Hooria’s spread featured a shawarma platter as the appetiser, chicken kabsa — a rice dish — as the main course and a non-alcoholic champagne as the accompanying beverage. What drew me to it was the orderly, methodical layout — her spread displayed separately from the other students’ set-ups, each dish accompanied by a handwritten recipe card in colourful markers.

“It was a group activity, in which we were assigned to prepare an appetiser, a main course item and a beverage,” Hooria tells Eos. “As I’m new at COTHM and don’t know my coursemates well, I opted to go solo.”

Hooria may be new at COTHM but she is not new to cooking. She loves to cook and has been doing it since she was 12 years old. It began with a sweet tooth — and the desserts she made because of it. “Everyone at home liked them, which encouraged me to go further,” she recalls.

A young trainee chef prepares an Arab feast…

Then came a time when she took over the responsibility of cooking dinner from her mother. Hooria says that her mother, an exceptional cook herself, gave her free rein, though she never left her alone in the kitchen. Soon, Hooria told her family about her plan to train as a professional chef.

“Everyone at home said I did not need to, because I already knew how to cook,” she says. She countered that she wanted to work as a chef at a restaurant or hotel, or even open her own restaurant someday. “For that, I require a degree or diploma, and the kind of hands-on training that I could never get in my home kitchen,” she points out.

It was this dream that led her to COTHM and to the Karachi Expo Centre on that day, where I asked her about her choice of dishes, especially the non-alcoholic champagne.

She says that she wanted it on her menu because it’s a celebratory drink and “sounds kind of grand.” She explains that, being a Muslim, she has never tasted the drink nor served the standard alcoholic version. “Instead, I have tried to make a non-alcoholic variant.”

She was happy to share how each dish came together.

Non-alcoholic champagne

To make the champagne, Hooria pours one litre of chilled apple juice into a large glass pitcher and squeezes the fresh juice of a lemon over it, before adding about one cup of orange pulp. She allows it to sit in the refrigerator for 15 to 20 minutes for the flavours to infuse.

Having read that champagne is fizzy and somewhat acidic to the throat, Hooria uses chilled sparkling water and a clear lemon/lime soft drink soda in equal quantities (one litre of each) to pour over the apple juice (to sweeten and round out the soda base), lemon juice and orange pulp concoction. She adds a handful of crushed mint leaves and lots of ice to the concoction before serving.

Shawarma appetiser

For the shawarma, Hooria made the pitta bread from scratch. The young chef adds a teaspoon each of yeast and sugar with warm water to activate the yeast before adding in the all-purpose flour and a tablespoon of cooking oil to make a soft dough. She covers the dough and leaves it to double in size before dividing it into small balls, flattening each into a pitta with a rolling pin and roasting on a griddle.

For the filling, Hooria cuts boneless chicken into julienne strips and marinates them for 45 minutes in the juice of one lemon and a quarter teaspoon of paprika, black pepper, white pepper and a pinch of garam masala [mix of ground spices] powder, with salt according to taste.

She cooks the chicken in a frying pan with a tablespoon of oil, then assembles it inside the folded pitta bread with lots of cucumber and tomato slices.

Chicken kabsa

Chicken kabsa is a rice dish popular in Saudi Arabia, where cooking tends to favour mild, fragrant spices over hot ones. It resembles the South Asian pulao in appearance but has a method of its own.

Hooria begins by frying onions in oil, then adds the chicken and whole garam masala before pouring in water to make the broth. Once the chicken has cooked through, she removes it from the broth and fries it separately — this is what sets kabsa apart, giving the chicken a golden colour and a slight crispiness rather than the softness it would have if left to sit.

The rice then goes into the broth to cook, absorbing all the flavour the chicken has left behind. As with any rice dish, she ensures the broth is double the quantity of the rice.

Once the rice is done, she places the fried chicken back on top and finishes with a garnish of fried raisins and cashew nuts.

Originally published in Dawn, EOS, April 26th, 2026

Cover photo courtesy Hooria Sayeed

You’d think if a cafe in Karachi just focused on having maybe one or two worthy food items, it surely had to be struggling. Maybe it was — but not as much as you think. You see, the ambience was so tastefully done and it was located inside one of the most happening art galleries. Sunlight poured through from every direction, illuminating every corner. You couldn’t hide there even if you tried. It was bright and green, surrounded by plants and vibes — as people now say on the internet.

On December 31, 2025, a post quietly went up on their Instagram, stating they were closing their doors for good. The post said that it was “making way for a new space.”

The “new space”, it turns out, was Mizu. A restaurant brought to life by Sikandar Rizvi (owner of Xander’s, one of the city’s most popular restaurants) and Mustafa Sardar (who owns Izakaya — a private dining concept that lets diners choose a pre-set menu of 10 courses).

While people were waiting for Koel Cafe to magically re-open, Mizu offered no nod to its memories. Koel Cafe’s menu had mezze platters, kulcha (flatbread) sandwiches and paneer tikka and Mizu is keeping Asian flavours, specifically Thai inspired notes, at the forefront.

When you walk in, the place looks very “structured”, with rows of dining tables and chairs occupying every corner. The seating is not constricted by the indoor premises, it spreads out in the outdoors too, surrounding the tree and only stops at the signature Koel Gallery door.

During the day, it retains the sun-lit aspect of the earlier cafe but, at night, it dims, so that every table is mostly just lit by a small candle and a few light sources at the counter. The people seem to just keep walking in.

Karachi, albeit a competitive backdrop for businesses, always offers warmth to the “new”. Moreover, with Mizu, people are showing up with a certain assuredness in their step because of its association with Xander’s.

What about the food? The social media chatter would encourage you to order their chicken lime coconut soup, their Thai steamed fish and their Thai green curry, and it would be correct. The restaurant handles the balance of flavours in each dish in a masterful way. In the Thai green curry, the bright, green earthiness of the lemongrass comes through, while the richness of the coconut curry is retained. In the Thai steamed fish, a herb-forward and citrus dressing makes the steamed fish come to life and, in the chicken coconut soup, a mildly sweet coconut base is lifted by hints of spice and lime.

Other popular items on the menu are sesame beef, where a drizzle of rich sesame butter adorns thinly sliced, flavourful beef. The flavours land in a way where you go in for a second bite immediately, while also wishing the beef had a little less chew on it.

Then there is a dish called popcorn beef, which is similar to crispy beef served in most pan-Asian restaurants in Karachi. You can tell that it is there to signal a sense of familiarity for diners. The execution falls slightly short, because does it make you think this is the best crispy beef you have had in the city? No, but if you order it as a shared plate for the table, not many would complain.

There is a range of items in the menu titled under ‘Crostina’ and it includes options revolving around tuna, salmon, caviar, wasabi and truffle. But the items listed underneath this sound way more unique than they taste.

The truffle toro, which has thinly sliced tuna over very thin flatbread, would immediately make you think of the tuna pizza at another Karachi restaurant, Banchan, except the latter executes the concept way better. The wasabi salmon crostina would make you expect a sharp, punchy note but the flavours just blend in, leaving no room for a party trick to occur.

The chicken pancakes arrive with deconstructed condiments. A plate carries shredded chicken with hoisin sauce and a chilli jam, while savoury wraps that look like mini-crepes arrive in a bamboo steamer basket that usually houses dim sum.

While the chilli jam was not a flavour I particularly liked, the experience of assembling your own wraps at the table does offer some enjoyment. I even took a detour and used a savoury wrap to include some sesame beef instead of shredded chicken and, I have to say, it worked so much better for me.

Mizu attempts to use familiar flavours to lure people in while also attempting to introduce them to something new but, overall, the flavours that it offers are not new enough.

Will diners still seek comfort in its ambience, familiar orders of crispy beef, Thai curries and warm soups? Yes. But Karachi is like that strict math teacher you had in school — even when it wants to compliment, it dismisses. So, while Mizu is nothing ground-breaking, it is still a trustworthy addition to the city’s ever multiplying dining scene.

Originally published in Dawn, EOS, April 12th, 2026

For dinner or lunch these soups will make for healthy eating!

Gazpacho

Ingredients

1½ kg tomatoes

¾ tablespoon Worcester sauce

¾ teaspoon chilli sauce

1 clove garlic (optional)

2 teaspoons sugar

Salt to taste

Accompaniments

1 finely chopped capsicum

1 finely chopped large onion

1 finely chopped cucumber

1 finely chopped tomato

Method

Put the tomatoes in boiling water for 10 minutes. Thereafter, remove the skins and chop. Blend in the liquidiser and strain. Add the Worcestershire sauce, chilli sauce, garlic, sugar and salt. Chill thoroughly. Serve in cold cups with accompaniments in separate cups.

Carrot soup

Carrots have a large amount of carotene, which helps to form vitamin A.

The soup is enriched with milk and dal (lentils) to increase the protein value.

Ingredients

400 grams carrots

1 onion

1 tablespoon moong dal

1 teacup skim milk

Salt and pepper to taste

Method

Cut the carrots and onion into big pieces. Add three teacups of water and the moong dal and cook in a pressure cooker. When cooked, blend in a liquidiser and strain. Heat the milk and add to the soup. Mix well. Serve hot.

This recipe was originally published in Dawn’s Tuesday Review on May 7, 1991.

Ingredients

-K&N’S Thunder Fillet (4 fillets)

-Penne pasta (2 cups; boiled)

-Olive oil (3 tbsp)

-Garlic (1 tbsp; chopped)

-Tomato puree (2 cups)

-Tomato paste (¼ cup)

-Milk (½ cup)

-Cream (½ cup)

-Black pepper powder (1 tsp)

-Oregano (1 tsp)

-Dried thyme (1 tsp)

-Red chilli flakes (1 tsp)

-Salt (1 tsp / to taste)

Method

1. Heat olive oil in a pan and sauté garlic on medium flame for few seconds.

2. Add tomato puree, tomato paste and mix well.

3. Add milk and cook until it starts to simmer. Add cream and cook for 1-2 minutes.

4. Add black pepper powder, oregano, thyme, red chilli flakes, salt and cook for a minute.

5. Add boiled penne pasta and cook for another minute.

6. Fry K&N’s Thunder Fillet as per instructions on pack and cut into strips.

7. Dish out pasta in a serving bowl and place Thunder Fillet strips. Pink Sauce Pasta is ready.

This content is produced in paid partnership with K&N’s.

Ingredients

-K&N’s Croquettes (28-30 croquettes)

-Bread slices (12 -14)

-BBQ sauce (1½ cup)

-Mayonnaise (1½ cup)

-Lettuce leaves as required

-Cheddar cheese slices (6-7)

-Tomato slices as required

-Onion rings as required

Method

1. Fry K&N’s Croquettes as per instructions on pack.

2. Toast bread slices on both sides in a pan. Spread BBQ sauce and mayonnaise on it; lay lettuce leaves, K&N’s Croquettes, cheddar cheese slice and tomatoes. Put another bread slice on top to make a sandwich.

3. Cut into half vertically. Serve.

BBQ Sauce Ingredients

-Ketchup (1 cup)

-Vinegar (¼ cup)

-Honey (2 tbsp)

-Onion powder (½ tsp)

-Brown sugar (1 tsp)

-Worcestershire sauce (1 tsp)

-Smoked paprika (1 tsp)

-Salt (1 tsp)

-Garlic powder (1 tsp)

-Black pepper powder (1 tsp)

Method

In a preheated saucepan, add all the ingredients and mix well. Cook for 3-4 minutes and set aside.

This content is produced in paid partnership with K&N’s.

US Vice President JD Vance will be leading the American delegation, which includes Steve Witkoff, who is a special envoy of US President Donald Trump and Jared Kushner, the president’s son-in-law.

On the Iranian side, Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi will be in the lead, with Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf, the speaker of Iran’s parliament, joining him on the negotiating team.

Obviously, Pakistan has to put its best foot forward when entertaining these dignitaries. So in the spirit of Pakistani hospitality, we’ve come up with a list of some of the country’s most iconic foods to give the negotiators a true taste of Pakistan.

