These days Qatar is on the agenda of the football world yet it also offers cutting-edge yet tradition-steeped cuisine for foodies all over the world.
The sophistication of the Gulf state’s restaurants makes the mouth water, blending as they do spices like saffron and cardamom with plenty of clarified butter (ghee). Here are some restaurants to learn the secrets behind some delicious dishes.
Doha’s perfect hidden pearl
The name of the Jiwan restaurant translates as "The Perfect Pearl," and it delivers on its promise of perfection. The first thing a would-be diner notices is that it’s perfectly hidden away on the fourth floor of Qatar’s National Museum.
No advertising or large signs pointing to the restaurant are evident in the museum complex, which is modeled on a sand rose in the dunes of the desert. But, once you have found the Jiwan, you will be immediately struck by the perfect view of the Gulf and the imposing skyline of Doha seen through the huge terrace’s wide glass front.
And the food does live up to this amazing spectacle. A French chef from the gourmet empire of cooking icon Alain Ducasse makes sure of that with a mouth-watering new interpretation of traditional Qatari cooking.
The Jiwan Menu, which consists of six courses, takes you on a rich journey through the country’s cuisine.
Tradition, but with a surprise twist
Among the starters, a rather inconspicuous-looking aubergine tartlet turns out to be an astonishing taste sensation. Head chef Morgan Perrigaud explains that the aubergines are first peeled, cut into thick slices, and cooked in the oven until soft. "The slices are then placed on a bed of yogurt," he said. "On top, a marinade of argan oil, dried apricots, walnuts, yellow sultanas and pomegranate seeds is drizzled and garnished with fresh herbs."
Playing with different textures and flavors is very much Perrigaud’s specialty, and his creation of beetroot on yellow beetroot puree garnished with cream cheese balls is a knockout. As for its composition, Perrigaud will reveal only that the cheese cream is smoked in the oven with rosemary.
Next, his Cumin Madruba turns out to be a spicy lamb dish where the meat is pounded and cooked until it blends succulently with soaked bulgur, black cumin, cardamom, cloves, tomatoes and ghee to form a mash. This is the soul food of the Qataris, except that Perrigaud uses bulgur instead of the more traditional rice.
Two main courses follow – one fish, one meat. Then comes a sumptuous dessert, even for the Jiwan menu. A custard made of raspberries and rose water is followed by a second round of a kind of lemon sorbet, which turns out not be made from a lemon at all, but from loomi.
"These are dried limes, a typical ingredient of Qatari cuisine," explained Naima Ettahi, a guide from Doha. "They are the size of walnuts and are almost the same color on the outside. But inside they are black." You don’t have to dry loomis yourself – they can be bought ready-made in the spice markets.
You can take inspiration from the Jiwan to create your own exotic menu – but beware – you might find that even putting fewer courses together yourself might end up costing you much, much more.