Good Jordanian Eats

Alright, making two post entries in one week should allow my guilt to go away. As I have heard from various fronts, everyone wants to know about what I have been eating.

I live in a apartment, so I don't have a host parent making me an exotic dish every day. However, our landlady makes us delicious lunches and dinners on occasion.

For breakfast, I eat zeit and za'atar, which is a mixture of olive oil, thyme, and sesame seeds. I will spread this on bread. Then I may have a few figs, dates, or dried apricots. I also have some instant coffee. They just don't do American coffee, but they love Nescafé. There most be 10 Nescafé stands on the UJ campus.

For lunch, I might just have zeit and za'atar again. That is how much I love it. And at about only $1, you can't go wrong. Or, I may have shishtowak, which is grilled chicken, sometimes wrapped up in a pita. If I am eating lunch with my Jordanian friends, we will have falafel, hummus and bread served with some pickled vegetables. Lunch at the university cafeteria usually consists of chicken, rice, and several soups. Nothing of particular importance. Sometimes I eat straight up rice and baba ghanoush, which is delicious and tastes a little like macaroni and cheese for some reason.

There is the ever popular shawarma which I have only had once. It is delicious, but not a friend to digestion. Basically, it is the junk food of the Middle East. Not recommended if you have a stomach which can't handle grease, like mine. I know some guys who eat like 5 shawarma a day. I am pretty sure Sam would be one of those guys.

Dinner! In addition to the tasty foods I just cook for myself or my flat mates, we occasionally eat out or are served meals. I mentioned before mansaf and maqlouba. Here are pictures of both. I have to say I prefer maqlouba and most anything with lamb:

MANSAF
MAQLOUBA
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Kibbeh is another favorite of mine. It is beef and various spices rolled up and fried. Sorry I have no pictures, I am usually too busy eating it.

Tabouleh is another wonderful Lebanese dish. It is a side salad, made up of parsley, lemon, bulgur, cucumbers, tomatoes, ect. It is very refreshing and delicious.


Our landlady/mom makes a delicious maqlouba, cabbage leaves stuffed with meat, and about any dish that you desire from around the Middle East. She will often serve us food from Libya as well. She said that the Libyan food does not at all reflect their leader. She also makes us a lot of lentils and rices, one came with the tasty green sauce you see in the picture below:

Desert is a tricky one, since I can not eat knanafeh since it has cheese in it. But everyone says it is good. Baklava is not actually Middle Eastern, but it is tasty here, as well as other filo dough deserts. A lot of their desserts are dairy heavy, so I do not eat them.

My favorites so far? Maqlouba.
Now I am hungry......