Pulao ─ Savour Foods, Islamabad

Starting close to home, our first dish is from a place everyone who’s ever been to Islamabad knows about ─ well, one of two places (RIP Monal) ─ Savour Foods.

Simple and easy for spice-averse people to handle, their specialty is a chicken yakhni pulao with a side of shami kababs.

If you’re doing it right, it should come in styrofoam boxes. We’d recommend serving it in the box for the true Islamabadi experience.

Nihari ─ Zahid Nihari, Karachi

For our second dish, we’re going all the way down south to Karachi, where we’re looking for Pakistan’s de facto national dish, nihari ─ A rich, aromatic meat stew that will leave your stomach full and your heart wanting more.

Originating in the royal kitchens of India, the dish was brought to Karachi by Indian Muslims fleeing persecution during Partition. Today, the dish is a staple of the city’s culinary scene and a reminder of the turbulent history that shaped it.

Zahid’s nihari in particular has been part of the city’s food scene for years, with successive generations enjoying it as part of a day out in the city centre.

A perfect serving of our rich culinary heritage.

Siri Paye ─ Fazal Din Phajja, Lahore

Moving to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s hometown now, Lahore has a tonne of food options, but nothing is as quintessentially Lahori as Phajjay ke paye, goat trotter stew from a small shop in the walled city.

The store has reportedly been in operation since 1952 and is especially popular around breakfast time on weekends ─ although, that could just mean 4pm for some people.

It’s the best introduction to the quintessential Lahori Sunday nashta.

Karahi ─ Butt Karahi, Lahore

The people of Lahore are always quick to remind everyone, “Jinne Lahore ni vekheya, ‘o jameya ni (If you haven’t seen Lahore, you’re just not cool),” so we thought we’d give the city a second dish.

Karahi, a tasty infusion of tomatoes, spices and meat all fried together in a heavy-based wok ─ the karahi from which the dish gets its name ─ is actually a staple of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), but Butt Karahi in Lahore has perfected it to the point where it has branched out from its original location and now has outlets in Karachi and Islamabad.

Definitely a staple of Pakistani cuisine!

Tikka ─ Nisar Charsi Tikka, Peshawar

Speaking of KP, so many of Pakistan’s favourite dishes are found in Peshawar’s Namak Mandi that we believe diplomatic summits should just be held there instead of in Islamabad.

One of those dishes, which has spurred the creation of a massive number of knock-offsm, is Nisar’s Charsi Tikka. While it may not have any illegal substances in it, the barbecue chicken is incredibly addictive.

We highly recommend grabbing a thigh piece for the best balance between masala and chicken.

Namkeen Gosht ─ Nisar Charsi Tikka, Peshawar

Okay, we’re going to stop at Nisar’s for just a bit longer for the namkeen gosht (salted meat). This dish is as Peshawari as it gets, cuts of meat ─ often lamb ─ cooked in the animal’s own fat with salt and pepper added for taste.

Namkeen gosht isn’t something you have because it’ll overwhelm you with spices or because its aromas will take you on a trip to a spice bazar somewhere, it’s what you eat before entering a food coma.

Maybe tread carefully here.

Rosh ─ Al-Dubai Restaurant, Quetta

Okay, we’re not saying it’s a good idea to take a foreign dignitary to a roadside restaurant in the outskirts of Quetta, all we’re saying is that the rosh here has the power to bridge cultures.

The dish — which Al-Dubai prides itself on serving the best version of — is a slow-cooked piece of lamb leg served in a lentil soup. The meat falls right off the bone and melts in your mouth, the flavour comes from the meat itself, with only salt added for taste.

They might even have to stop negotiating to enjoy this one.

Lassi ─ Pretty much anywhere actually

The best way to wash down a meaty Pakistani meal is with a chilled, creamy glass of lassi (buttermilk). While the debate rages on whether it’s supposed to be had sweet or salty, we’ll leave that to the choice of whoever’s drinking it. (We’re firmly on the sweet team though.)

Most milk shops have it on-tap and many Pakistani kitchens, especially in Punjab, prefer to make it in-house. We’re sure the venue hosting the talks can prepare nice, refreshing glasses to serve with dinner and keep the talks going.

Drink too much, though, and it will put you to sleep.

Sohan Halwa ─ Hafiz Sohan Halwa, Multan

Okay, full disclosure, this one’s a bit tough to locate once you’re actually in Multan. There’s a lot of knock-off Hafizs and you’ll have to ask someone from the city to take you to the real one.

Once you get there, though, its rich, sticky goodness will leave you finishing the tin and asking for another. If you’d like our advice, go for the badami (almond) halwa to add a satisfying crunch to South Punjab’s signature dish.

This one’s lip-smacking good, and you can get plenty of knock-offs at most mithayi shops around the country.

Jalebi ─ Fresco Sweets, Karachi

Heading back to the City of Lights for our last dessert, you might be wondering what’s so special about jalebis. They’re fairly popular in India, Pakistan and even in Iran, you can find them in the US too, so what gives?

Well, people in Karachi like to refer to Fresco’s jalebis, found along the city’s iconic Burn’s Road food street as ‘jalebas’ for their size. These beasts of a dessert are absolutely massive, with strands as thick as fingers and each piece bigger than most people’s hands.

They are a beloved dessert for Karachiites in Ramazan or Eid… or really just whenever you happen to be going by the old bakery that sells them.

A few days ago, the Royal Thai Consulate-General in Karachi and the Masterclass Pakistan Hospitality Business School (HBS) hosted a culinary workshop to celebrate Thai cuisine, and promote cross-cultural harmony.

The highlight of the workshop was a live cooking demonstration conducted by Chef Phontawat Sutsanguan guiding participants through the preparation of popular Thai delicacies such as Satay and Pad Thai.

The workshop focused on cooking techniques and the delicate balance of flavours — such as sweet, sour, salty and spicy. The participating aspiring chefs were also introduced to authentic ingredients. According to the Thai host, diplomat Chotirand Komaradat, “By introducing participants to traditional Thai recipes and techniques, we hope that the event contributes to expanding culinary horizons and encouraging the integration of Thai flavours into Pakistan’s evolving food landscape.”

The first of the two dishes prepared by Chef Sutsanguan was Satay, a very popular Thai street food delicacy that was comfortably chewy and served four a piece on wooden skewers. Served with a side of aromatic, chunky crushed peanut sauce and a finely chopped fresh salad of red onions and cucumber immersed in a sweet vinegar-like clear liquid, the combination elevated the food to a Michelin star-level dish.

Fun fact: traditionally, Satay is prepared using the tail-end pieces of chickens, called dumchi in local Pakistani lingo, which is usually discarded or thrown away by butchers while preparing chicken meat. This meat is used in Satay in order to keep it affordable for lower-income groups. In Pakistan, we have a similar concept, where lightly-seasoned dumchi is cooked by piercing the pieces onto skewers and placing them on a bed of hot coals or stir-frying them before serving them with fresh naan on pushcarts.

The other dish served was the equally popular Pad Thai, a stir-fry made from rice noodles, finely chopped peanuts, shrimp or chicken, green onions, scrambled eggs, sugar and fresh beansprouts. All the ingredients come together in a wok with a few tablespoonfuls of oil, and the result is culinary magic.

The workshop concluded with an interactive tasting session, where participants presented their prepared dishes and shared their experiences with Royal Thai Consulate General H.E. Surashete Boontinand.

In addition to demonstrating how food can serve as a bridge between two nations, the workshop also pointed to a need for Thailand to host workshops of this kind for culinary students, in order to learn the fine art of Pakistani food preparation from experienced and celebrated local chefs. We have a rich tradition and cache of mouthwatering and tantalising local cuisine that needs to be promoted abroad to push Pakistan’s soft image.

Our ever-popular biryani made with its aromatic basmati rice will bowl the rice-loving Thais over, of this I’m absolutely sure!

Cover photo via MasterClass Pakistan HBS

Ingredients

-K&N’s Mughlai Tikka (22-24 kababs)

-Tortilla bread as required

-Chilli sauce as required

-Lettuce as required

-Salad as required

-Yogurt garlic sauce as required

Method

1. Prepare K&N’s Mughlai Tikka as per instructions on pack.

2. Take tortilla bread, spread chilli sauce evenly.

3. On one side, add lettuce, prepared K&N’s Mughlai Tikka, prepared salad and drizzle yogurt garlic sauce on top. Wrap to make a roll.

4. Mughlai Tikka Burritos are ready to serve.

Yogurt Garlic Sauce Ingredients

-Yogurt (1 cup)

-Salt to taste

-Lemon juice (1 tbsp)

-White pepper powder (1 tsp)

-Mint (1 tsp; chopped)

-Garlic (1 tsp; chopped)

-Tahini sauce (1 tbsp)

Method

1. In a bowl, add all ingredients and mix well.

2. Your sauce is ready. Set aside.

Salad Ingredients

-Cucumber (½ cup; chopped)

-Onion (½ cup; chopped)

-Tomato (½ cup; chopped)

-Coriander leaves (½ cup; chopped)

-Lemon juice (4 tbsp)

-Salt to taste

Method

1. In a bowl, mix all the vegetables.

2. Add lemon juice and salt. Your salad is ready, set aside.

Chilli Sauce Ingredients

-Tomato (1 cup; chopped)

-Onion (1 cup; diced)

-Apple cider vinegar (1 tbsp)

-Black pepper powder (1 tsp)

-Sugar (1 tsp)

-Garlic cloves (3)

-Ketchup (2 tbsp)

-Salt to taste

-Whole red chillies (5-6)

-Green chillies (2-3)

Method

1. Blend together all these ingredients to make a fine paste.

2. Your chilli sauce is ready, set aside.

This content is produced in paid partnership with K&N’s.

Bel’Oeuf is an initiative by Belgian chocolatier Marc Ducobu in collaboration with Carlo Ferrigno, the manager of Hotel Amigo, a luxury hotel near the Brussels town hall in the historic Gothic Grand-Place square.

The fourth annual event’s theme was “fun in movement”, with sculptures in the shape of rocket ships, carriages, and hot-air balloons, some taking up to 25 hours to complete and using up to 18 kilogrammes of chocolate.

“Chocolate in a way, it’s a medium that you can sculpt with,” said Michael Lewis-Anderson, a British-Belgian pastry chef who baked the wedding anniversary cake for Belgian King Philippe.

“All of a sudden, all these chocolate makers become artists. And that’s what’s great about it,” he said after setting up his own creation, “L’Uovo in Carrozza: The Coached Egg,” featuring Humpty Dumpty on a carriage atop an Alice-in-Wonderland-inspired chessboard.

“And you can eat it,” he added.

Belgium, a country of nearly 12 million, is famous around the world for its culinary products such as waffles, beers, and, of course, chocolate.

The exhibition will be open to the public from Thursday until Wednesday, April 8, and admissions and art sales will be donated to Televie, a Belgian cancer research organisation.

Each artwork is on sale for 900 euros ($1,050) and the centrepiece, “The First Movement”, a work by famous pastry chef Christophe Morel, will be auctioned off for a price beginning at 1,500 euros.

For Pierre Marcolini, award-winning pastry chef and chocolatier, the event is a chance for Belgian artisans to gain visibility for their work and demonstrate their creativity.

“I think people need to move beyond the idea that chocolate — or Belgian chocolate — is just pralines,” he said. “It can be something else; it can be works of art.”

Skewered prawns

Ingredients:

4 green shallots, finely shredded.

500g raw prawns.

¼ cup olive oil.

2 dessert spoons vinegar.

2 cloves garlic crushed.

1 teaspoon grated ginger.

Salt and pepper.

Method:

Grill prawns before peeling for a delicious smoky flavour. Wash prawns, remove heads, but leave shells intact.

Cut a slit along the back of each prawn and de-vein. Mix all the remaining ingredients, except shallots, and pour over prawns. Leave in the refrigerator for one to two hours. Heat the grill, thread the prawns onto individual bamboo skewers and grill turning and brushing with marinade several times. The prawns will be ready in seven to 10 minutes, depending on their size, they should be pink and easily pierced with a fine skewer.

