Stepping into Nisreen’s kitchen, we saw on the counter all kinds of ingredients: lamb chunks, whole vegetables, oil, spices, etc. “This is serious,” I was saying to myself: “unlike adding toppings to the dough to make a pizza.”
We would make maqluba – meaning upside down – a traditional Jordanian dish with layers of lamb, vegetables and rice. From chopping the vegetables to the right sizes, making the broth, laying the ingredients in a big pot, adding the Nisreen branded 7 spices – the secret magic, to flipping the pot at the end to get the dish out on a huge plate (hence the name), we learned every single step.
Nisreen was so organized that we were taught to make the side dishes of spinach fatayer and manakeesh and a dessert ‘harrisi’ as well, while waiting for the main dish to cook.
Believe it or not, after 1.5 hours, everything was ready. The maqluba was delicious: the meat was very soft; the vegetables melted in your mouth; and the rice was juicy and aromatic. Everything else was also very tasty. We ate more than double what we normally eat!
A class with Nisreen became the highlight of our trip to Jordan. Now you don’t just bring home the memories of Petra, Wadi Rum, and the Dead Sea, you also bring to your home table the authentic Jordanian dishes. Let the taste of Jordan continue…
Lei Zong