bench, lay on the grass, or climb a tree (the latter two I haven’t done yet) – and still look perfectly normal.  Imagine how’d I look in all these positions with a tiny point and shoot camera in hand.  Can’t imagine?  Allow me to provide you with an example …

Had this lady been taking this same picture – a bunch of wild flowers growing out of a concrete crevice – with an SLR, she would’ve looked more professional (and less silly).

Hence, Nikon D40 and I are inseparable except, of course, when I go out for work, but that’s when I bring my point and shoot camera (which is always in my bag anyway) to make sure I don’t miss anything interesting.

By the way, here’s the fruit of that lady’s labor …

The Date Palm

“And the pains of childbirth drove her to the trunk of a palm tree; she cried (in her anguish) “Ah! Would that I had died before this! Would that I been a thing forgotten and out of sight.” But (a voice) cried to her from beneath the (palm-tree): Grieve not! for thy Lord hath provided a rivulet beneath thee; and shake towards thyself the trunk of the palm-tree: it will let fall fresh ripe dates upon thee. So eat and drink and cool (thine) eye.” (Qur’an 19:23-26, on Maryam, known to non-Muslims as Mary)

It is that time of the year again when the date palm becomes laden with clusters of dates. The date palms are said to produce up to 200 dates in one cluster and are one of the sweetest and most prized fruits in the Islamic world.

Palm dates are believed to have originated around the Persian Gulf, and have been cultivated since ancient times from Mesopotamia to prehistoric Egypt, possibly as early as 4000 B.C.

Date palms also served as a means for preserving passages of the Quran. During the life of Prophet Muhammed (PBUH), the Quran was recorded by some scribes on leafstalks of date palms.

The potentialities of a commercial date production industry in U.A.E. were realized many years ago.

The annual date production in U.A.E. has jumped from less than 8,000 metric tones (MT) in 1971 to more than 240,000 MT in 1995, an increase of about 30 fold.

The date fruit import had consequently dropped from 100,000 MT (1989) to 12,000 MT (1994).

The export of dates had also jumped from zero (0) in 1971 to above 50,000 MT in 1998 with a value of US$ 15 million.

The U.A.E. date harvested area has increased from less than 60 hectares (ha) in 1971 to 31,005 ha in 1996. This increase in area is about 48 times and allowed the country to be internationally classified as the Seventh major producing country with six percent of the world date production.

(source)

Bread Omelette

In our colorful Indian/Pakistani culture, a man doesn’t normally cook, not when there’s a woman in the house at least – more so if that woman is his mother.  One such man is my brother, Mushtaq.  He only enters the kitchen to:  put away his plate in the sink, get a glass to drink water, and get something from the fridge.

On Thursday night, however, he generously offered to cook breakfast the next day.  Actually, we left him with no choice, emotionally blackmailing him to the point when he finally said, ‘Yes, I’ll do it.’

So on Friday morning, he cooked bread omelette.  He wouldn’t tell us the recipe, so I purposely offered to help him chop whatever it is that needed chopping, so that I could learn his secret recipe.

Based on what I saw, here are the ingredients:

Eggs (well beaten); tomatoes, green chilies and coriander leaves (finely chopped); salt and red chili powder;  ginger-garlic paste;  and cumin seeds.

How to cook:

Warm oil in a frying pan.  Soak bread in the egg mixture and fry on both sides until they’re golden brown in color.  Serve while warm.

This was how it looked:

Mushtaq's Bread Omelette

We all enjoyed breakfast.  This was so yummy!  I had mine with Nando’s Extra Hot Peri-Peri Pepper Sauce (this is my latest craving, which means I’m having this with almost every dish).

Mushtaq cooked only 2 slices of bread omelette per person.  When asked, “What if someone would want to have another slice?”  He said, “Whoever wants to eat more can have bread and jam.”

A Yemeni Special: Al Mandi

Al Mandi, is a rice and meat dish which traces its origin in Yemen.  It utilizes the ancient methods of cooking lamb or chicken – prepared with rice, spices and water -  slowly cooked in a deep hole in the ground that remains covered until the meat is tender.

Masood took me to Bait al Mandi, a small yet popular Yemeni restaurant in Al Rigga Road, Dubai.  Upon entering, we were ushered upstairs, where the family cabins are located.  It was 10 pm, Friday night, and the place was packed.  While waiting, I took the following pictures with the cellphone’s camera, to be discreet.  This place is, afterall, intended to provide people, specially the women, some privacy.