Garnish with shredded shallots. If you shred the shallots in long thin strips and place them in a bowl of iced water, they will curl up into pretty shapes. Drain and garnish.

Citrus chicken

Ingredients:

2 1kg chickens

⅓ cup of lemon or lime juice

2 teaspoons teriyaki sauce.

2 teaspoons crushed ginger.

1 clove garlic crushed.

½ teaspoon salt.

1 teaspoon paprika.

1 teaspoon grated lime, lemon or orange rind.

¼ cup salad oil.

Thin slices of lemon, lime or orange to garnish.

Method:

Quarter the chicken, remove backbones and wing tips and press it flat. Put remaining ingredients in a screw-top jar and shake well. Place chicken in a shallow dish, pour the mixture over it and leave in refrigerator for at least two hours. Drain chicken and grill over a charcoal grill brushing frequently with marinade.

Herbed bread

Ingredients:

1 long french loaf or round cottage loaf.

¼ cup fresh herbs such as dill, chives or marjoram.

¼ cup chopped parsley.

2 tablespoon grated cheese.

1 tablespoon lemon juice

125g (4oz) butter.

Method:

Slice the loaf into 2cm (¾ inch) slices almost through to the bottom crust. Mix together the parsley, herbs, butter and lemon juice and mix well. Spread this mixture between the slices of bread.

Wrap this loaf in heavy duty foil and place on grid over hot coals for 10-15 minutes or bake in preheated moderately hot oven approximately 375’F or 190’C for 15 minutes. Open foil and sprinkle loaf with cheese, cook again for 15 minutes and serve hot.

Garlic bread

To prepare garlic bread replace the herbs with 3-4 cloves of garlic (crushed).

This recipe was originally published in Dawn’s Tuesday Review on December 22, 1992.

Ingredients

-K&N’s Kofta (10-12 koftas)

-Olive Oil (2 tbsp)

-Onion (1 cup; chopped)

-Ginger Garlic paste (1 tbsp)

-Yellow bell pepper (½ cup; chopped)

-Green bell pepper (½ cup; chopped)

-Tomato puree (2 cups)

-Tomato paste (1 tbsp)

-Salt to taste

-Turmeric powder (1 tsp)

-Red chilli powder (1½ tsp)

-Black pepper powder (1 tsp)

-Paprika powder (½ tsp)

-Sugar (1 tsp)

-Cumin Powder (1 tsp)

-Coriander powder (1 tsp)

-Eggs (5)

-Spring onion for garnish

Method

1. Prepare K&N’s Kofta as per instructions on the pack.

2. Heat oil in a skillet and sauté onion, ginger garlic paste, yellow bell pepper and green bell pepper.

3. Add tomato puree and tomato paste to it. Then add salt, turmeric powder, red chilli powder, black pepper powder, paprika powder, sugar, cumin powder, coriander powder and mix well.

4. Add K&N’s Kofta and mix well. Cover and cook on medium flame for 15 minutes or until sauce gets thick and dark.

5. Add eggs and cook for 5 – 8 minutes on low flame. Garnish with spring onions and serve hot.

This content is produced in paid partnership with K&N’s.

Zuccotto

This is a delicious Italian cake-pudding and a speciality of Tuscany.

Ingredients

120 cm sponge cake

3 tablespoons orange juice

300 ml cream

1 tablespoon cocoa

2 tablespoons icing sugar

60 g. blanched almonds

60 g. hazelnuts

150 g. dark chocolate.

Method

Take a 4-cup pudding basin and line it with a damp muslin. Spread nuts on a flat tray and bake in an oven for 10-12 minutes at 180°C (35°F) until the almonds are light brown. Turn the nuts onto a clean towel and rub to remove skins from hazelnuts, chop both nuts. Slice the sponge into 3 layers, then slice the layers of cake into long wedges.

Neatly line the pudding bowl with the cake wedges placing an inside slice of cake alternately with a crust of cake, to give a striped effect. Make sure the points of the edges meet in the centre of the bowl filling the gaps with scraps of cake. Brush the orange juice over the cake slices. Melt 50g chocolate over gently simmering water, and roughly chop the rest of the 100 g. chocolate. Cool and whip the cream, and gently fold the chopped nuts and chocolate into cream. Spoon half of this cream mixture into a cake lined bowl spreading evenly over the cake. This will leave a concave cavity.

Mix the melted chocolate gently into the remaining cream mixture, and fill cavity with this mixture. Seal the mixture by covering it with the remaining cake slices. Finally cover with a cling film and leave in refrigerator overnight. When serving turn bowl onto a flat plate, lift off bowl and very carefully peel away the muslin cloth. Sprinkle some icing sugar and cocoa over the zuccotto. You may add strawberries, blue berries, raspberries or chopped fruit to the layer of white cream inside.

Pendys Pania

This is an exotic nutty and spicy dessert cake.

Ingredients

6 tablespoons breadcrumbs

6 tablespoons walnuts, chopped

6 eggs separated

6 tablespoons castor sugar

1 rounded tablespoon cinnamon

100 ml cream

1 tablespoon orange juice (optional)

Method

Heat oven at 180 °C (350°F). Take a 24 cm spring form tin crease it and sprinkle it with one tablespoon breadcrumbs. Beat the egg whites and two tablespoons sugar until soft peaks form. In another bowl beat yolks along with 4 tablespoons of sugar until it becomes creamy and thick.

Gradually stir in the orange juice, walnuts, cinnamon and breadcrumbs, and mix well with the egg yolk mixture. Now stir in two large spoonfuls of egg white and then gently fold in the remaining egg whites. Pour this batter into prepared cake tin and pop into the oven for 35-40 minutes, it should bake to a golden brown, insert a skewer in the centre to check if it is done.

Pour cool syrup over hot cake immediately after removing from oven. Allow it to cool in the tin. Turn it over onto a flat plate and decorate with whipped cream. Sprinkle a little nutmeg or cinnamon on top.

Syrup

Ingredients

3 1/4 cups water

3 1/4 cups sugar

1 cinnamon stick

1 strip orange peel

1 strip lemon peel

Method

Place all ingredients in a saucepan and heat until sugar dissolves. Allow this syrup to gently simmer for about 10 minutes and then leave it to cool at room temperature.

This recipe was originally published in Dawn’s Tuesday Review on April 6, 1992.

Ingredients

-K&N’s Kabab Tikki (10-12 pieces)

-Oil (¼ cup)

-Onion (1 cup; chopped)

-Tomatoes (1 cup; chopped)

-Red chilli powder (1 tbsp)

-Coriander powder (1 tsp)

-Cumin powder (1 tsp)

-Salt (1 tsp)

-Yogurt (1 cup)

-Green chillies (1 tbsp; chopped)

-Green coriander (¼ cup; chopped)

Method

1. Fry K&N’s Kabab Tikki as per instructions on pack.

2. Heat oil in a pan, add onion and sauté for 1-2 minutes. Add tomatoes and cook until soft.

3. Add red chilli powder, coriander powder, cumin powder, salt and mix well. Add yogurt and cook for 4-5 minutes or until oil separates.

4. Add fried K&N’s Kabab Tikki to the prepared masala and cook for a minute.

5. Garnish with coriander and green chillies. Kabab Tikki Masala is ready. Serve with Chana Pulao.

Chana Pulao Ingredients

-Oil (¼ cup)

-Onion (1 cup; sliced)

-Cumin seeds (1 tbsp)

-Black cardamom (1-2)

-Cloves (6)

-Salt (1 tbsp)

-Green chillies (1 tbsp; chopped)

-White chickpeas (2 cups; boiled)

-Water (3½ cups)

-Rice (2 cups; soaked)

Method

1. In a pot, heat oil and add onion; fry until golden brown.

2. Add cumin seeds, black cardamom, cloves and cook for 2-3 minutes.

3. Add salt, green chillies and mix it well. Add boiled chickpeas, water and cook for 3-4 more minutes.

4. Add rice and cook until 80% water evaporates.

5. Cover and steam over low flame for 10-15 minutes. Chana Pulao is ready.

This content is produced in paid partnership with K&N’s.

Ingredients:

1kg long grain basmati rice

1kg mutton (cut into medium size pieces)

½kg potatoes (quartered)

¾kg onion (sliced)

¾kg yogurt

2 tbsps garlic (paste)

10-12 green chillies (ground)

2 tbsps ginger (ground)

½ bunch of coriander leaves (chopped)

2 tsps chilli powder

1 tbsp cumin powder

3 sticks cinnamon

5-6 cloves

4-5 cardamoms

2 tsps shah-zeera (black cumin seeds)

4-5 bay leaves

10-12 alu-bukhara (dry apricots)

one cup ghee or oil

salt to taste

Method:

Wash the rice and soak for two hours in water. Heat oil, add the potatoes and fry. Take out and in the same oil, fry the sliced onions till golden brown, drain and crush. Beat the curd and to it, add the crushed onions, potatoes, mutton/ground ginger, green chillies, chopped coriander leaves, alu-bukhara, cinnamon, cloves, cardamoms and salt. Heat two table-spoons oil. Saute the garlic, shah-zeera, coriander and cumin power and bay leaves, pour over the curd mixture and marinate for three hours.

In another vessel heat water and salt. When the water reaches the boiling point, add the soaked rice and salt. When the rice starts boiling, drain the excess water. In a big vessel or pressure cooker put two tablespoons of rice and spread it evenly. Add the marinated mutton and then put in the remaining rice. Sprinkle saffron mixed with warm milk. Cover the vessel with a lid and seal it with dough made of wheat flour and water so that the steam does not escape, cook on a very slow fire for about 45 minutes or pressure cook for fifteen minutes.

Serve decorated with fried onion.

Special mutton curry

Ingredients:

1kg mutton

2 medium onions (chopped)

1 tbsp ginger paste

7-8 whole red chillies

a few curry leaves

2 tbsp coriander seeds

½ tbsp cumin seeds

2 tbsps poppy seeds

1 tbsp sesame seeds

30-35 almonds

20-25 pistachios

15-20 cashew nuts

2 tbsps peanuts

2 tbsps grams (chana)

2 tbsps dessicated coconut

1 tbsp garam masala powder (all spice)

2 cups thick coconut milk

½ cup thick tamarind juice

¾ cup oil

salt

Method:

Boil mutton with a little ginger and garlic paste and salt. Soak red chillies in water’; when soft, grind to a paste. Roast all the dry seeds, nuts and coconut, powder them in a grinder and grind them to a fine paste. Mix with ginger, garlic and red chillies paste.

Heat the oil. Fry the onions to a light pink colour. Add the masala paste and fry. When well-fried, add stock gradually. Then add coconut milk, salt and cook till a little thick. Now add the mutton, garam masala powder and tamarind water and cook till boiling. Heat little oil and fry curry leaves in it then pour on top and quickly cover.

Serve after five minutes with rice.

Lacy cutlets

Ingredients:

½kg minced meat

1 tbsp ginger paste

1 tbsp garlic paste

1 tbsp green chillies and coriander leaves paste

4 slices bread

1 cup dry breadcrumbs

6 eggs

salt to taste

oil for frying

Method:

Mix minced meat with masala paste and keep aside for at least two hours. Beat eggs with six tablespoons of water. Soak the bread slices in water for half an hour, then squeeze out the water and mix well with the meat. Shape into round cutlets.

Roll the cutlets in breadcrumbs. Dip them into egg and fry well on both sides by sprinkling egg on and around each cutlet quickly to form a sort of lace frill around it. Reduce heat and cook on a slow fire till the skin is crisp and brown.

Sevian (vermicelli)

Ingredients:

8oz vermicelli

1 cup sugar

2 tbsp khoya

1½tsp saffron

few sliced almonds

2 tbsps raisins

1½cups milk

Method:

Prepare sugar syrup by mixing sugar with two cups of water and dissolving it over heat. Heat the oil on a slow fire and fry the vermicelli till golden. Add the milk and cook on very slow fire till it starts to thicken. Add the khoya and mix well. Then add the sugar syrup and mix well. Add the saffron and cook till it becomes a little thick.

