Suzanne Husseini on Arab food for the soul. UAE-based Middle Eastern TV Chef and cook book author, Suzanne Husseini, talks about the essence of Arabic cooking and shares her kitchen tips with tabiod! on Saturday. See more at: http://gulfnews.com/gntv
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00:00I think Arabic cooking is about fresh ingredients, herbs, a variety of vegetables, it uses all
00:13of these.
00:14It's almost like an orchard of ingredients.
00:19It's all about cooking and using ingredients to show off the ingredients.
00:27That's what Arabic food is.
00:28It's not a highly spicy food, necessarily.
00:31There are certain dishes that have their spices, but generally speaking, it's not overly spiced
00:37food.
00:40It has a lot of interesting techniques.
00:43Arabic food is well known for its stuffed things.
00:47We stuff meats, we stuff vegetables, we stuff carrots, imagine, we stuff carrots.
00:54It's not easy, but it can be done, and it's good.
00:58In Arabic cuisine, we have the uniqueness of having ingredients that are so diverse,
01:05just because the nature of the Arab world sits at the crossroads of the spice trade.
01:12Naturally, the history that came through this part of the world, whether it's the Turkish
01:18empire, the Persian empire, Indian, all this passed through this area.
01:26By passing through, all these wonderful cultures and civilizations left things behind, nice
01:32things.
01:33We, in turn, the Arabs, went and visited them, and left our little mark as well.
01:38I look at Arabic cuisine as almost a combination of all the different flavors of various civilizations
01:46that pass through here, so it makes this cuisine that much more interesting.
01:51My most important tip would be what the French call mise en place, and mise en place basically
01:59means that you have everything in its place.
02:04When you are about to embark on a dish to cook, it's easier when things are ready.
02:09When you have your vegetables chopped, when you have your vegetables cleaned, your spices
02:14are all within an easy distance from you, all your ingredients are around you.
02:18When you have it, you are just mainly a conductor, and you just put it all together.
02:23It makes the job a lot easier, and you don't look at it as a chore.
02:28It's putting lovely things together.
02:31If you ask me about another very important tip in the kitchen, or a very important tool,
02:36is a knife.
02:37I think the best knife, the most sharp knife of all tools in the kitchen, that is the best
02:41thing, to have a good sharp knife, and your hands, and soul, and love, and cook.
02:47Are you all hungry?
02:48Very hungry.
02:49It's fresh.
02:50It's sweet.
02:51It's tart.
02:52It's peppery.
02:53It's everything.
02:54All in one.