1,000 Foods To Eat Before You Die: A Food Lover's Life List (113 page)

Where:
In New York
, Barney Greengrass, tel 212-724-4707,
barneygreengrass.com
;
in Atlanta
, Goldberg’s at multiple locations,
goldbergbagel.com
;
in Boynton Beach, FL
, Flakowitz, tel 561-742-4144,
flakowitzofboynton.com
;
in Chicago
, Manny’s, tel 312-939-2855,
mannysdeli.com
;
in Los Angeles
, Factor’s Famous Deli, tel 310-278-9175,
factorsdeli.com
;
in San Francisco
, Wise Sons Deli, tel 415-787-3354;
in San Francisco and San Rafael, CA
, Miller’s East Coast Deli,
millerseastcoastdeli.com
;
in Bellevue, WA
, Goldbergs’ Famous Delicatessen, tel 425-641-6622,
goldbergsdeli.com
.
Mail order:
streits
matzos.elsstore.com
.
Further information and additional recipes:
The New York Times Passover Cookbook
by Linda Amster (2010);
Arthur Schwartz’s Jewish Home Cooking
by Arthur Schwartz (2008);
cookstr.com
(search classic matzo brei);
kosherfood.about.com
(search matzo brei).

Dotted with cheery bits of carrots, feathery dill, and tender chunks of boiled beef, a thick and silky mushroom and barley soup is a restorative winter classic. Fresh mushrooms sometimes make an appearance, but the important fungi here are the powerfully fragrant and flavored dried
schwammen
, or
borovik
(see
listing
), the heady ceps found in Poland and Russia (where this soup is known as
krupnik
). Just two or three can flavor a large pot of a soup that includes pearled (polished) barley and iron-rich root vegetables such as parsnips, the parsley root
petrouchka
, and celery root, along with onions, leeks, celery with its leaves, a clove or two of unpeeled garlic, and fresh dill. Chunks of first-cut beef flanken provide sustenance and an additional depth of flavor. Although the beef is most succulent served right in the broth, large pieces are sometimes served as a separate main course, ringed with bits of the cooked vegetables
and mantled with beet-reddened or ivory-white horseradish.

Because barley expands and thickens quickly, it should not be added until about halfway through cooking. Pearled barley, its outer husk polished off, is the kind to use—it is subtler and less absorbent than the whole, unpolished barley, which can become overpowering in this soup.

Where:
In New York
, 2nd Ave Deli at two locations,
2ndavedeli.com
; Sammy’s Roumanian Steakhouse, tel 212-763-0330,
sammysromanian.com
;
in Chicago
, Manny’s, tel 312-939-2855,
mannysdeli.com
;
in Los Angeles
, Nate ‘n Al, tel 310-274-0101,
natenal.com
;
in Los Angeles and Miami
, Jerry’s Famous Deli at multiple locations,
jerrysfamousdeli.com
.
Mail order:
For dried mushrooms,
igourmet.com
(search dried porcini); for pearled barley, amazon.com).
Further information and recipes:
The 2nd Ave Deli Cookbook
by Sharon Lebewohl and Rena Bulkin (1999);
From My Mother’s Kitchen
by Mimi Sheraton (1979);
The Book of Jewish Food
by Claudia Roden (1996).
Tip:
Because barley tends to absorb liquid when leftover soup is reheated, it may be advisable to add some broth.

Nigella sativa
has a mysterious sound to its name, and the taste of this rare and intriguing seasoning does not disappoint. The tiny, granular, jet black seeds of a plant in the Ranunculaceae family appear in foods of many ethnic origins, lending their snappy, bitter, licorice-and-oregano flavor to braided challah or to the long, flat, scored, Afghani, Mughlai, and Peshawari bread naan. They’re found on Turkish
çörek
(black) buns and bring smoky subtlety to Persian and Mediterranean yogurt sauces and salads.

Finely ground, they play a role in the fragrant Indian spice mixture
panch phoran
, a heady blend that also includes mustard, fenugreek, cumin, and fennel seeds.

Often mistaken for onion seed, black caraway, or black cumin, these brittle and exotic seeds always seem to come as a surprise. They are rarely referred to, even in cookbooks native to the lands in which they are used, and in most languages are named for their ebony hue. Their botanical name,
Nigella
, comes from the Latin
niger
; in Russian and Yiddish they are
chornaya
or
chornushka
, and in Hindi they are
kalonji
or
kalaunji
, all signifying their color.

The shiny seeds have a long history going back to the Old Testament, in which they are referred to as
ketash
, and they were reportedly found in the tomb of Egypt’s King Tutankhamen. Once believed to be a cure for many respiratory, digestive, and circulatory ailments and to offer protection against cancer and inflammation of the joints, they are even touted in an old Arabic saying as remedies for all diseases but death.

Modern chefs looking to outdo one another with exotic seasonings could search out these sprightly palate-teasers and use them in unexpected ways. Crushing some into ice cream might be a news-making start.