Sprinkle raisins and sliced almonds and serve.

This recipe was originally published in Dawn’s Tuesday Review on April 6, 1992.

Ingredients

-K&N’s Mini Franks Sausage (10-12 sausages)

-Cheddar cheese slices (10-12)

-Beaten eggs as required

-Bread crumbs (1 cup)

-Oil for frying

-Dough as required

Method

1. Take the prepared dough and roll into a flat circle. Cut 10-12 small circles from it.

2. Thaw K&N’s Mini Franks Sausage as per instructions on pack.

3. Take small circular dough and place a cheese slice on it. Place K&N’s Mini Franks Sausage on it and wrap the dough into a toffee shape.

4. Dip the prepared sausage toffee into beaten eggs and coat in breadcrumbs.

5. Deep fry until crispy and golden brown.

6. Your Cheesy Sausage Toffees are ready. Serve and enjoy.

Dough Ingredients

-All-purpose flour (3 cups)

-Semolina (½ cup)

-Oil (3-4 tbsp)

-Sugar (1 tbsp)

-Salt (1 tsp)

-Water as required

Method

In a bowl add all-purpose flour, semolina, oil, sugar, and salt and mix well. Add water and knead into smooth dough. Let it rest for 15 minutes.

This content is produced in paid partnership with K&N’s.

According to food historians, ma’amoul is believed to have ‘evolved’ from kleicha, which has its origins in ancient Mesopotamia (present-day Iraq). Kleicha can be traced back to qullupu, a crescent-shaped biscuit made by Sumerians 12,000 years ago, for festive events such as New Years and to celebrate Ishtar, the goddess of fertility.

Most people have surplus dates left in their pantries at the end of Ramazan; what better way to use them up than to make ma’amoul? This Eid, bake a biscuit that has been used to mark celebrations for thousands of years and bite into history.

Ma’amoul

Crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside, this biscuit is a perfect blend of different textures and flavours. The biscuit can be made a few days ahead and stored in an air-tight container. Dates are the easiest and most popular filling to make but feel free to go for a more indulgent one, such as walnut or pistachio (recipes for all pastes given below). Traditionally, powdered sugar is dusted on the biscuit but skip this step if you don’t like your biscuits too sweet.

Ingredients (Makes 24 Biscuits)

For the ma’amoul biscuit:

1½ cup of ghee

2 cups sooji [semolina flour]

1 cup white/all-purpose flour

½ tablespoon cinnamon powder

½ teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon granulated sugar

½ cup or as needed milk

¼ teaspoon instant dry yeast

For the date paste

1 cup of dates

1 teaspoon ghee

1 tablespoon rose water (dissolve rose syrup such as Rooh Afza or Jam-e-Shirin in water)

1 tablespoon roasted sesame seeds

For the pistachio filling

2 cups pistachios

½ teaspoon ghee

1 tablespoon rose water

For the walnut filling

2 cups of walnuts

½ teaspoon ghee

1 teaspoon granulated sugar

½ teaspoon cinnamon

For decoration

Powdered sugar (optional)

Method

1. Make the biscuit dough. Melt the ghee in a saucepan. In a mixing bowl, add and fold in all the dry ingredients except for the instant yeast. Add the melted ghee a bit at a time and stir well until a crumbly mixture forms and has the texture of sand. Cover in cling film and put aside.

2. Heat milk in a microwave or on the stove (milk should be lukewarm and not too hot or boiling, otherwise it will kill the yeast). Add the yeast to the tepid milk and set aside to let it bloom. Add the milk-yeast mixture to the semolina mixture. Keep on rubbing the crumbs together until a dough forms. Add more milk as needed. The dough should be soft but not too wet. If the dough is sticky, add a teaspoon of flour and if dry, add milk. Adjust accordingly. Roll dough into ball.

3. Sprinkle flour on a flat surface or a large, flat pan. Scoop out around a tablespoon and shape into a small round ball. Repeat this step until all the dough is finished. There should be around 24 to 25 pieces/biscuits.

4. Make the paste filling (date, pistachio or walnut). Mix all the ingredients in a blender and set aside in a bowl.

5. Flatten the small dough ball and make a deep indentation in the centre by pressing down with your thumb. Scoop in a tablespoon of date/pistachio/walnut paste. Pinch the dough from all sides until the biscuit is sealed.

6. Decorate the biscuit either by pressing in a ma’amoul mould (a wooden biscuit mould) or by hand, using a fork to press lines along the biscuit.

7. Preheat oven to 250 degrees Celsius. Spread oil or butter on a flat baking tray. Sprinkle with flour. This should prevent the biscuits from sticking on tray. Place the ma’amoul on tray and bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until done.

8. Put on rack to cool. Dust with powdered sugar if desired. Serve with Turkish coffee or tea.

The writer is a former staff member

Originally published in Dawn, EOS, May 15th, 2024

Probably the best known mezze in the world are the bread dips, Humus bi Tahina and Baba Ghanooj, and the Egyptian bean dish of Ful Medames.

These traditional dips are a must on any mezze table and are now well known in Europe, America and other parts of the world. This is mainly due to the fact that its marvellous aroma blends well with most meat dishes especially kebabs. It is in fact the pride of Arabic cuisine.

Humus bi Tahina

Ingredients:

2 cups chickpeas

1 cup Tahina sauce (A nutty flavoured paste made of toasted crushed sesame seeds.)

1 clove of garlic, crushed

juice of 2 to 3 lemons

salt

chilli powder

olive oil

2 tablespoons chopped parsley (for garnishing)

Method:

Bring the chickpeas to boil until they are tender. Leaving a few grains for the garnish, liquidise the rest until a thick paste is formed. Empty this paste into a large bowl and add the crushed garlic and Tahina sauce and mix it together. If the paste thickens, add some water and keep mixing. After adding the salt and lemon juice, place the paste on a dish.

Sprinkle some chilli powder on the paste, and garnish it with chopped parsley, wholes chickpeas and olive oil. Serve it with pita bread (Khubuz), naan, or bread.

Mutabal or Baba Ghanooj

This Syrian-Lebanese speciality is another must for the Mezze table, it is a dip similar in principle to Humus bi Tahina, but eggplant is used in this dish instead of chickpeas. It is also eaten with bread.

Ingredients:

2 large eggplants (baingan)

2 cloves of garlic, crushed

juice of 2-3 lemons

2-3 tablespoons Tahina sauce

2 tablespoons yogurt

salt

olive oil

2 tablespoons chopped parsley (for garnishing)

Method:

Make two slits in each eggplant and cook them over charcoal, or in a hot oven, until the skin is black and the flesh feels soft when poked with a finger. Peel off the skin and mash the flesh with a fork. Put it in a large bowl, add garlic, Tahina sauce, yogurt, lemon and salt, and mix well.

Spoon the mixture onto a plate and garnish with chopped parsley and olive oil.

This recipe was originally published in Dawn’s Tuesday Review on December 1, 1992.

Ingredients

-K&N’s Fiery Fingers (25-26 pieces)

-Sesame oil (3 tbsp)

-Onion (1 cup; sliced)

-Red bell pepper (1 cup; julienned)

-Yellow bell pepper (1 cup; julienned)

-Jalapeno (½ cup; sliced)

-Prepared sauce - 1 cup

-Slurry {¼ cup; (¼ cup water dissolved in 2tbsp corn flour}

-Water (¼ cup)

-Basil leaves (10-12)

Method

1. Heat oil in a wok; add onion and cook until translucent.

2. Add red bell pepper, yellow bell pepper, jalapenos and cook for 2-3 minutes.

3. Add prepared sauce and let simmer. Add slurry and cook until sauce thickens in consistency, stirring continuously.

4. Fry K&N’s Fiery Fingers as per instructions on pack; mix into the sauce until well coated.

5. Add water and mix again. Add basil leaves and cook further for 2 minutes.

6. Black Pepper Jalapeno Basil Chicken is ready to serve.

Sauce Ingredients

-Water (½ cup)

-Soy sauce (½ cup)

-Honey (4 tbsp)

-Fish sauce (1 tbsp)

-Vinegar (1 tbsp)

-Turmeric powder (1 tsp)

-Black pepper powder (1 tsp)

-Ginger powder (1 tsp)

-Salt (1 tsp)

Method

Add all the ingredients in a bowl and mix well. Set aside.

This content is produced in paid partnership with K&N’s.

Niloufer started taking cooking classes while in sixth grade at the Mama Parsi Girls Secondary School in Karachi and was known for her baked delights, particularly brownies and cakes. One reason for her excellence in the kitchen, claims Niloufer, was her father Dr Jamshed Hormuzshaw Wania, who she lost very early in life.

“He used to say that everybody has to eat, so they should eat tasty food,” she said, smiling at the memory. “He also thought that the best test for any chef was to ask them to make scrambled eggs.”

That’s her inspiration behind the simple yet delicious Parsi food that she is known for cooking. “My dishes are well-balanced — they may be spicy but they are not hot, and they are never oily,” she proclaimed. “We Parsis also use sweet like salt to balance the flavours. More often than not, we add a pinch of sugar to enhance the sweetness of vegetables. Just like that, whenever we add vinegar in a recipe, we will add jaggery to balance the flavour,” she explained.

Niloufer recalled that, when she started taking cooking classes in school, she wanted to experiment with different recipes at home, where she already had an exceptional cook in her mother, Shireen. “It took eight years of supervision from my mother before I was allowed to even use a knife,” she laughed. “Until then it was just mixing stuff to prepare batters.”

But once she got past that stage, there was no stopping Niloufer. At 17 years of age, she started cooking classes for eight to 10-year-olds at Karachi Grammar School. Her cooking blog, www.nilouferskitchen.com, came first. Once she crossed a million followers, she ventured into writing and authored her first cook book. “And because it also was so successful, I wrote three more,” she said smiling. All her books have been published in Canada, where she moved after marriage.

“One other reason to write the books is that I feel that food is a culture that binds us all together. The best friendships and bonds happen at the dining table, while breaking bread together,” she continued.

Niloufer’s books have won eight Gourmand World Cookbook Awards, the major global culinary publishing recognition in the world. The World of Parsi Cooking — Food Across Borders, her second book, won the ‘Best of the Best in 30 Years’ award and her latest, The Route to Parsi Cooking — From Pars to India and Beyond, won the ‘Best in the World’ award.

Niloufer has done live cooking demonstrations in Toronto, London and Dubai. During the Covid-19 lockdown, she posted 200 free online classes, over Zoom, to promote Parsi cuisine and the art of cooking. “We Parsis have a dish for every occasion,” she added.

One such occasion takes place on Jamshedi Navroz, when Parsis celebrate the advent of spring, and which is coming up this month. “Jamshedi Navroz is celebrated across the Persian peninsula and beyond, and not necessarily by Parsis alone,” Niloufer pointed out, adding that she feels that rice is one thing that is eaten everywhere. Hence, she likes cooking chicken biryani during Navroz.

“Parsis call the chicken biryani ‘Murghi No Palau’,” she told me before presenting me with a signed copy of her latest book, The Route to Parsi Cooking. “You’ll find the recipe here. Make it your own. Add your favourite spices to it if you feel like it.”

So here it is, from Niloufer’s book…

Recipe

You need around 500 grammes of boneless chicken and two cups of rice. The chicken needs to be cleaned and washed before being set aside. The rice, too, requires rinsing and setting aside. Preheat the oven at 200 degrees Celsius.

In a bowl, take one cup of yoghurt and season it lightly with salt and sugar (to taste). Also keep aside a tablespoon of tomato paste, about a cup of crushed fried onion and 500g of peeled and cubed potatoes, soaking in tapwater.

Heat one teaspoon of oil in a pot and add to it a teaspoon of crushed ginger and garlic each, one finely chopped green chilli, a teaspoon each of salt and cumin powder, one-fourth teaspoon of turmeric powder, two teaspoons of red chilli powder and three-fourth teaspoon each of coriander powder and garam masala [roasted spices].

