This week’s theme is cumin! Cumin is a spice that originated in the North African and Mediterranean regions and was imported to China during the Tang Dynasty (A.D. 618-709) via the Silk Road (AP World History, anyone?). It’s one of our favorite spices and goes wonderfully with lamb dishes and eggplant dishes 😋.
Simmered Cumin Lamb & Rice
In the top rankings of food pairings, cumin & lamb ranks somewhere between PB & J and mac & cheese. It’s so good that even folx who generally dislike lamb (like Lisa) can’t resist cumin seasoned lamb kebabs or this amazing simmered cumin lamb and rice dish. And as a bonus, in Chinese medicine, cumin & lamb are often paired to boost immunity and maintain a healthy digestive system.
This dish is from Xinjiang, an autonomous region of northwestern China, where cumin & lamb are big parts of the cuisine.
Food Lore
It’s said that this dish originated from Avicenna, a Persian philosopher and medical doctor. Elements of Avicenna’s work in medicine drew from traditional Chinese medicine, which emphasizes the intrinsic ties between food and medicine (relatedly, in recent years, Western medicine has been discovering new ways gut health affects overall health). For example, lamb, carrots, and onions are classified as “warm” foods that keep the digestive system healthy.
In his later years, Avicenna was often sick and experimented with different dishes that would help him feel better. In combining lamb, rice, carrots, and onions, he found a dish that was tasty, nutritious, and helped him recuperate from his illness. His neighbors, friends, and patients were surprised by his quick recovery, so Avicenna shared this “magical medicine dish” with everyone. The recipe spread quickly and became a much-loved, hearty, family dish.
Notes
If lamb is hard to find (some grocers stock it unreliably), you can use beef as a substitute! Overall, this dish is extremely easy to make and low maintenance.
Pan-Fried Cumin Eggplant
Pan-fried eggplant dishes originate from Sichuan cuisine in southwestern China. The addition of cumin seeds comes from Xinjiang and gives the dish the iconic taste of northwestern Chinese cuisine.
Food Lore
Because eggplants are so rich in antioxidants, they are a natural anti-inflammatory food. The earliest recorded uses of eggplants in Asia were for medicinal reasons, and because of the close ties between medicine and food in China, the domestication process for eggplants began in China as well. There’s not as much lore around the creation of this dish, but that doesn’t make it any less delicious 😊.
Word of warning though - eggplant absorbs oil like no other, so seemingly healthy eggplant dishes at restaurants may actually be very, very oily. Pan-frying (vs. deep-frying) is generally healthier since it limits the amount of oil available for this super-absorber.
Notes
Chinese eggplants and American eggplants are actually pretty different - Chinese eggplants are longer and Globe / American eggplants are rounder ⬇️
You can use either for this recipe, you’ll just need to cut the Globe / American eggplant a few more times to get the right size. This recipe is a little more time-consuming because you need to coat the eggplant pieces with flour & cornstarch and pan-fry before cooking the dish - but it’s definitely worth it!