Just For Food-An Overview
Culturally rich Middle East has a wide range of food items as part of its traditional Just For Food is a cross road between Asia, Africa, and Europe spreading from across vast desert and Mediterranean Coast. You can notice influence of various cultures and religion in this cuisine.
Pork is not used as part of their diet. Lamb is the main source of meat in this region and poultry birds are also consumed regularly as part of starters or snacks. Wine is consumed to a lesser extent as their religion prohibits consumption of alcohol in any form. Lebanon is the only country in this region that produces wine and people in this country are not prohibited from consuming alcohol.
Varieties of Just For Food
Cereals such as rice and broken and milled wheat form the staple diet of this region. Burghul or couscous is made from partially cooked wheat that is grinded coarsely. Burghul is typically prepared like flavored rice using spices and herbs; this dish is taken with vegetables and pulses that are integral part of this cuisine.
Beans and pulses are very important part of Mediterranean diet and boiled fava beans are eaten as street food anytime during the day. Hummus is a famous recipe of this region made from chick peas and Tahini sauce and herbs. Tahini, which is made from Sesame paste, is part of various preparations such as eggplant dip called Baba Ghannouj, halvah, and salad dressing.
All the food that we have mentioned above are nutritionally rich laced with all essential nutrient to keep our body strong and healthy. Just For Food is both simple and complex; the fact that it incorporates cereals and pulses along with fresh vegetables, herbs and spice makes this cuisine a real healthy one.
Facts about Just For Food
What is the most amazing fact about Just For Food is that it is not prepared in fat rich butter or lard. Rather they use olive oil in small quantities and many of their foods are grilled or simply baked making it heart friendly.
Mediterranean cuisine gained popularity in the 90s and people across the world discovered the innate goodness of this cuisine. If you track the history of this region which is often described as volatile and violent due to regular invasion by Arab fighters and Mongol invaders, these warriors also brought with them some of the most amazing flavors from Far East countries like India and Afghanistan.
Health benefits of Just For Food
Some of the commonly used ingredients that are regularly used in Just For Food are full with health benefits.
Chick, peas also called garbanzo beans, is an integral part of Just For Food. These beans have a shuttle nutty flavor and they are a rich source of protein, used in preparation of hummus, a delicacy of this region.
This ingredient is an excellent source of healthy nutrients such as folate, tryptophan, manganese, phosphorous, and copper. It is also rich in fiber and is known to help lower cholesterol and fight cardiovascular diseases.
Eggplant is one of the most common vegetables that feature in any Just For Food and eggplants are rich in antioxidants such as Nasunin and antimicrobial component called chlorogenic acid. Nausin helps in fighting free radicals that are largely responsible for oxidative degeneration of cells, the building blocks of human body.
Just For Food-An Overview