Stir and cook for a minute until aromatic. Add the chicken and cook for five minutes till it changes colour. Add the tomato paste, onions and potatoes. Stir well and cover with a lid for everything to steam for some seven minutes.

Transfer the chicken and potatoes into a deep 13x9 inch (33x22cm) roasting dish and evenly pour the yogurt all over it. Spoon the raw rice over that. Place a dried bay leaf and two whole green cardamom pods on it all. Now pour in four cups of boiling water with one and a half teaspoon of salt mixed in it already.

Take a wet piece of parchment paper to cover it and seal with foil. Place the dish in a hot water bath in the oven and cook for

40 minutes. After turning the oven off, leave it for another 20 minutes before serving.

Originally published in Dawn, EOS, March 1st, 2026

Cover image: Niloufer Mavalvala

Ingredients

-K&N’s Mortadella Slices as required

-Bread as required

-Oil (2 tbsp)

-Red bell pepper (¼ cup)

-Green bell pepper (¼ cup)

-Onion (¼ cup)

-Eggs (3)

-Salt to taste

-Black pepper powder (¼ tsp)

-White pepper powder (¼ tsp)

-Chicken (¾ cup; boiled and shredded)

-Mozzarella cheese as required

Method

1. Heat K&N’s Mortadella Slices as per instruction on pack and cut into chunks.

2. In a pan, heat oil, add red bell pepper, green bell pepper and onion. Sauté for a minute.

3. Cut bread slices from inside and leave around ½ inch from all sides.

4. In a bowl, add eggs, salt, black pepper powder, white pepper powder and whisk well.

5. Add sautéed veggies and mix well.

6. Add chunks of K&N’s Mortadella Slices and mix again.

7. In a pan, melt butter; toast a corner of bread slice; add egg veggie mixture in the center, add mozzarella cheese slice and cover with remaining part of the bread.

8. Cook from other side too on a low flame.

9. Your Mortadella Bread Omelette is ready to serve.

This content is produced in paid partnership with K&N’s.

But beware of falling into the trap of a hodgepodge of chutneys, an assortment of deep fried pakoras, a variety of juices and a cornucopia of naan all in the name of an all-inclusive buffet. To save you from this fate, I ventured out to try out some of the best iftar offerings in the city.

Chattha’s

My first stop was Chattha’s located in Tariq Market in F-10. Chattha’s, where old school traditions meet new world sensibilities, is an off-shoot of Cheema Chattha, which is a bodega of sorts, that has been selling organic seasonings, spices and all kinds of aromatic herbs for years. It’s a go-to place for those searching for “khalis” flavours in Islamabad.

Waqar Chattha, one of the scions of the family, infused his business skills with his passion for cooking, and carved out an eatery Chattha’s, opening three outlets within a 10-year span. Cognizant of its roots, the eatery prides itself on its 100 per cent organic ingredients.

Although nestled in a corner, the outdoor seating area is spacious enough to serve a lavish spread for more than 100 guests in addition to the rooftop area. While skipping the ever-present fried items, a card bearing the names Gobi 65 and Noodle Pakora caught my attention. “Gobi 65 is a deep-fried cauliflower from the South Indian region served as an appetiser, featuring crispy florets coated in a spicy, flavourful batter of flour, spices and curry leaves,” explained the innovator.

Steamed before frying, the cauliflower’s own taste and presence was very much there in every bite, elevated by the spiced batter. It was both crunchy and nutritious.

The Noodle Pakora turned out to be a rather simple starter. The secret recipe — instant noodles cooked along its masala packet, then dipped into the marinade before being shallow fried. What appeared like small stuffed patty was actually a spicy and flavourful treat. The outer crust was crunchy but once into the mouth, it was the instant noodles that permeated the palate till the end.

The protagonists in the main course section were the Dal Channa and Beef Nihari, both cooked in desi ghee. The lentils in my serving plate did share space with a few peers, such as Mutton Karahi, Tawa Chicken and Fry Kebab Masala, thus leaving not much room for the wholewheat naan to squeeze in. This assembly was copacetic. It was nothing less than a gastronomic juggernaut equipped with several flavour bombs. Silky yet wholesome, one could tell from the very first bite that the desi ghee’s aromatic presence completely hijacked the plate.

It was rich in texture, so the trick was to keep the right balance between the mutton karahi and daal.  The Fry Kebab Masala was lost in translation but the Tawa Chicken brought in a new zest.

The iftar is priced at Rs2,900 plus tax with discounts changing for each ashra.

Tiger Temple

In order to detox from fried pakoras and samosas, an essential of any Ramazan spread, a renegade course of action was required. Opting for a Thai iftar at Tiger Temple was a wise decision after days of channa chat and pakora consumption. It was a pleasant sight to see smoke emanating from the entrance where the owner, Sana Nadeem, herself was at the helm of affairs, setting Gai Yang (lemongrass chicken chunks) and Crying Tiger Tenderloins (thai beef strips) to char.  My party of two opted for an outdoor table to enjoy the Islamabad breeze and inhale the BBQ smoke wafting through the air.

A peek inside the dining area was not only for the stomach but for eyes as well. Vietnamese Vermicelli and creamy Thai Potato in the salad area, Coconut Noc Cham and Tiger Temple Signature Dumplings, Black Pepper Beef Baos and Thai Herb Stuffed Eggs were set out for the first bites to break the fast.

Moving on to the main courses there was Thai Green Curry, Tamarind Fish and Pad Thai Prawn, chaperoned by traditional sauces and herbs. The Khao Suey was a standalone dish, in one corner.

It was a full house with dishes being replenished from time to time, magnetically pulling the guests to line up for more. “We have a capacity of approximately 65 to 67 guests and it may sound like a cliché, but priced at Rs5,500 plus tax for what is on display, the profit margins are not very exciting. However, in hindsight, our regular customers are very happy and our clientele has increased multifold, which is what we are happy about,” said Nadeem.

The Signature Dumplings and Coconut Noc Cham dumplings were poles apart in taste as they both were cooked in different sauces. One is an amalgamation of chilli, citrus, vinegar and garlic, whereas the other is more creamy and subtle. The dumplings were steamed to perfection and the chicken filling was mild but it was not wise to miss the forest for the trees so we strolled and stopped at the main course junction where a treasure trove of Thai culinary delights waiting to be unearthed.

If eggs are your Achilles Heel, then your prayers have been answered. Do not miss out on Thai Herb Stuffed Eggs. Also known as Scotch Eggs, these are no mere hard-boiled eggs — the secret lies in the yolks which is mashed with a blend of Thai spices and then piped back into the egg white and garnished with Thai herbs.  So crispy and flavourful, it was the just the right hors d’oeuvre.

The Green Curry was skipped as the Beef Baos looked more tempting. Soft and melt-in-your-mouth good, these fluffy steamed buns were full of chunks of black pepper marinated beef that packed a punch.

The Thai Tamarind fish was flaky and fresh. The edges were crispy and drizzled with tamarind sauce. The seabass came alive with a burst of a tangy kick. Then came the Crying Tiger Tenderloins with Nam Jim Jeow sauce. This tender charcoaled beef brisket wisps stole the show. Bathed in a rich umami sauce, fruity tamarind, lime juice, chill flakes and a complementary Jeow sauce, this was textured in layers, melting in the mouth in nanoseconds.

After iftar, the desserts arrived. Dark Chocolate Brownie, Salted Caramel Pudding, Kumquat Crepe Suzette, Strawberry Thai Sago and White Chocolate Potato Chip Clusters completed the lineup. As our appetites had declared any more food a no-go area, it was on Nadeem’s insistence that one full spoon of Strawberry Thai Sago and a handful of White Chocolate Potato Chips Clusters were tasted, both asking for more. Tiger Temple surely proved to be a temple of gastronomy.

Pomodoro

Sandwiched between 14th Street Pizza and China Town is Pomodoro. The restaurant opened not too long ago, serving just pizzas on regular days. This hole in the wall eatery has a seating capacity of not more than 30 at a time and that too scattered across the basement, ground floor and a patio. Burnt brick walls, concrete slab roofs and wall hangings create the perfect rustic pizza joint.

However, to satisfy hungry bellies, Pomodoro introduced a full iftar menu, priced at Rs3,500 plus tax per head.

The menu featured sautéed vegetables, tender fried fish bites, potato puffs, buffalo wings and Chicken De La Casa, but the piece de resistance at Pomodoro was their thin crust pizza. It was not possible to rely on fish bites or potato puffs to appease the appetite, so all the pressure came on the Chicken De La Casa and the pizzas.

Chicken De La Casa is usually a rich and creamy dish, but the chef here seemed to be too generous with the cream while cooking, thus drenching the boneless chicken smattered with herbs.

Four different kinds of piping hot pizzas arrived at the display table and the guests instantly made a beeline for them. Margherita, Fiery Chicken, Pepperoni and Truffle Mushroom — all thin crust, carrying spots of char, and all four were a total knockout.

They were polished off in the blink of an eye, leaving no doubt that pizza is the true way to anyone’s heart.

For dessert, the tiramisu was the clear winner. Served in shot glasses, this classic Italian dessert was the work of a craftsman. For a bon vivant, it was a treat, a manna from heaven.

Coffee-soaked ladyfingers layered with rich, whipped cream, light mascarpone cheese, dusted with cocoa powder, a burst of flavour and a feat of magic to create the showstopper at Pomodoro.

Nimboo pani or fresh lime juice and a little sugar dissolved in water is a very popular drink in our country, which is most refreshing during hot weather. Lemon squash prepared according to these recipes does away with the necessity to look for fresh fruit every time one needs a cool and refreshing drink, especially when they are not available.

Lime or lemon squash

Ingredients:

6 lbs juice

12 lbs sugar

12 lbs water

8½ grams potassium meta bi-sulphite

Method:

Mix the above juice, sugar and water until the sugar is completely dissolved. Dissolve potassium meta bi-sulphite in warm water in a glass cup. Add this to the syrup and mix very well. Fill in sterilised bottles and seal the cap tightly.

Can use after three weeks.

Lime or lemon syrup

Ingredients:

1 cup juice

3 cups sugar

Method:

Put the ingredients in a pan and heat just enough to dissolve the sugar. Remove from fire and cool. Once cooled, fill in bottles. Grated rind and small amount of juice sacs or pulp may be added to improve the flavour.

The syrup can be used immediately.

Lime pickle

Ingredients:

100 limes

8 oz chilli powder, coarsely ground

8 oz rai (mustard), coarsely ground

4 oz zeera (cumin seeds), coarsely ground

2 oz methi (fenugreek), coarsely ground

1 oz kalonji (onion seeds), coarsely ground

2 tbsp haldi (turmeric)

6 oz garlic, peeled and crushed

1 lb. salt

2 lbs cooking oil

For bagar, one tsp each of zeera, kalonji, rai and three or four sprigs of curry leaves (curry patta).

Method:

Cut the limes into four sections. Apply half the salt and leave them in a jar. After a day or two, empty the entire contents in a plastic bowl and separate the liquid from the lime. Heat the oil and make the bagar with the curry leaves, zeera, kalonji and rai. Then add the crushed garlic and fry a little. Remove from the fire and lastly, add the dry ingredients. Add the remaining salt and the strained lime juice. Put in the lime pieces, mix well and taste for salt and chillies. Fill the jar and leave to marinate.

Can be used after two weeks. This can keep well for a year.

Sweet and sour lime pickle

Ingredients:

125 washed and dried limes

1/2 seer (625 grams) chilli powder

2 chtk (pinch) haldi (turmeric)

2 chtk (pinch) zeera (cumin seeds), roasted and pounded

2 chtk (pinch) rai (mustard) roasted and pounded

1 tbsp methi dana (fenugreek seeds)

1 seer (1¼kg) salt

2 bottles vinegar

1 seer (1¼kg) sugar

2 chtk (pinch) garlic, peeled and crushed

1 cup oil.

