A STROLL DOWN THE HISTORY OF FOOD

For millennia, the Middle East lay at the intersection of cultures and trade routes. Ruled by many empires, its regions and their culinary traditions are at the root of more modernday dishes than you’d think. ANOOTHI VISHAL goes on a gastronomic voyage through history.

-  ANOOTHI VISHAL

SITTING AT THE CORNICHE in Alexandria, the clear blue of the Mediterranean Sea sprawled in front and the entire hinterland of Nile Valley at your back, the vagaries of history and geography become at once clear. Here is this land that has connected the East and the West since the most ancient of times. Named by Alexander the Great, its famous library destroyed by Caesar, frequented by tradesmen, peopled by Egyptians, Arabs, French, English and many more, this may as well be the centre of the universe—crisscrossed by currents of trade, politics, wars, love affairs, decadence and more. In fact, Alexandria is not just a city, it is a metaphor—for the entire Middle East, of which it is a part.

Some of the best cuisines of the world come about when peoples, cultures, and trades mix, which is why the MENA (Middle East and North Africa) region of today offers some unparalleled culinary traditions of the world. Historically, the Middle East has been not just the crucible of civilisation but also the controller of trade and travel between the two hemispheres. Its special position led to the development of diverse cuisines too.