Notice the shoes?  In a traditional Arab setting, food is usually served and eaten while sitting on the carpet.   That’s why people left their shoes outside the cabin.

There were a total of 6 cabins upstairs and only one man to serve them all.  Yet I observed that he moved swiftly and efficiently, and he was quite polite too.  There is no waiting area.  There was a chair, on which I sat on, while Masood remained standing.  A family finally vacated a cabin 30 minutes later.

We finally got cabin number 1, previously occupied by an Arab couple and their two adorable children (MashaAllah).  We were expecting a typical Arabian setting inside the cabin, as I’ve mentioned earlier:  huge, red (I’ve seen this color in every Arabian restaurant) cushions and having dinner while sitting on the carpet. Instead, there was a round table and five mismatched chairs.  There were a couple of red cushions on the floor alright, but the kids apparently took all their energy out on them – the white cotton stuffing oozing out from the seams.

I wonder what that round thing is on the wall?  It wasn’t visually appealing, perhaps because it was awkwardly hanged on the corner.   The waiter came in and asked for our order.  There was no menu; I think they only served Mandi.  We didn’t care anyway, after all that’s what we came all the way here for.

A plastic sheet was spread on the table (this was either a custom or just to make  it easier for them to clean up after wards).

And dinner arrived in 10 minutes:  a plate of hot mutton mandi, salad, yoghurt, and spicy tomato chutney.  We also ordered two cans of Sprite.   I must say that this was the most mouthwatering and delicious mandi I have ever tasted in my entire life!  The meat was cooked to perfection:  tender and very juicy.  The tomato chutney complimented it by adding the much needed spicy flavor.

We ordered yet another plate of mandi.

That’s AED 84 for two plates of mandi (at AED 40 each) and two cans of Sprite.  Overall, the place wasn’t elegant, but we left stuffed and happy.  I’d always love to return here anytime for a good plate of mandi.

Take a peek into interesting places, and learn their customs and traditions in That’s My World!

Hyderabadi Biryani

Biryani comes from the Persian word ‘Birian’ which means ‘fried before cooking’.  There are many stories associated with the origins of the biryani.  One legend has it that Timor, also known as Tamerlane, brought it down from Kazakhstan via Afghanistan to Northern India.

Now, when we speak of the infamous Hyderabadi  Biryani,  credit goes to the Mughals, who introduced us to this typical Persian dish. Aurangzeb invaded the South and installed the Nizam-ul-mulk who later became the Nizam of Hyderabad. During the Nizam rule, Biryani came to occupy an important place in the menu, especially during the special occasions and went on to acquire the name Hyderabadi Biryani.

As the bahu or daughter-in-law of a Hyderbadi family, I do consider it a shame if I didn’t know how to cook the Hyderabadi biryani.  My mother in law is an expert, who whips up the most fragrant and finger-licking good biryani I have ever tasted in my entire life!  It took me two years to finally get the courage to cook this biryani.  I made sure my mother in law isn’t around during my first attempt.  And so, Masood and his younger brother, Mushtaq, were the first lucky people to try my Hyderabadi biryani.

Marinate the meat in lemon juice, mint and spices (red chilli powder, ginger-garlic paste, cardamom, peppercorns, cloves, and green chillies) for an hour. Then cook with a little oil and salt, till the water evaporates and meat is tender.

Boil basmati rice (pre-soaked for 15 minutes) with some mint, green chillies, cardamom, salt, and 1 tbsp white vinegar. When rice is almost done, drain the water.

Fry 4 medium-sized, finely chopped onions till golden brown. Spread on absorbent kitchen paper.

Lightly grease a large pan. Add half the cooked rice, half of the onions and half of the meat. Then make a second layer by putting in remaining rice, onion and meat. Top it off with some lemon juice, food coloring (dissolved in warm milk) and 1 tbsp ghee. Cook on low heat for a few minutes.

Serve with raita (whisked yoghurt with salt, black pepper, chopped onions and green chillies, coriander and mint leaves).

Fortunately, my first attempt was a huge success!  The secret to a good Hyderabadi biryani is to use mint leaves and lemon juice generously.  Some even add cashew nut powder and other fancy ingredients.  I will get to that level, InshaAllah, but for now I am happy with how my biryani turned out.

Speaking of biryani, Dubai is set to prepare the biggest biryani bowl tomorrow at the Global Village.  Read about it here.