Method:

Boil enough water in a big saucepan. Turn off the flame. Drop the limes in it and remove after five minutes. This cleans the skin of the limes and also softens them. Leave to cool. Slit each lime into four sections without separating them. Fill the limes with enough salt in each and leave them in a stone jar for two to three days.

Remove the limes from the jar and separate the liquid. Heat the oil and fry the crushed garlic for one minute. In another bowl, mix all the dry ingredients except the salt and make a thick paste with the help of the juice from the jar. Mix in the fried garlic and the salt. Fill each lime with this masala and place them in the jar. Add the remaining masala, if left over. Mix vinegar and sugar well in a bowl and pour over the limes in the jar. If masala is found to be thick, dilute with lime juice or vinegar.

Seal the jar and store for two weeks before use. This can keep for the whole year.

This recipe was originally published in Dawn’s Tuesday Review on August 25, 1992.

History reveals, that the caravan routes passed through Arabia from Syria on the way to Yemen where the Indian vessels brought them the herbs, aroma, spices and rice, which till today is a part of the Arab cooking.

In the recipes that follow, I am going to give you some of the starters of the Mezze table.

Ful Medames (Egyptian Brown Beans)

This is a starter served on the Mezzeh Table. It is a traditional Egyptian dish as old as the Pharaohs. Ful is sold in small Ful shops in the bazaars, as well as the 5-star hotels throughout the Arab world.

Ful mainly consists of broad beans which can be bought in tins from any local store. This dish is served with bread.

Ingredients:

1 tin Ful Medames (brown broad beans)

2 cloves garlic (crushed)

Juice of 2 lemons

1 tsp salt

2 tbsp chopped parsley

1 onion (chopped)

1 tomato (chopped)

Method:

Put the broad beans in a dish and add all the above ingredients, except the parsley. Mix it well and at the end, sprinkle the parsley over the dish and add some olive oil over it.

Labna (cream cheese dip)

I am often asked, “What does an Arab eat for breakfast?” The first thought that comes to my mind is Labna, which is eaten as a spread on bread or simply as a dip. It is refreshing and can be kept in the fridge for several days. Basically it is drained yogurt.

Ingredients:

1/2 kg yogurt

A pinch of salt

Olive oil

Method:

Take the yogurt, pour it into a muslin cloth and hang it, or put it in a strainer, to allow the water to drain off. What remains in the bag after five to six hours is a slightly soft, creamy yogurt which is more like a cheese. The Lebanese and Jordanians often shape this cheese into little balls, the size of a walnut. Sprinkle a little olive oil over them and make a hearty breakfast out of it.

This recipe was originally published in Dawn’s Tuesday Review on December 29, 1992.

Down its dusty roads and often perilously narrow streets, where sometimes even motorbikes struggle to squeeze through, life continues.

Every few steps, a window opens into another home; every street, a small economy of its own. And at the heart of it are women.

In almost every street, a woman sits outside the door to her home, selling something; food, snacks, fruit, beans, cholay, or whatever else she can manage.

These women are not running big businesses — they sell solely to keep their homes running, to feed their families twice a day. Sometimes only once. They are not part of an economy; they are the economy. In their hands lies the art of survival, quiet but strong.

Many people believe Lyari’s economy collapsed after the years of gang violence it endured, when young men were drawn into armed groups, many killed either in clashes between rival gangs or during security operations, or lost to drug addictions, and it was often the women who had to carry what remained.

But in Lyari, women propping up the economy is not something new. It has always been part of the area’s roots and culture. Long before the years of violence, women were the ones keeping both homes and the streets alive through daily labour.

Amma Jaani

Jaani was only 11 when her father died. After his death, darkness filled both their lives and their small home as they had no money to buy gasoline to light their lantern. For three days, neighbours shared their food with Jaani’s family as per Balochi custom. On the fourth day their grief found a troubling companion — hunger. By the fifth day, her younger siblings began to cry from hunger pangs.

“For two days we didn’t eat anything,” Jaani recalls. “My mother was torn between mourning my father and finding something for us to eat. On the sixth day, I stepped outside.”

In Lyari, everyone knows everyone and streets are communities. Jaani walked to a nearby chai hotel owned by Pathans and asked if she could work there.

“There’s no work for girls here,” one man replied. “But if you want, you can wash our clothes.”

Jaani agreed. After finishing the work, she was given Rs10. With that money, she bought food and her family ate that night.

The next day, Jaani returned to the same hotel, but they told her, “You already washed our clothes.” So she went to another hotel, and then another. She washed clothes in most of the tea hotels around Lyari until her father’s chaliswan — the 40th day of mourning.

On days when the hotels had no work, she went to nearby houses belonging to affluent people, cleaning floors and washing dishes.

Jaani remembers that her body began to change too soon. “I got my period when I was still 11,” she says. “There was bleeding, pain, and I fainted. I didn’t understand what was happening, but my mother did. She knew it was because I had been working too much for my age. That day, she told me to stop.”

Jaani said her mother was in itekaaf (spiritual retreat) at the time, but hunger does not follow customs. Her mother borrowed some money from their neighbours and everyone agreed. With that money, she bought banklek beans, a local Balochi dish often eaten at breakfast. That night, she soaked the beans in water, and in the middle of the night lit the firewood, added salt, and let them boil until the Fajr azaan. Early in the morning, after prayers, she placed the pot outside their home and began selling the beans.

Jaani says they earned just enough to eat once or twice a day, but nothing more. “But at least with that, we could survive,” she adds. She would sit beside her mother, helping her sell banklek beans every morning, until the day she got married.

In the first year of her marriage, she gave birth to a son. The marriage lasted only two years; when she was pregnant with her second child, a daughter, her husband divorced her, and she returned to her mother’s home. Not long after, her son fell ill and passed away. A few years later, her mother also died, leaving Jaani to continue selling banklek on her own.

Now, Jaani is in her late 60s. She still sits in front of the worn-out doorway of her house in Shabaig Lane, the same spot where she once sat with her mother. Her hair is white, her skin pale, yet her smile remains wide and welcoming. The street knows her; everyone who passes greets her, and she replies with an even warmer smile.

Every morning, Jaani sells banklek. On a good day, she earns up to Rs300. On other days, it is less. By afternoon, when her brother Babul, who runs a small rented shop nearby, goes to rest or visit the bazaar, Jaani takes his place. The shop is run by both of them, equally.

Amma Haneepa

In Lyari, if there was one woman-run business everyone knew, it was Haneepa and her daal. She woke up every night at 3am to cook the daal. By the time the Fajr azaan resonated through the neighbourhood, her daal was ready. She would heft the large pot to the heart of Baghdadi on Shekaa Road and wait for people returning from their Fajr prayers.

Fishermen on their way to the fisheries, municipal workers, bus conductors, drivers — everyone stopped by for Haneepa’s daal. She first set up her pot in the late 70s, selling the daal for four annas a bowl. When she died in 2013, she sold a bowl for just Rs10.

Her son Mehmood Aalam, now a retired government school teacher, says his father died in the 90s, but their home had always been run single-handedly by his mother. “When father came home holding a few mangoes in his hands, we understood he had earned something that day,” he recalls. “He worked on daily wages and most days there was no work. When he did get work, he brought home fruit, whatever was in season.”

People came to Haneepa’s stall from far beyond Lyari — from Hub Chowki, Mauripur, Mawach Goth, and other areas with large Baloch populations. “If they ever came to this side,” her son says, “they would never leave without eating her daal.”

Ghulam Hussain, a retired professor from Abdullah Haroon College, lived in the same neighbourhood as Amma Haneepa. His mother sold bajya and was known as Amma Maryam Bajya Wala. Back in the day, you could get four pieces for Rs1 with a roti. To him, Amma Haneepa’s stall was more than just a place to eat. “Even if someone wanted to announce a death,” he recalls, “after the mosque announcement, it would happen here. Everyone sat here, ate daal and roti. The message would spread ‘the person who used to come here is now no more.’”

Haneepa raised six sons and two daughters on her own. Every morning, she cooked a three kilogramme pot of daal, which finished by 8am. She returned home for a short rest, and by 2pm, she was back again. By 3pm, the second pot would also finish and she would return home once again to cook another pot, to sit outside till Isha prayers. Three pots a day, every day.

Her son recalled one morning in 2008 when he had gone with her to set up the stall when a group of young men appeared — eight or nine of them, armed. “I was scared,” he says. “They came to our stall, bought daal and roti, and sat nearby to eat. They were the men of the gangster Haou.” They came often, sometimes joined by others — Jengu, Rashid Reeka, Baba Ladla and other names whispered across Lyari. “The sight was strange,” he says. “Gunmen, labourers, rickshaw drivers, footballers, all eating in the same place. But the rush never stopped. My mother, surrounded by a hundred men, just kept working.”

Haneepa’s daal was famous and, above all, cheap. In a neighbourhood where poverty ran deep, many families cooked only naan or rice at home. They would send a dees or a big bowl to Haneepa, and she would fill it with daal. That bowl would feed an entire family.

At the time, there were no gas connections in Lyari. She cooked on wood, using a little gaslet to light the fire. “She always told us to make the quality good, and the price low. This area matters. Baghdadi survives because people like us make sure their kitchens are not overburdened,” her son says. Haneepa’s daal was for everyone — not just Baloch, but anyone who came by.

“She never did it for business,” explains her son. “She just sold enough so that the family could live.”

After Haneepa’s death in 2013, her daughter continued the stall for a few years. But after her daughter passed away, no one could carry it on. Today, every Ramazan, Haneepa’s granddaughter brings out the same pot and cooks in her grandmother’s memory.

Amma Saeeda and her daughter Hafeeza

At the edge of a narrow street, right in front of her small doorway, sit Amma Saeeda and her daughter Hafeeza. On a small wooden table, they arrange jars of toffees, fried snacks, chaliya and biscuits among other treats.

Saeeda, now in her early seventies, was married to a donkey-cart driver. He worked on daily wages, carrying goods to Bolton Market. “What he earned was only enough for the day’s meal,” Saeeda explains. “If he didn’t get work, it meant going hungry.”

When she was pregnant with her third child, her husband stopped working. He said he had pain in his joints, but they had no money for treatment, so he stayed at home, and Saeeda stepped out. She began running a small stall in front of their home — the same stall she has continued to operate for the last 40 years.

Saeeda had 12 children. Seven of them died from sicknesses she could not afford to treat. Her husband too died after a long illness. She has five surviving children: three daughters and two sons. Only one of her sons is married.

“It’s a hawai rozi,” she said, a living that comes and goes like the wind. “Sometimes we can afford one meal a day, sometimes not even that. But still, there is hope. I sit here, I earn. I have the power to run my home. Despite all this poverty, I never lose heart.”

Amma Mahtuk and Amma Aatuli: two sisters

There is a street in Shah Baig Lane known as Gwadar Gali or Gwadar Street. It got its name from two sisters, Mahtuk and Aatuli. Their grandfather migrated from Gwadar and settled in this lane, and the sisters made it known through their work. Both sold fruit on the same street, each a little distance apart.

People in Lyari still remember them — loud, fierce, and fearless. They cleared their own space on the road, set up their stalls, and called out to people passing by to come and buy fruit. The street became famous across the area — everyone came to Gwadar Gali to have fruit. For Rs10, a plate was filled to the brim.

Mahtuk has passed away now, and Aatuli left the work about nine years ago after suffering from a stroke. Still, every Ramazan, she returns to the same street, selling fruit again with her son by her side.

Before her marriage, Aatuli worked at the Karachi Fisheries. Her job was to cut the heads off shrimp, and when it wasn’t shrimp season, she helped pull fish from fishing nets. “One day,” she says, “I came home from work still smelling of fish. My mother told me to sit in the bashana — the bridal veil.”

Aatuli was married to a jobless man, which pushed her to start working again. She then went to the Sohrab Goth fruit market, bought fruit, and began selling them. Later, when the market moved to Jail Chowrangi at the old Sabzi Mandi and then to Lea Market, she kept going.

