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28
Oct 2023
Yemi’s Food Stories: A visit to the Harrogate pop-up Afghan Kitchen
Yemi Adelekan is a food writer and blogger who was a semi-finalist in last year’s BBC TV’s Masterchef competition. Every Saturday Yemi will be writing on the Stray Ferret about her love of the district’s food and sharing cooking tips – please get in touch with her if you want her to review a restaurant, visit your farm, taste the produce you sell or even share a recipe.
I first learnt about Afghanistan's national dish kabuli pulao – which consists of rice cooked with raisins, carrots, nuts, and lamb – back in 2021. I followed a recipe to create it and it was one of the most delicious, aromatic rice dishes I’d ever tasted.
The char masala mix that goes into the dish is made up of only four spices: cumin, cinnamon, black cardamom, and cloves in equal proportions. Other recipes include green cardamom and black pepper corns, but I am told the secret is the black cardamom.
When I got the invitation to the pop-up restaurant, Afghan Kitchen in Harrogate, I knew I was in for a treat. I was excited to taste the authentic version from people who have cooked and eaten this dish their entire lives.
The Afghan Kitchen is the vision of Nahid Hamidi, a wife and mother who had to flee Afghanistan with her family, leaving behind a successful charitable organisation she had built and everything else they owned.
She and some other refugee families now live in the Harrogate district - working hard to rebuild their lives. Nahid’s desire to help her fellow women led to this venture; she wanted to help them settle into their new environment and earn some income.
The women get a chance to use their skills and share their food, with the added benefit of meeting people in the community.
Yemi enjoyed Afghanistan's national dish Kabuli Pulao.
The dining experience started when we were welcomed at the door with sugared almonds that looked wintery and tasted delicious.
The starter was crispy Afghan rolls. The filling included shredded carrots, onions and other vegetables served with a hot dipping sauce made from tomato, garlic, lemon juice and chilli – which added a lovely hint of sweetness.
The anticipated main course was fragrant rice steamed in a vegetable stock with onions, julienne carrots, and plump raisins. This dish is the main attraction of any dining table. The rice was fluffy and tasty, and although it looked oily, it didn’t taste oily. I surprisingly enjoyed the raisins and carrots that brought an extra sweetness.
It was a dish that could be enjoyed on its own, but it was served with a choice of chicken dopiaza or qorma-e-lubia for vegetarians. The chicken -- spiced with garlic, cumin, turmeric, and lemon juice -- was made with twice-cooked braised onions, peppers and tomatoes. The golden yellow broth was beautifully seasoned and I enjoyed mopping it up with flatbread.
The vegetarian qorma-e-lubia reminded me of a bean dish we cook in Nigeria - using brown or black-eyed beans. The Afghan version is made by cooking kidney beans with fried onions, tomatoes, turmeric, coriander and garlic. This was comforting and delicious, and was the perfect accompaniment for the flatbread and rice.
Side dishes included sabzi -- a vegan dish made from chopped spinach, leeks and spring onions -- Afghan naan, which was freshly baked, and a fresh salad which included cucumber and red onions dressed with lemon juice.
When I was told the dessert was a cold milk pudding called Firni (also spelt Ferini), I wasn’t too excited as I’m not a huge fan of milk. However, I was blown away by how delicious it was. I tasted it and kept going back for more until it was finished.
This Afghan delight was flavoured with cardamon and finished with chopped pistachios and almonds. The dessert is served hot or cold across many parts of the Middle East, but the Afghan version is always served cold.
Green tea flavoured with cardamom and baklava were served to end the heartwarming and indulgent experience.
Nahid and her team will continue running the pop-up kitchen in Knaresborough and Harrogate whilst looking at other locations.
The price for this experience is £25 per person.
The team can be contacted via email: theafghankitchenyorkshire@gmail.com
Read more:
- Yemi’s Food Stories: Exploring Harrogate with Yorkshire Appetite Food Tours
- Yemi’s Food Stories: Let’s ‘mise en place’ this Christmas
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