Τρίτη 23 Σεπτεμβρίου 2014

Greek comfort food



Makaronia me kima

Everyone and each of us have a favorite primitive memory of his favourite comfort food. Food that consoles, bringing back warm memories of motherly hugs and sweet kisses. Of Sundays around the family table and of the tantalizing smell of a home-cooked meal, wafting in the air at least fifty metres before arriving at the house door.

Although each home has its own specials, there must be a national memory rooted deep inside our genes which characterizes our crave for certain dishes. Those cooked by our mothers or grandmothers and which are registered in our subconscious mind as our safe haven from exterior threats.

Pastitsio
For many years, during the “speaking session” in my classes, I’ve been asking my students the same personal question: “Which is your favourite food?” Seven times out of ten, the answer was “Makaronia me kima”, that is spaghetti with minced meat sauce. The eighth was “pastitsio”, the more elaborated version of the same dish but this time topped with beschamel sauce and gratined. The ninth was either “souvlaki” or”pizza. Finally the tenth was usually the food that their mum used to cook best for the Sunday family reunion, such as roast lamb or chicken and potatoes.

Yemista
But the most interesting of all were the answers I got when I probed them a little more. Sometimes I got answers like “yemista” (stuffed tomatoes) “spanakopita” (spinach pie) or even “lahanodolmades” (cabbage leaves stuffed with meat, rice and herbs).
Patsas Soup


Surprisingly, “chicken soup” was not among them at all. On the other hand some of my students mentioned “patsa” a soup made with the legs and the stomach of an animal (mainly beef or pork) or “trahana”.a soup made with a traditional pasta, consisting of bulgur wheat and milk. The traditional “fasolada” (bean soup) is not so popular though a necessary evil, tolerated during the fasting weekdays (Wednesday and Friday) when
neither meat nor fish is permitted by the Christian Orthodox Church. Many a times when I mentioned it, I found myself confronted with grimacing faces.

So, which is your favourite comfort food? What reminds you of "mum"?

 

2 σχόλια:

  1. Tasty stew and dumplings made by my Mother.
    Eaten on cold Winter evenings in England!

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    1. Hot from the pot, I assume! Are you cooking those for your family? And if you do, do you manage to achieve the same flavor as your dear mum did? Because I never manage it with my mum's recipes!

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