Aatuli now has seven sons and two daughters. Her husband died of tuberculosis long ago. For as long as she can remember, almost 50 years, she has sold fruit.

Amma Zullu

In 1965, Zuleka, known to everyone as Amma Zullu,* became famous in Lyari for her seekh boti. She would fold and tightly wrap her chador around her forehead, light the fire, and set up her ishkar (grill). People gathered around her as the smoke rose, waiting for the sizzling meat. At that time, each seekh cost only four annas, and the crowd around her stall never seemed to dissipate.

Years later, when Amma Zullu passed away, her husband’s sister took over the work, since they lived in a joint family. Mumtaz recalled that he was 12 years old in 1984 when his mother Fatuma took over the stall after his Phuppo Zullu’s death. He often helped her. In 2006, when his mother passed away, Mumtaz continued the work — keeping the legacy that began with Amma Zullu alive.

These are but a few of the women whose quiet strength and dignity feeds their families. Even a short visit will make you realise that these women are not in competition with men, nor do they wait for empowerment. They have been empowered all along — quietly, through resilience, through work that begins before dawn and ends late into the night.

In Lyari’s narrow streets, where every corner holds a story, these women do not just earn; they endure. Their hands keep kitchen stoves burning, their strength keeps homes standing, and their names — Amma Jaani, Amma Haneepa, Amma Saeeda, Amma Aatuli, and many others — live on as the heartbeat of a neighbourhood that survives through them.

Fresh ginger lemonade

Ingredients

1 large piece of fresh ginger (about 3-4 inches)

4-5 lemons (freshly juiced)

2-3 tbsp honey or sweetener of choice (adjust to taste)

Ice cubes (optional)

Method

Peel the fresh ginger root and cut it into small pieces. Grate the ginger with a little bit of water to create a smooth paste. Place the grated ginger in a fine sieve or cheesecloth, and press or squeeze it to extract the juice. You should have around 2-3 tablespoons of fresh ginger juice. Squeeze the juice from the lemons and strain it to remove seeds or pulp.

In a large pitcher, combine the freshly squeezed lemon juice, ginger juice, and cold water. Stir well to mix. Add honey (or your preferred sweetener) to taste. Stir until it’s dissolved completely. If you want a tangy flavour, feel free to adjust the amount of sweetener.

Pour the ginger lemonade into glasses filled with ice cubes (optional).

Carrot and ginger juice

Ingredients

4 carrots

1 ginger thumb

1 orange

1 cup water

½ tbsp honey

Method

Peel and cut the carrots into bite-sized cubes. Peel the ginger and cut the pieces into thin batons. Slice the oranges and deseed them; drop the ginger slices into one cup of water and set it to boil. Do not add the ginger to boiling water but let the temperature rise after it has been added into the water. Once the water is heated, allow the ginger to boil for a couple of minutes and then turn off the flame.

Let it cool and infuse with the water for another ten minutes and strain away the ginger slices after that.

Add the ginger liquid to your mixer along with the prepared carrots. Add honey, squeeze an orange, and mix it all together.

Fresh lime pomegranate juice

Ingredients

2 large limes (freshly juiced)

1–1½ cups of fresh pomegranate seeds

2-3 tbsp of honey or sweetener of your choice

Ice cubes

Method

Cut the pomegranate in half and gently tap the back with a wooden spoon to release the seeds. Once you have the seeds, whisk them in a blender for 15-20 seconds. Strain the juice through a fine sieve or cheesecloth into a bowl to remove the pulp. You should get about 1 to 1½ cups of fresh pomegranate juice.

Roll the limes on the counter to make juicing easier, then cut them in half and squeeze out the juice using a juicer or by hand.

In a large pitcher, combine the fresh pomegranate juice, lime juice, and cold water. Add 2-3 tablespoons of honey or your choice of sweetener and stir until it’s fully dissolved. Adjust the sweetness to your preference.

Beetroot and carrot smoothie

Ingredients

1 red beet

1 large carrot

½ cup milk

2/3 cup water

Method

Peel and chop both the carrot and beet root into cubes. Pour in the milk and then add in the cubed vegetables. Blend this on high speed until a paste is formed. Then, pour in the water and mix again. You can adjust the amount of water you add based on the consistency you desire. Stop adding water and mixing once your smoothie is as smooth as you require it to be and enjoy!

Citrus mocktail

Ingredients

1 pomelo

2 oranges

1 lime

A sprig of mint leaves

Method

Squeeze out the juices from the pomelo, oranges, and lime. Mix everything. You can add a little bit of water if you find the taste too citrusy or want to dilute the mixture a little. Throw in a sprig of fresh mint leaves to add some freshness. You can have this daily for your required intake of vitamin C.

Sweet tamarind drink

Ingredients

150g sweet tamarind

4 cups water

Sugar to taste

½ a lemon’s juice (optional)

1 tsp rose water (optional)

Method

Soak tamarind in 4 cups of water for 2 hours. Squeeze out the pulp and discard the seeds and fibre. Strain the pulp through a fine sieve. Blend the water with sugar in a blender.

If you like you can add lemon juice or rose water.

Add more sugar as per your taste. Keep it in the fridge for at least 45 minutes. Serve chilled.

Cover photo by Collected / Tai’s Captures / Unsplash

This story was originally published in The Daily Star, an ANN partner of Dawn.

Ingredients

-K&N’s Chicken Tempura (10-12 pieces)

-Oil (1 tbsp)

-Garlic (1 tbsp; chopped)

-Onion (½ cup; chopped)

-Red chilli paste (1 cup)

-Ketchup (½ cup)

-Brown sugar (1 tbsp)

-Soy sauce (2 tbsp)

-Green bell pepper (1 cup; diced)

-Red bell pepper (1 cup; diced)

-Mozzarella cheese (1 cup; shredded)

-Jalapeno slices as required

-Oregano as required

-Red chilli flakes for garnishing

-Parsley for garnishing; chopped

Method

1. In a skillet, heat oil, add garlic and sauté for a minute. Add onion and cook until translucent.

2. Add red chilli paste and simmer over low flame for a minute. Add ketchup, brown sugar, soy sauce and cook for 1-2 minutes. Add green bell pepper and red bell pepper; cook for another minute.

3. Fry K&N’s Chicken Tempura as per instructions on pack.

4. Add Chicken Tempura to Schezwan sauce and mix until fully coated.

5. Add a layer of mozzarella cheese on it.

6. Garnish with jalapenos, oregano, red chilli flakes and parsley.

7. Schezwan Tempura Skillet is ready to serve.

Red Chilli Paste Ingredients

-Water (1½ cup)

-Kashmiri dry red chillies (4)

Method

In a pan, boil water and add dry red chillies. Boil until water quantity reduces to half and chillies soften. Blend to a smooth paste. Set aside.

This content is produced in paid partnership with K&N’s.

Ingredients

-K&N’s Haray Bharay Nuggets (12-15 Nuggets)

-Tortillas (5-6)

-Sour cream (1 cup)

-Salsa as required

-Sautéed vegetables as required

-French fries as required

-Coriander (½ cup; chopped)

-Lemon (1)

Method

1. Fry K&N’s Haray Bharay Nuggets as per instructions on pack and cut into half.

2. Lightly heat tortilla sheets on a dry pan and spread sour cream in the center, assemble by putting salsa, sautéed vegetables and K&N’s Haray Bharay Nuggets.

3. Add French fries and coriander. Squeeze lemon juice and pour salsa again.

4. Roll up tortilla tightly, enclosing the edges. Mexican Style Nugget Shawarma is ready.

Sour Cream Ingredients

-Heavy cream (1 cup)

-Lemon juice (1½ tbsp)

-Paprika powder (1 tsp)

-Garlic powder (1 tsp)

-Cumin powder (1 tsp)

-Red chilli powder (1 tsp)

-Black pepper powder (1 tsp)

-Salt (1 tsp)

Method

1. Add heavy cream and lemon juice in a bowl. Whisk well and leave it for 10-15 minutes.

2. Add paprika powder, garlic powder, cumin powder, red chilli powder, black pepper powder and salt. Mix well and refrigerate until use.

Sautéed Vegetable Ingredients

-Oil (1 tbsp)

-Red bell pepper (1 cup; julienned)

-Yellow bell pepper (1 cup; julienned)

Method

In a preheated pan add oil, red bell pepper, yellow bell pepper and sauté for 1-2 minutes. Set aside.

Salsa Ingredients

-Oil (2-3 tbsp)

-Garlic (2-3 cloves; chopped)

-Onion (1 cup; chopped)

-Tomatoes (1 cup; chopped)

-Bell pepper (1 cup; chopped)

-Jalapeño (¼ cup; chopped)

-Ketchup (½ cup)

-Brown sugar (1 tbsp)

-Water (¼ cup)

-Black pepper powder (1 tsp)

-Salt (1 tsp)

-Vinegar (1 tbsp)

Method

1. In a preheated pan, add oil and sauté garlic for 30 seconds.

2. Add onion, tomatoes, bell pepper, jalapeño and sauté for 1-2 minutes.

3. Add ketchup and brown sugar along with water and simmer for a minute.

4. Add black pepper powder, salt and vinegar. Mix well and cook for 2-3 minutes or until it thickens. Set aside.

This content is produced in paid partnership with K&N’s.

According to food historians, the macaron, or rather its predecessor, was most likely introduced to the Sicily region by Arab soldiers in the 13th century. The dessert then gained in popularity in Italy before it eventually found its way to France.

In the 18th century in the French town of Nancy, two nuns, Marguerite Gaillot and Marie Morlot, popularised macarons, which they baked and sold to support themselves. The nuns found themselves without a home after a 1792 decree abolished religious congregations, which led to their expulsion from their abbey. The bakery they founded, Maison des Soeurs Macarons (‘House of the Macaron Sisters’), still sells macarons to this day.

But the macaron that we know and love today was created by Parisian pâtissier Pierre Desfontaines in 1930: he reinterpreted the dessert as two macarons sandwiching a filling of jam or ganache. The modern, eye-catching and colourful macarons may be a world away from the original dessert, but they are also a testament to how different ideas and cultures can even shape the humble biscuit.

Rose and Pistachio Macarons

There’s something romantic and delicate about macarons — their allure lies in the fact that making them is as much art as science. As every baker will tell you, they have their own way of making macarons and getting them right can take a number of attempts and experimentation. But once mastered, nothing beats the crunchy, decadent macaron.

There are also three different methods to make them: the French, the Italian and the Swiss way. The French one is considered the easiest for beginners and is the one given below.

