Jianbing is a Chinese savory breakfast crepe and one of the country’s most popular street foods. The fillings vary depending on which city you’re eating your jianbing, but the general rule is that there are no rules: meats, vegetables, dairy and fried buns are all game in a tradition of morning crepes that would make a Frenchman’s … Read more
Maqbous is a chicken and rice dish packed with a legion of spices and a sweet rosewater-raisin tang that hails from Oman in the south-eastern corner of the Arabian peninsula. It’s a close cousin of the Saudi kabsa, the Yemeni mandi, and the Indian biryani and reminds us a lot of Gambian benachin. Oman is one of the … Read more
Think of a classic Peruvian dinner, and arroz chaufa might not be the first thing that springs to mind. You might instead conjure up a plate of ceviche or a barbequed cuy (guinea pig!) washed down with a pisco sour. Spend an evening in Lima, however, and you are just as likely to find yourself tucking into a hearty … Read more
More robust than a crepe, more delicate than bread, the Azerbaijani kutab is a kind of flatbread-pancake stuffed with a variety of possible fillings from pumpkin or cheese to spinach, offal, herbs, and even camel meat. A more cavalier commentator might pass it off as a regular sandwich, but we think that would be massively underselling the art of mixing and … Read more
Although we think that almost every dish we feature on Arousing Appetites is fit for a king, Hunkar Begendi was quite literally a royal favorite. Braised chunks of lamb swimming in a smoky eggplant puree is a Turkish dish that dates back to the days of the Ottoman sultans and their vast kitchens in the … Read more
WHAT IS BENACHIN? Benachin is a traditional Gambian dish consisting of rice, vegetables, and meat, all cooked together in a single pot. It is also known as thiebou-dienne, a Senegambian special jollof rice. Benachin translates to “one pot” in Wollof, referring to its cooking method. The dish is characterized by its aromatic flavours, thanks to … Read more
