RAWALPINDI: Residents of the garrison city have been developing a taste for various cuisines and after Chinese and Thai cuisines, Middle Eastern foods, especially Lebanese dishes, are fast becoming popular, with almost every other eatery in the city at least offering a dish or two.

Some of the more popular dishes served by many restaurants in the city include dajaj mashwi, falafel, hummus, mutabbel and tabbouleh.

Dajaj mashwi is grilled chicken with rice and nuts and requires very simple ingredients such as olive oil, salt, black pepper and nuts and is served with various sauces.

Falafel is small patties of grounded chickpeas which are fried in oil. Hummus is a dip made of blended chickpeas, sesame seeds, lemon juice and garlic and is served with pita bread.

Mutabbel is eggplant slow cooked with sesame seed paste, black pepper, and mixed with mayonnaise. It is then drizzled with olive oil before being served.

“I learnt how to make Lebanese dishes when I worked at the Hilton Hotel in Makkah and at a local hotel in Dhahran. Lebanese dishes are very popular in these cities,” said Mohammad Yaqoob, a chef at a local restaurant.

He said Lebanese food is gaining popularity in the twin cities due to the dishes being less spicy and easier to digest.

“Most of the dishes require oil, black pepper, salt, tahini sauce, cinnamon powder and star anise. Onions, garlic, and ginger are also used and it takes a lot less time to cook compared to South Asian food,” he said, adding that most of the dishes are served with rice or pita bread.

Lebanese food is preferred by those who cannot eat spicy foods, he added.

“Our menu consists of Central Asian and South Asian foods, but we included Lebanese dishes due to them gaining popularity in the twin cities,” said Sajajd Khan at the Khiva Revolving Restaurant in Bahria Town.

“Many customers asked us to introduce Middle Eastern foods and we now offer Lebanese dishes at the restaurant which are prepared according to the traditional recipes and ingredients used in Beirut and its surrounding areas,” he said.

A resident of Westridge, Zaheer Hassan, said he thought Lebanese food was “incredible”.

“I like French and Lebanese food the best. Shawarma was the only popular Middle Eastern dish, but with the opening of so many Lebanese outlets, people are liking more and more Middle Eastern foods. Because I eat out a lot and visit various eateries across town, I have tried almost every kind of cuisine, but find Lebanese food to be the best, because it is also healthy and easier to digest,” said Raza Malik, a resident of Chaklala Scheme III.

“Lebanese baked kebabs are a healthier alternate to our cheppal kabab as they require lesser oil and spices. One can taste all the ingredients in the baked kebabs,” he said.

Pervaiz Ahmed, another local, said he has lived in Dubai and other Middle Eastern countries and that he has developed a taste for Middle Eastern cuisine, especially Lebanese food.

“In the past, you could only have various cuisines when you went to travel, but now you have so much variety in the city, you do not need to go anywhere to try new food,” he said.

Published in Dawn, November 14th, 2016