Ingredients (Makes 40 macarons)

For the macarons
6 egg whites
Vinegar or lemon juice (as needed)
¼ teaspoon cream of tartar
1/3 cup granulated sugar
11/3 cup almond flour (1¼ cup whole almonds ground into flour)
1 cup confectioner’s or powdered sugar
¼ teaspoon rosewater extract (for the rose macarons)
¼ teaspoon almond extract (for the pistachio macarons)
1 drop of red food colouring (optional)
1 drop of green food colouring (optional)

For the pistachio filling

¼ cup softened butter
1½ tablespoon malai (cream)
1 cup confectioner’s sugar
3 tablespoons finely ground pistachios

For the rose filling

¼ cup softened butter
1½ tablespoons malai (cream)
¾ cup confectioner’s sugar
1 teaspoon rose syrup

Method

• Age the egg whites — this stabilises the macaron. Coat a mixing bowl with vinegar or lemon juice. Take out an additional two small bowls. Crack eggs in one bowl, separate the egg whites from the yolks and pour into the second bowl. Make sure there is absolutely no yolk mixed in with the whites. Pour the egg whites into the large bowl. Whisk thoroughly. Cover the bowl in cling film and place in the fridge for 24 hours.
• After a day, take out the egg whites from the fridge. Add the cream of tartar. Stir well.
• Grind the granulated sugar in a blender to make it even finer — the finer the sugar, the better the macarons will turn out.
• Beat the mixture continuously with a whisk or an electric beater until soft peaks form. Add 1/3 of the granulated sugar and whisk vigorously for a minute or so (for five to 10 seconds on medium speed if using the electric beater). Then add 1/3 more of the sugar and whisk again. Add the last batch of sugar and repeat. Continue beating until stiff peaks form.
• Make the almond flour by grinding the almonds in a blender until a fine powder forms.
• In a separate bowl, add the almond flour and powdered sugar. Mix together.
• Fold 1/3 of the egg mixture into the dry ingredients. Repeat two more times. Continue folding the batter until it has the consistency of honey or a thick syrup.
• Split the batter in half. Stir in almond extract in one and rose extract in the other. Fold in the green food colouring in one and the red in the other.
• Line three baking trays with parchment paper. Spoon the macaron batter into a piping bag. Squeeze out two-inch round macaron shells two to three inches apart. Continue doing so until all the mixture has finished.
• Slightly lift the trays and bang them hard to flatten the macaron shells and to remove any air bubbles. You can also use a toothpick to pop out any bubbles.
• Preheat oven to 160 degrees Celsius.
• Air dry the batter for half an hour until the top layer of the macaron has hardened. This prevents the shells from cracking during the bake.
• Bake in batches for 12-15 minutes or until the macaron is set/firm to the touch. Take out of the oven and cool on racks.
• Make the pistachio and rose fillings: mix all the listed ingredients together. Spoon in the filling in separate piping bags.
• Pipe out the pistachio filling on the flat part of the green macaron shell. Add another green macaron shell, with the flat part facing down, on top.
• Pipe out the rose filling on the flat part of the pink macaron. Add a second pink macaron shell, with the flat part facing down, on top.
• Place the macarons in a serving dish and have as is or with coffee or tea.

Originally published in Dawn, EOS, February 15th, 2026

The dish, which goes by the name of its hero ingredient, Hara Lasun, is an earthy, multi-layered savoury breakfast consisting of thinly chopped hara lasun, mixed with crumbled bajra roti, topped with a smoky eggplant dip and a dollop of freshly whipped yoghurt.

Winter smells like hara lasun

Hara lasun — young garlic plant — is a winter ingredient through and through: the green stalks and tender white bulb of young garlic are harvested before the cloves fully develop. It’s milder than dried garlic and gentler on the nose, with a sweetness that adds freshness rather than bite.

Used generously, it perfumes a dish (and the dining area) without overwhelming it.

For me, winter mornings smell like warm, broken pieces of bajray ki roti, slicked with desi ghee or til ka tel (sesame oil), a heap of finely chopped hara lasun, and a bowl of smoked baingan ka bharta. It’s the kind of breakfast we eat slowly, usually at my Nano Ami’s house, or my late phuppo’s, seated around a table that smells faintly of smoke, ghee and green garlic.

Even though the ingredient should technically be spelt hara lehsun, everyone in my family — and most importantly my Nano Ami — insists on calling it “lasun”, not “lehsun”. Trust me, I’ve tried fighting her on this. I’ve presented arguments, pronunciation logic, perhaps even mild theatrics but none of it worked. There comes a point where you simply learn that Nano Ami outranks the dictionary, and you stop arguing.

Where the dish comes from

This dish is largely known today as a Memoni winter staple, particularly in Karachi. But growing up, my Gujarati grandmother always insisted it came from Junagadh, in India’s Gujarat.

When I finally looked into it, the histories overlapped.

According to commonly held accounts, the Memon community traces its roots to the Lohana Hindu community, many of whom embraced Islam centuries before Partition. A section of this community settled in the Kathiawar (also spelt Kathiawad) peninsula in Gujarat, which includes Junagadh — a region historically known for winter vegetables, millet-based breads, and robust, warming foods.

The Dhoraji Youth Services Foundation notes: “It can also be said with authority that the Memons of Kathiawar came from the Hindus of Lohana community… From Vinjhan they migrated to Rojhiwada in Kathiawad and from there to different parts of the world.”

Junagadh itself is listed as a state within the Kathiawar region in the Gazetteer of the Bombay Presidency, Vol VIII. When I asked my Nano, she said without an ounce of hesitation or doubt: “This is a Junagadh dish”. When I argued that it might just be a Memon dish, she responded frustrated, “Haan tou hum sab sath rehtay thay, Memon bhi thay Junagadh main (Yes, so we all lived there together, Memons were also in Junagadh).”

She learnt the dish from the women of her beloved Peshawari Gali in Junagadh, and carried it with her after migrating to Pakistan.

So the dish travelled to our home the way many recipes do — through memory, migration, and women who refused to let flavours be forgotten.

A dish that asks for time

Part of what makes hara lasun special is the effort it demands. This is not an ordinary weekday meal — it’s a communal one.

When my phuppo was alive, winters meant sleepovers. All 13 of my father’s siblings would turn up with their families and once dinner was cleared, the real work began.

Cleaning and chopping hara lasun, with a side of gossip, laughter and masti mazaak (fun).

My phuppo would meticulously wipe each stalk with a clean, damp cloth, starting from the bulb and moving down in one smooth motion to remove all the dust from the root vegetable, aligning neat bundles as she went. I, her self-designated sous chef, was tasked with chopping the lasun as thinly as humanly possible. For a household as full as ours, it took us three to four hours.

That, more than anything, is the dish.

The supporting cast

While the garlic was being prepped, someone, usually my mother, would be on roti duty.

Bajray ki roti (pearl millet bread) is unforgiving. Made from pearl millet flour, it’s gluten-free, hence prone to cracking. However, the women in my house perfected an innovative workaround: two thin sheets of plastic (often cut from shopping bags), dough sandwiched between them, rolled gently. The roti slid cleanly onto the tawa (hot plate) without breaking, much like you slide a frozen paratha onto your tawa.

Once on the hotplate, shallow diagonal slits were cut to help it cook evenly. When both sides were done, it was drenched in ghee (no restraint). We were told it is to moisten the otherwise dry roti.

Then came the baingan ka bharta. Eggplants charred directly over the flame, rotated patiently so nothing burned unevenly. The skin peels away easily once soft. The flesh is mashed, salted, and smoked using a glowing hot coal and a teaspoon of oil trapped under a lid just long enough to perfume the bharta without overpowering it.

And finally, thick, freshly whipped yoghurt. Easy to overlook, but essential. It cools the dish, binds the flavours, and softens what is otherwise rich and intense.

Before serving, the chopped hara lasun and broken bajray ki roti are mixed and loosened with a little sesame oil. Each person builds their own bite: roti, lasun, bharta, yoghurt — in whatever proportion feels right. Some also like to mix the bharta with yoghurt before serving.

Why hara lasun appears only in winter

Green garlic is harvested before the garlic bulb matures, making it strictly seasonal. In South Asia, it appears briefly in winter markets, particularly in regions with millet-based food traditions like Kathiawar and parts of Sindh. Different homes celebrate the crop in different ways — from haray lasun ke laddoo, to haray lasun ki daal, to haray ki sabzi and so many other dishes. Its short season is precisely why dishes built around it remain celebratory rather than everyday.

Recipe (serves 2–3)

Hara lasun mix

• Hara lasun (green garlic): ½ kg
• Sesame oil: a small splash (to moisten)

Bajray ki roti

• Bajray ka atta (pearl millet flour): 500g
• Water: to knead
• Salt: to taste
• Sesame oil: 1 tbsp (for binding)
• Desi ghee: 2–3 tbsp (for finishing)

Baingan ka bharta

• Eggplants: 2
• Salt: to taste
• Coal: a small piece
• Oil: 1 tsp (for smoking)

Yoghurt base

• Thick yoghurt: 500g, whipped smooth

Just because I wouldn’t want my readers to curse me for the heaviness that takes over after you have a bowl of that lasun and roti mix, I will leave you with a pro-tip: finish off the meal with a fresh orange to help with the food coma. Citrus, another winter special, does a great job at cutting the density of the dish.

It was also the only male contribution towards the dish at our home — ensuring a good supply of fresh oranges from our local vendor to finish off the winter feast.

And once winter leaves, so does the brown, green, smoky and messy earthy goodness — until next year, when the cycle begins again.

Side note: The hara lasun seen in the pictures above was ordered by my mother from a home chef (@memoni_kitchen.123) because, as this piece has already established, winter without hara lasun is simply not winter. However, this year, my mother and nano, both severely afflicted by peak December-itis, were in absolutely no mood to pull an all-nighter chopping lasun and flipping rotis. Hence, they made a collective decision to outsource the labour, and preserve everyone’s sleep schedule and sanity, while keeping the tradition alive.

When we were kids, my mother always made sure that we got to watch Popeye cartoons, because they were good tools to convince us to eat spinach, which we weren’t too keen on at that age.

There are many different types of saag [leafy greens], but the ones cooked at our house were either palak [spinach] or sarsoon [mustard]. Both looked similar to me as the leaves of both were dark green in colour and mushy. The palak would often be cooked with meat, but sarsoon was often cooked with cottage cheese.

Sometimes, if the cook were feeling adventurous in the kitchen, he would cook mooli ke paton ka saag [radish greens]. I only tried it recently, and it seemed somewhat bitter to me. But a friend swears the best combo saag is one his mother makes, combining the green leaves of sarsoon, shaljam [turnip] and mooli as well as radishes themselves. I have yet to try that.

Popeye may have exaggerated things, but the nutritional value of these leafy greens cannot be denied. Spinach is packed with vitamins A, C and K, along with iron, folate and fibre. Nutritionists say that regular consumption of spinach promotes heart health, boosts immunity, strengthens bones and is great for your eyesight and skin.

As for mustard leaves, they are also full of vitamins A, C and K, and have antioxidant and anti-inflammatory benefits. Radish leaves are also rich in vitamins A and C, calcium, potassium and magnesium. They may also boost immunity and strengthen bones, besides cleansing the liver of toxins.

These leafy greens, especially mustard and radish, are primarily winter and spring crops. It is also around this time of year, between October and March, when mustard fields dazzle with yellow flowers, heralding the Basant festival, where people dress up in matching yellow outfits and fly kites, reflecting the colours of other spring flowers. It is basically a harvest season celebration.

The most sought-after dish at these celebrations is sarsoon ka saag and makai ki roti [flat bread made of maize flour]. On the side, people love to have butter, cheese and salads, which include radishes and their leaves.

Method

Here’s how to prepare these nutritious greens at home.

For spinach, wash and boil around one kilogram of fresh spinach leaves in a cupful of water after removing the stalks. Either shred the leaves before boiling or grind them in a food processor later for a smoother consistency.

The spinach leaves have enough natural moisture, so there is no need to add more water to the pan while boiling them. When the moisture has evaporated, transfer the boiled leaves, which must have reduced in size, to a bowl if you don’t want to grind them.

Set the boiled spinach aside while you prepare the curry base by frying chopped onions in about half a cup of oil, till they turn light golden. Add the usual spices, including salt (to taste), ginger and garlic paste (one to two teaspoons), white cumin seeds (one teaspoon), red chilli powder (one teaspoon), turmeric (one teaspoon), coriander powder (one teaspoon) and garam masala powder (half teaspoon), while sautéing briskly before adding the boiled leaves and two to three whole green chillies.

If you are cooking spinach with meat, you should add the meat before adding the boiled spinach leaves. Add six cups of water for mutton or beef and three cups of water for chicken. Add the boiled spinach leaves and green chillies only after the meat is tender. Then, lower the heat. Cook for 10 minutes on low heat, then remove.

Sarsoon or mooli ka saag is cooked plain. You can optionally add an equal amount of palak, along with a handful each of methi [fenugreek] leaves and soya [dill] at the boiling stage. Cottage cheese cut into small squares is added while sautéing the leaves, after which the saag is cooked on low heat for 10 minutes.

For makai ki roti, you need maize flour, which is typically yellowish in colour. Add some cooking oil or ghee to the flour before adding water to knead into a soft dough. Then divide into equal-sized balls, before gently flattening and spreading them thin while your fingers are greased with cooking oil or ghee. Place on a hot griddle and cook on both sides.

Originally published in Dawn, EOS, February 1st, 2026