Day 14-Bahrain - click on link below for recipe - Up Next, Bangladesh

First off, how many can name Bahrain's geographic location, much less it's ancient history and culinary traditions? Once again, I'm totally humbled (and a little humiliated) by my lack of awareness of a country whose history dates back 5,000 years. Known as Dilmun to the Sumerians, Bahrain is considered by many to be the first great civilization of the Middle East.   The name Bahrain means "The Sacred Land" or "The Land of Life," possibly because it's a verdant island amidst many desserts. Some say this island was the inspiration for the Garden of Eden - how cool is that?!

First of course, it's location, since I firmly believe that you can't know who you are you in relation to others until you know where you are:

 

Over the centuries,  Bahrain was a vibrant trading and commercial center at times occupied by Babylonians, Assyrians, Greeks, Romans, Persians, Portuguese, and British. In 1971, Bahrain's full independence was proclaimed and in 1973 a new constitution was produced, making Bahrain it's own independent country. Yay!

So now the food. As always, I like to try to find traditional food that best represents the true flavor (get it?) of the country. I decided to make Machbous, Spiced Fish with Rice. As in many of the countries in the Asian and Arabic countries, rice is the starch that binds the dish - in fact, in every country thus far, rice is a major staple. The spices in combination produce a heady, aromatic scent that is so different from Western spices and transports me via my olfactory senses to distant lands.

But before I get into the recipe, I MUST give a MAJOR shout out to the Holliston Superette, my local butcher shop that has been an invaluable resource to me as I've embarked on this project. Hereto-with, "my" Superette:

 

The Holliston Suprette - A Real Life, Full Service, Seriously Awesome Butcher Shop and Marktet

 

Chris, who runs the show and makes the place fun

 

Original Memorabilia on the walls

Now for the Food...an exotic combination of spices

Haddock (fresh off the truck) and Parsley

A slightly over exposed photo of Machbous - delicious, light, aromatic and healthy!

And now for the recipe, Machbous which is Bahrain's most traditional dish. It can be made with lamb or fish, served with rice.

Machbous

• 1 tsp. ground black pepper
• 3/4 tsp. ground corriander
• 3/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 3/4 tsp. ground cloves
• 1 tsp. ground cumin
• 3 cardamon seeds
• 1/8 tsp. ground nutmeg
• 1 1/2 tsp. paprika
• 2 lbs. fish or lamb
• salt
• 2 Tbsp. oil
• 2 onions, chopped
• 1 can diced tomatoes
• 2 Tbsp. parsley, chopped
• 1/2 tsp. grated lime peel .....(people, anything with lime rocks)
• 1/2 tsp. ground turmeric
• 2 cups rice
• 3 1/2 cups water

Mix the black pepper, coriander, cinnamon, cloves, cumin, cardamon, nutmeg and paprika and set aside.

Saute the onions in the oil, add the lamb or fish and cook till brown (if you're using fish, only cook for a 2-3 minutes). Add the spice mixture, the tomatoes, parsley, lime and turmeric. Mix well, bring to gentle boil, then reduce heat and simmer covered (15 minutes for lamb, 5 minutes for fish). 

Serve over rice and enjoy! Final assessment - a delicious, simple, satisfying meal I highly recommend!

Top 20 Cooking Myths

There are lots of myths in regards to cooking. Sadly, they tend to discourage people from practicing a very basic life skill. Here are the myths about cooking that I have heard repeatedly from friends, acquaintances and even cooking pundits. Are any of them keeping YOU out of the kitchen?

1. You can't cook anything good in a short amount of time
You don't need to cook something complicated or cutting edge (unless of course you want to!), plenty of great recipes take very little time at all. Here are just a few examples:

Asparagus Frittata from Simply Recipes
Black Bean Clams from Single Guy Chef
High-roast Chicken and Potatoes from Hedonia
Grilled Tri Tip Steak with Chimol Salsa from Kalyn's Kitchen
Orechiette with Sausage and Kale from The Kitchn
Whole Wheat Spaghetti with Aglio e Olio from Skillet Chronicles

Choose from steak, chicken, pasta, seafood, some dishes are even vegetarian--all are delicious!
2. Cooking takes too long
I don't know what "too long" means. But I can cook dinner faster than you can get it served to you at a restaurant and quicker than it takes to get it delivered. Really. Don't believe me? Revisit the recipes above.

3. You need lots of ingredients There are tons of recipes that use 5 ingredients or less. Just check out this collection on Epicurious. Or just revisit the recipes above, the ingredients for those recipe would fit in a single grocery bag.

4. Cooking is not enjoyableCooking can and SHOULD BE ENJOYABLE! It's not just a necessity, it's actually fun or why would so many bloggers (myself included) be droning on about it endlessly?

5. Cooking is hard
Cooking in a restaurant is hard work. Cooking at home does not need to be hard. If you don't believe me, see Michael Ruhlman's sarcastically named, World's Most Difficult Roasted Chicken Recipe.

6. You need to use processed foods to save time, effort and moneyProcessed foods actually cost more than raw foods, not less. They do not necessarily save you time. The Kitchn did a test to see what the difference was between making a cake from scratch and from a mix. The results will surprise you!

7. Cooking from scratch is expensive, even more than eating outCheck out this blogger's challenge to create $2 a serving meals.

8. Cooking requires a lot of skill
Nope. Even dummies can cook French food.

9. You need expensive pots and pan to cookThe Breakaway Cook shows you how to use some of the cheapest pans around, cast iron.

10. You need lots of expensive knives to cookThree knives. That's all you need! And this from a restaurant blogger.

11. You need a very well-stocked kitchen to cook
A basic pantry doesn't need to be overflowing with ingredients. Not sure where to start? Check out this primer on Slashfood.

12. Good cooks never use recipes
There are cooks who advocate ratios rather than recipes, but you know what? They too use recipes too sometimes.

13. Good cooks always use recipes
Pastry chef and blogger Shuna Lydon dispels this myth, thoughtfully and provocatively.

14. Cooking is too messy
Yes, cooking can be messy. But you should be able to clean everything in your kitchen. Keeping your kitchen clean is not a good reason for not cooking!

15. Cleaning up takes longer than cooking so it's not worth the effort
The secret is to clean as you cook, just ask Martha.

16. Cooking is too dangerous for kids to do
When kids learn to cook with adult supervision it's not dangerous. Check out What's Cooking Blog to learn more about cooking with kids.

17. Cooking is fattening and leads to overeating By cooking you can control and be aware of exactly what is in your food. I guess if you cook well you might be inclined to overeat, but that's about will power, not cooking!

18. You must follow recipes exactly or they won't workIf that was true you would never see the word "adapted" next to recipes.

19. Cooking is menial or dullIn the 1950's women were told that cooking was a chore and not worth the effort. Laura Shapiro writes about the phenomenon in Something from the Oven. But cooking was and is something truly enjoyable. Cleaning might be menial and dull, but cooking is a joy. The classic cookbook that proclaims it so has sold over 18 million copies!

20. Cooking for one is not worth the effortLegendary cookbook editor Judith Jones would beg to differ. She's the author of The Pleasures of Cooking for One.