MID EAST FEAST

We are really looking forward to cooking with you! ​Below are all the details you need for the session, but if you have any questions, feel free to email us

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There will be a waiting room enabled, and the "kitchen doors" will open 5 minutes before the scheduled start time. Please login 5 minutes early so we can start promptly. 
MENU:
This wonderful Mid Eastern street food is easy to make, and totally delicious to eat! The idea is that you make a few elements, then stuff them into a pita pocket, and enjoy. There are many items that can fill your pita, but on this session, we will be making the essentials: Shwarma (vege), a chopped colourful salad, hoummous and a tahina sauce.  ​​
INGREDIENTS:
The ingredients here are for 4 portions. If you want more, or less please adjust

Please make sure to wash all vegetables/fruit in advance of the session. You don't have to weigh anything out, just make sure you have all your ingredients ready to hand
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​Veg/Salad/Fruit:
  • 2 large aubergines (or 4 - 6 x large flat mushrooms if you prefer) 
  • 1 lemon 
  • 1 white onions
  • ​1 English cucumber
  • 2 plum tomatoes
  • 1 red pepper (or any colour) *optional but nice
  • 1 red onion
  • 1 small bunch mint *optional but nice 
  • 1 small bunch parsley

 Spices:
  • Salt
  • Black pepper
  • Garlic salt/powder
  • Ground cumin 
  • Paprika (regular sweet, not smoked)
  • Ground turmeric  
  • Ground coriander 
  • Ground allspice (*optional, gives extra flavour)
  • Ground cinnamon 
  • Sumac (optional but good)*** 
  • Za'atar (optional but good)*** 
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Storecupboard:
  • 1/4 cup vegetable or light olive oil (not extra virgin)
  • Extra virgin olive oil (for drizzling, not cooking)
  • 1 tsp pomegranate molasses (optional but good) *** 
  • 125g tinned chickpeas (ready cooked, small 210g tin)
  • 100ml tahina paste*** 
  • 2 pickled cucumbers (optional but good)
  • 8 black pitted olives (optional but good)
  • 250ml cold water
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​Bakery:
  • Pita Breads *** 

Notes:
*** Tahina paste - not all tahina paste is created equal and some brands (particularly supermarket own brands and Cypressa) can be bitter and this will make your tahina sauce and houmous bitter. There are some fantastic tahina paste brands easily available in supermarkets that have no bitterness (like Achva or Baracke, or Belazu available in Tesco and Ocado), or available in Mid Eastern/Mediterranean shops. As a rule we suggest sticking to Mid Eastern brands (Arabic/Israeli) as they are all good! 

*** Pomegranate molasses is a great addition to this dish but can be left out if you cant find. It is widely available in mainstream supermarkets but worth knowing that its even better to buy from a Mid Eastern/Mediterranean shop as the flavours are better. Some lovely brands include Al Rabih,  

*** Sumac and Zaatar are spices available in mainstream supermarkets but even better to buy from a Mid Eastern/Mediterranean shop 

*** Pita breads need to be soft and pillowy, not hard, and many supermarket pita is hard. We prefer buying our Pita bread from a bakery where they are wonderful (brands like Taboon). If you cannot find soft pita, then you can use flour wraps instead or you can also substitute the pita for rice (please make in advance of the session)
UTENSILS & EQUIPMENT:
Please have all your utensils out of cupboards and quickly accessible. We wont have time on the class for you to look for equipment.  
  • Oven set to 200 degrees Celcius at start
  • 1 x food processor (small is better, 500ml capacity bowl)** This is for the hoummous, and if you don't have you can use a stick blender, or a pestle and mortar, or even just a ziplock bag and rolling pin
  • 1 x chopping board
  • 1 x large cook's knife
  • 1 x small utility knife (serrated) 
  • Large baking sheet/shallow roasting tray (lined with tinfoil/baking parchment)
  • Fork or tongs
  • Measuring spoons (Tbsp & tsp)
  • Measuring cups/scale
  • 2 x small mixing bowls
  • Small whisk/fork
  • A few spoons - for mixing and tasting
  • 1 x med serving bowl - for the finished salad
  • 2 x small serving bowls - for the finished hoummous and tahina sauce
  • A flat serving dish/platter for the finished shwarma
  • Apron
  • Oven gloves/thick tea towel
  • Kitchen paper towel  
GENERAL GUIDANCE NOTES:

  • We will send you all the recipes after the session so no need to take any notes
  • Please make sure to wash all vegetables in advance of the class 
  • Have all your utensils out of cupboards and/or quickly accessible 
  • We strongly recommend you log in using a laptop for the optimum experience, so you can see everyone clearly (smartphones and iPad limit you seeing others)
  • Please make sure you have adequate sound/speakers to you can hear instructions
  • There will be a waiting room enabled prior to the start, and then the “kitchen doors” will be opened. Please login 5 minutes prior to the scheduled start so everyone is in the kitchen on time. Please don't be late
  • When you come in your video will be on and your sound unmuted. You will be muted when the cooking starts so that everyone can hear. If you have questions during you should unmute and ask, and then re-mute yourselves again
  • We will not be using the chat forum in this session 
  • Please make sure your name(s) are showing on your screen so we can refer to you correctly - you can rename yourselves
  • Please don't share the Zoom link with anyone - the session organiser will have invited everyone