I've just finished reading "Palace Walk" by Naguib Mahfouz, the first book of the Cairo Trilogy. What a feast it was! If you like books written in the tradition of great novels by Flaubert, Tolstoy or Dickens to name just a few, you will love this book. It is set in Cairo at the end World War I, where and when the defeat of the Germany and the Ottoman Empire leaves the Egyptian People under the occupation of the English. After Sa'd Zaghlul, the leader of the Nationalist movement is exiled, comes the social upheaval and demonstrations led by the youth, and spreads to the whole country. This, setting the background and the social circumstances to the novel, there is another force that shapes and determines the lives of the family ruled by al-Sayyid Ahmad, the psychopathic patriarch, and that force is male domination, secured itself through the centuries old traditions backed up by religion.
The book inspired me the way a masterpiece by a master does. While I was reading the book, it was not the pages and the words that I was seeing, but I was walking through the streets of Cairo, hearing the cacophony on the streets, breathing in the smells like a man, or experiencing life through a peephole or a crack in the shutters like a woman and thinking that I am safe and secure thanks to my master, my husband. I hated the story of Amina and her children, especially her female children, but I loved the way how it was brought to life through Mahfouz's incredible voice.
In Istanbul, in my home town there is a Spice Bazaar, a small replica of the Grand Bazaar, in the old part of the city, and in Turkish we call it the Egyptian Bazaar. It was and it still is the center for spice trade. When I was a young girl my grandparents used to take me there, and I would be delighted by the sounds and smells and the lights. I make a point of visiting Spice Bazaar every time I go home.
The last time I was there, my mom, my daughter and my best friend were with me, and it was amazing to share the experience with them.
So last week I was inspired by Mahfouz, by the Spice Bazaar and my childhood memories and decided to try a colorful and spicy chicken dish. How did it turn out! You decide it yourselves:)))
I am not going to give you a recipe, but I am going to tell you how I made it.
I got whole cloves, cinnamon sticks, coriander seeds, cumin seeds, and bay leaves
and by the power invested in me by the Goddess of Spices I bloomed them. Blooming is frying your spices in medium hot olive oil. Then I added my chicken, I prefer skinless, bone-in thighs, because the meat is tender and juicy. After browning the meat on each side, I took it out and added diced vegetables. Any kind of seasonal vegetable will do, I like to eat locally grown vegetables in season. With the veggies went in garlic and onions, ground turmeric (because I did not have the fresh roots), cayenne, zest of a lemon, salt and pepper. I sauteed the vegetables for a couple of minutes, put the chicken back into the pot, added the juice of a lemon, enough water to slightly cover everything and put a lid on it. When it was done I used chopped parsley for garnish. Served it on plain, steamed rice. It was what I craved for and what I was imagined would be. Enjoy!Necib Mahfuz'un Kahire Uclemesinin ilk kitabi olan Saray Gezisi'ni (Palace Walk) bitirdim. Muthis bir solen! Dickens, Flaubert, Tolstoy gibi buyuk roman geleneginde yazilmis kitaplari seviyorsaniz, bunu da seveceksiniz.
Baskent Kahire...1.Dunya Savasi sonrasi, Osmanli ve Almanya yenildikten sonra Misir Ingiliz isgali altinda kalmis, Milliyetci Hareketin onderlerinden Sa'd Zaghlul surgune gonderildikten sonra ogrenci gencligin liderliginde gosteriler ve sosyal sarsintilar baslamistir. Hikayenin geri planinda bu sosyal gelisme ve degisiklikler anlatilirken, psikopat aile reisi al-Sayyid Ahmad ve ailesinin hayatlarini belirleyen baska bir guc vardir; sirtini dine dayayarak yillarca hayata hukmetmis geleneklerle guclenen erkek egemen yasam bicimi.
Bu roman beni bir ustanin yarattigi bir baseser olarak cok etkiledi. Okurken gordugum sayfalara basilmis kelimeler degildi. Bir erkek gibi Kahire sokaklarinda dolasip, sehrin gurultusunu yasiyor, kokularini soluklaniyordum, ayni zamanda bir kadin gibi kapidaki bir delikten, pancurdaki bir catlaktan hayati yasayip, guvenligim icin efendime, kocama sukrediyordum. Amina ve cocuklarinin, ozellikle kiz cocuklarinin oykusunden nefret ettim, ama Mahfuz'un bu deneyimi dile getiren sesi harikaydi.
Kucuk bir kizken anneannem ve dedemin beni Istanbul'da Misir Carsisina goturmelerini ve o ses, isik ve kokulardan ne buyuk bir heyecan duydugumu animsadim, son gidisimde annem, kizim ve en yakin arkadaslarimdan biriyle beraberdim, o heyecani onlarla paylasmak muthisti.
Iste gecen hafta Mahfuz, Misir carsisi ve cocukluk anilarimdan esinlenerek renkli ve baharatli bir tavuk denemeye karar verdim. Nasil mi oldu! Ona da siz karar verin.
Once tane karanfil, kabuk tarcin, tane kisnis, tane kimyon ve defne yapragini (olcu vermiyorum damak zevkiniz rehberiniz olsun) Baharat Tanricasinin bana verdigi guce dayanarak zeytinyaginda kizarttim. Sonra tavuk parcalarini tencereye koydum,( genellikle derisiz, ama kemikli tavuk budunu tercih ediyorum), etlerin iki tarafini da guzelce kizartip, bir tabaga aldim. Sonra tencereye kup dogranmis sogan, sarimsak ve mevsim sebzeleri girdiler. Yerel yetismis mevsim sebzesi bulmak Turkiye semt pazarlarinda cok kolay. Sebzelere toz zerdecal (taze kok zerdacalim olmadigi icin), aci biber, limon kabugu rendesi, tuz ve karabiber ekledim, kavurdum. Tavuk parcalari yeniden tencereye donduler, bunlara bir limonun suyunu ve uzerlerini kapatacak kadar suyu ekleyip, pisirdim.
Buharda pismis pirincin uzerinde ve kiyilmis maydanozla suslenmis olarak servis yaptim. Tam canimin cektigi ve hayal ettigim gibi olmustu! Afiyet olsun!