Mail order:
The Spice House,
thespicehouse.com
; Penzey’s Spices, tel
800-741-7787,
penzeys.com
.
Further information and recipes:
Inside the Jewish Bakery
by Stanley Ginsberg and Norman Berg (2011);
The Artisan Jewish Deli at Home
by Nick Zukin and Michael Zusman (2013);
ejozi.co.za
(search nigella).
Tip:
As with all seeds rich in oil, rancidity becomes a danger when the seeds grow stale. If possible, a nibble before purchasing is a good idea, as is checking to see that the seeds look shiny-bright and free of any dusty film.

With so many dietary restrictions in place during the Passover week—injunctions against flour, leavening, corn-based products, and more—you might think an observant Jew with a sweet tooth would experience withdrawal. But ingenuity thrives on constraint, and in this case has given us the gift of
noant
, a chewy Passover indulgence based on dark honey and walnuts enlivened by lemon juice, spicy ginger, sugar, and tangy grated orange rind.

Allowed to set for several hours, the mixture becomes a gloriously chewy, tooth-pulling taffy.

Makes about 4 dozen candies

1 cup honey, preferably dark and unfiltered

2 cups sugar

1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice

½ teaspoon ground ginger

Grated rind of ½ medium-size orange

1½ cups coarsely chopped walnuts

1.
Have on hand a platter or cutting board that is 12 to 14 inches long and 6 inches wide. When the candy is poured onto a board it is easier to cut, but candy poured onto a platter with a small rim becomes a little thicker.

2.
Combine the honey, sugar, lemon juice, and ginger in a heavy, 2-quart saucepan and stir very gently until blended. Place the pan over low heat and cook, stirring constantly until the sugar completely dissolves, about 8 minutes. Increase the heat to medium-low and cook the honey mixture, stirring frequently, until it turns a deep golden brown and forms a soft ball when a few drops are added to a little ice-cold water, about 15 minutes. Be careful that the honey mixture does not boil up and overflow the pan. Remove the pan from the heat immediately and stir in the orange rind and walnuts. Let the honey mixture cool slightly, about 5 minutes.

3.
Meanwhile wet the cutting board or platter with cold water. Pour the honey mixture onto the board or platter. Using a wetted spatula, spread the honey mixture evenly on the cutting board or platter. Let it harden to a stiff, taffy-like consistency, 2 to 3 hours. Cut the candy into 1-inch squares to serve. Stored well wrapped in plastic or wax paper in an airtight metal container, the candy will keep for several weeks.

Mail order:
For unfiltered honey,
billsbees.com
;
naturenates.com
;
carusohoney.com
.
Tip:
Do not make noant on a rainy or very humid day, as it will not harden.

From the menu, you’d hardly know it was a seder—assuming, of course, that you’re used to the Ashkenazic version of the meal. With its exotic spicing, verdant, leafy vegetables, and colorfully herbaceous sauces and stews, the Persian (Iranian) seder that is traditional for the eastern or Mizrachic Jews is a connoisseur’s delight all the way.

Charoset
, the fruity spread that symbolizes the mortar used by the Jewish slaves who were builders in Egypt (see
listing
), is represented in this culture by a lusciously dark, sweet jam. A blend of hazelnuts, almonds, raisins, dates, apples, and jewel-like pomegranate seeds sparked with a little wine vinegar and cinnamon, it is traditionally concocted by the father of the house, its formula presumably a well-kept secret.

Being a spring holiday, Passover requires new green herbs and vegetables. And in this, the subtly soft stew
choresh qormeh sabzi
fits the bill, its cuts of tender beef sparked by a combination of parsley, spinach, green onions, fresh dill, and cilantro, with a spurt of lemon juice for freshness. So too does the meatless
kookoo sabzi
, a quichelike spinach and green herb pie fragrant with leeks and scallions. For good measure, there might also be
choresh bademjon
, a kind of goulash of fork-tender beef chunks swathed in satiny simmered-down eggplant, onions, and tomatoes, served with
chelo
, a rice pilaf. (While the Ashkenazic Jews must avoid rice during Passover, it is permitted to Mizrachic Jews.)

Pale-golden and crisp on the outside and meltingly chewy within, dessert macaroons are as common in Iranian Jewish food as they are to all Jews during this holiday, primarily because they require no flour or leavening, depending only on beaten egg whites to provide lightness to their mixture of shredded coconut or ground almonds and sugar.

Where:
In Los Angeles
, Shaherzad, tel 310-470-3242,
shaherzadrestaurant.com
;
in New York
, Parmys Persian Fusion, tel 212-335-0207,
parmyspersianfusion.com
;
in New York and environs
, Colbeh at multiple locations,
colbeh.com
; Ravagh Persian Grill at multiple locations,
ravaghpersiangrill.com
.
Further information and recipes:
nytimes.com
(search two passover feasts in unusual styles).