GAZA CITY: Muslims around the world have been busy preparing for the start of the holy month of Ramadan, which brings with it the daily fast during the hours of daylight and related traditions surrounding food and meals.
In Palestine there is a tradition associated with the first iftar of the month, which is to serve dishes that are predominantly green or white. In practical terms, this often means recipes in which either molokhia leaves or yogurt are key ingredients.
Amal Al-Khalili, a housewife from Gaza, said that on the first day of Ramadan each year she prepares molokhia, a sort of stew made from the leaves of the same name. In years when the leaves are not in season during Ramadan, and so cannot be bought fresh, they are purchased in advance, preserved and stored.
“We look at the month of Ramadan as a month that is all green, filled with goodness and reward, so I cook molokhia, which I learned to do from my mother,” said Al-Khalili. “Now my married daughters also cook molokhia on the first day of Ramadan.”
Molokhia is prepared in two main ways. In the first, the leaves are finely chopped and it is served with meat and garlic. In the second, the leaves are not chopped and is served with meat. The latter method is particularly popular in Lebanon. Plain white rice is traditionally served with the first method, while in the second, spices are added and the rice is yellow.
In some Palestinian cities, especially in the northern West Bank, the tradition for the first day of Ramadan is food that is white in color, usually with yogurt one of the main ingredients. Popular dishes include mansaf, a traditional Arab dish made of lamb that cooked in a sauce of fermented, dried yogurt and often served with rice or bulgur.
Alternatively, a stew made with yogurt and akoub is popular in Nablus and cities near the Jordan Valley. Ramadan this year coincides with the season for akoub, a thistle-like plant that is harvested from the plains of the valley. After trimming and cleaning, it is cut, fried and cooked in yogurt with meat or chicken.
Um Samer, a housewife and mother of six from Jenin in the northern West Bank, said: “We buy yogurt in advance, before Ramadan, due to of the increased demand for it at the beginning of the month because the majority of people use it on the first day, whether in mansaf or other meals.”
The Palestinians of central and southern Palestine make their Mansaf with jameed, which is a hard, dried form of yogurt made from sheep’s or goat’s milk. The people of the northern West Bank prefer to use fresh yogurt.
There is often a lot of discussion on Palestinian Facebook pages and groups about Ramadan meals and whether they should be white or green on the first few days of Ramadan. The green and white tradition is also common in Jerusalem, where many families serve molokhia or labnieh, a dish made with yogurt, meat and rice, on the first day, or the first few days, of the month.
“Ramadan begins in Jerusalem with white or green dishes in optimism that it will be a month of goodness and blessing.” said Halima Ghaith, a 66-year-old housewife who, along with her daughters-in-law, cooks for her family of 16 during Ramadan.
This means that maqluba, a very popular Palestinian dish comprising of meat, rice and fried vegetables, is often absent from dinner tables in the early days of Ramadan and instead is served later in the month.
