Sami Tamimi on Palestinian cooking and cultural preservation amid the destruction in Gaza
The spinach-like leaf, which forms the basis of a traditional stew called khubeze that has helped many Gazans stave off hunger, is one of many native plants at the centre of Palestinian cuisine.
Sami Tamimi, the acclaimed Palestinian chef who comprises half the duo behind the popular Ottolenghi deli and restaurant empire (the other half is his fellow Jerusalemite and business partner, Israeli chef Yotam Ottolenghi), paid tribute to the culinary tradition of "farming and foraging and eating what is growing in your backyard" in his cookbook Boustany (My Garden in Arabic) which will be released in the US on July 15.
The timing is poignant. In a recent conversation with Reuters, Tamimi emphasised the importance of promoting and preserving the Palestinian people's rich culinary heritage, not only amid the destruction of Gaza, but in the face of what he sees as the longstanding appropriation of traditional Palestinian dishes.
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