Traditional Arabic Food: Harees هريس

Harees (or hareesa) is an Arabic dish that resembles sort of very thick savoury porridge in a glue-like consistency (!). It's main ingredients are wheat, ghee (purified butter) and a tiny bit of meat (often lamb or mutton). It is cooked for hours until the meat has the texture of purée and completely dissolved. Yeah.

هريس

The other day I wrote about 'biryani', that is a must for Ramadan. Harees is another such dish that is typically served on special occasions like weddings, 'Eid' holidays and Ramadan.

For centuries Yemeni trade merchants travelled all round the world and some settled in Indonesia and Singapore in South East Asia as well as other parts of the world. Today there exist sizeable communities of Yemeni descendants in these countries, and Arabic is still spoken by some.

When I lived in Singapore, one Eid I visited the home of a Singaporean imam of Yemeni descent. I noticed that the harees was the very first dish out of so many other mouth-watering food on the table that a group of young Saudi exchange students helped themselves to. They were enjoying it with a touch of honey and cinnamon powder. Harees must mean a lot to many Arabs.

At the imam's, harees was duly prepared by the imam's mother herself and not by the Indonesian maids or cooks. Harees is an example of a traditional Arabic home cooked meal and customarily enjoyed only at home. Although in the Middle East, it can be found in selected Arabic restaurants throughout the year, but if you are a tourist on a short visit, the chance to try harees may not come by that easily.

Ramadan = Biryani?!

Ramadan is the 9th month of the Islamic calendar. It is not just about fasting which Muslim practice from dawn to sunset, but a time for showing compassion, leaning to be patient and forgiving.

Charity and good deeds are always important in Islam but they have more significance in the holy month. For instance many mosques and charitable organisations along with individuals offer free meals (often in the form of a fast-breaking dinner called iftar) to the needy and poor throughout the course of Ramadan.

In non-Muslim countries like the UK or the States or Singapore, Muslims in general gather at the mosque and take part in the communal breaking of fast as this is an excellent opportunity to meet and interact with fellow Muslims. Here in the UAE, most people break fast at home with family and the majority of those who take iftar in the mosque are male labour and workers from South Asian countries.

There are some traditional and special dishes, both savoury and sweet, that are prepared particularly during Ramadan and they vary from one country to another.

In the Arabian Gulf because of the substantial presence of Pakistanis, Indians and other South Asians, 'biryani' is one such dish that can never be missed. Initially and traditionally biryani was a deluxe, rich dish that was enjoyed only on special occasions, but today it's a popular and staple meal readily served in any Persian or South Asian restaurant / eatery.

Biryani served at a mosque...

However, no matter how good the quality or how tasty it may be or how starving you are, eating biryani every single day as a first meal of the day not only raise some serious health concerns but it's a sheer challenge.

The other day I paid a visit to a Pakistani friend of mine whose brother is a resident imam in charge of a mosque in Al Barsha. Last Ramadan I had also visited this family to join iftar. When the iftar was delivered, I was taken aback and then dismayed at the biryani - everything about it, the way it was served, the quality of the rice or meat or every single characteristic, was intact as the previous year's!

It seems public cooking at mosques is not allowed in the UAE, so biryani (or iftar meals) is catered. Evidently by the same caterers at my friend's mosque... If I was not mistaken, the imam looked totally put off by the daily intake of biryani. And who could blame him??

When I lived in London or Pakistan, I loved biryani so very much. When I shifted to Singapore later and did work as a volunteer helping with iftar during Ramadan, I ended up eating biryani 30 days in a row.

In Singapore, a group of caterers actually prepared biryani on the mosque premises and they used good-quality ingredients including vast quantities of expensive nuts, sultanas or raisins. However, enough is enough! Since then I've been meticulously avoiding biryani whenever I come across it!